In February, the department of history welcomed more than 120 junior high and high school students to the campus of Missouri State University for the regional National History Day competition. Students presented their projects for judging based on the year’s theme: “Debate and Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, Consequences.”

Graduate students in the department of history helped organize and judge the contest. The top three finalists from each category advanced to the state competition held on April 9 at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

We want to congratulate those students from District 7 for placing in the state competition. Students and groups with a top-three finish qualify for the national contest in College Park, Md. in June:

• Junior Group Web Site (first place)
  “The Cuban Missile Crisis: Nuclear Disaster Averted” by Sasidhar Karuparti, Gabriel Ting and Alexander Baker from the Central High School Scholars Program, Springfield
• Junior Individual Performance (fourth place)
  “John Ross: Chief of Diplomacy” by Noah Comstock, Strafford Middle School
• Junior Group Performance (first place)
  “Women’s Rights Debate: The Petticoat Rebellion” by Amanda Morrison and Quinlan Pulleyking from the Central High School Scholars Program, Springfield
• Junior Group Documentary (fifth pace)
  “Peace in Our Time: Neville Chamber and Appeasement” by Abby Conner and Anneliese Kerr from the Central High School Scholars Program, Springfield
• Senior Historical Paper (sixth place)
  “The Entente Cordiale” by Ellen Eisenhour from Central High School, Springfield
• Senior Individual Web Site (fourth place)
  “Standoff between CSA and FBI ends Peacefully” by Ty Vestal from Hillcrest Hisgh School, Springfield
• Senior Group Documentary (second place)
  “We Shall Overcome: Brown v. Board of Education” by Yoonji Kim and Valerie Quirk from Central High School, Springfield

The 2012 theme for National History Day is “Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History.”