Three student-produced websites and documentaries from Irvine placed with top honors at the National History Day National Contest in Maryland on June 15, and five other local submissions were named finalists.
After 18 Orange County entries were named champions at the statewide contest in April, students took their historical research projects to the national stage where they competed among more than 3,000 participants in the final judging rounds.
All eight of the county’s contest finalists hail from the Irvine Unified School District, which also produced one honorable mention and two special awards. In total, six medals were granted to students from California, making it the third most-awarded state at the national competition, behind New York and Minnesota.
This year’s festivities saw students return to presenting their projects in-person following three years of virtual contests. Traveling from all 50 states — some even made the trip from abroad — students gathered alongside their competitors at the University of Maryland to showcase a year’s worth of research and topic construction. OC students were joined by their parents and Orange County Department of Education professionals for support throughout the weeklong contest.
National History Day annually attracts more than half a million students in grades four through 12 at the local, county, state and national levels. Participants, working individually or in teams, study historical topics for several months before submitting original projects that may include exhibits, papers, documentaries, websites, posters, performances and podcasts.
This year’s theme was “Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas,” allowing students to explore trailblazing inventions in various fields from modern medicine to space exploration.
Venado Middle School student Jacob Dinh won second place in the Junior Individual Website category with a project that focused on the intersection of jazz music with the civil rights movement, while Portola High School students Rachel Kim and Bernice Hung won second place for Senior Group Website by highlighting the Delano grape strike’s impact on farm working conditions.
Northwood High students Ritieka Kumar and Moksha Kolli placed third in the Senior Group Documentary category after researching chemist Fritz Haber’s ammonia production process, used for synthetic fertilizers and explosives.
Returning participants and Sierra Vista Middle School students Zixuan Cui, Yongjing Li and Isabelle Yang won three national awards including fifth place junior group website for their project delving into author Amy Tan’s influence on increasing positive representation of Chinese American people in western media.
In addition to student recognition, Venado Middle School teacher Hector Gamboa won the Patricia Behring NHD Teacher of the Year Award at the state competition and received a nomination at the national level for using original teaching and learning techniques to encourage his students to think critically about historical events.
“Every year, NHD students surprise and inspire me with their enthusiasm, innovative thinking, and tireless research,” NHD Executive Director Dr. Cathy Gorn said in a statement. “The analytical skills they have cultivated will stand them in good stead for their future educational endeavors. Congratulations to the over half a million students globally who participated and to the thousands of teachers who guided them.”
Below are this year’s NHD National Contest award winners and finalists from Orange County. A full list of the 2023 honorees can be found at nhd.org/2023-Winners.
National Medalists
Second Place – Junior Individual Website
“Artists and Activists: Jazz Musicians Leading the Civil Rights Movement”
Jacob Dinh
Venado Middle School
Teachers: Hector Gamboa and John Beckman
Second Place – Senior Group Website
“There’s Blood on Those Grapes”: How the Delano Grape Strike Sprouted a Frontier for Working Conditions
Rachel Kim and Bernice Hung
Portola High School
Teacher: Wind Ralston
Third Place – Senior Group Documentary
“The Man Who United Two Frontiers: How Fritz Haber Killed Millions and Nourished Billions”
Ritieka Kumar and Moksha Kolli
Northwood High School
Teacher: Deanna Myers
National Finalists
Fourth Place – Junior Individual Website
“A Breath of Fresh Air: How California Became the Birthplace of Frontiers in Clean Air”
Frankie Holland
Irvine Virtual Academy Middle School
Teacher: Sandra Komara
Fifth Place – Junior Group Website
“Making the American Experience Visible: How Amy Tan’s Frontier Allowed Chinese-Americans Positive Representation in Western Media”
Zixuan Cui, Yongjing Li and Isabelle Yang
Sierra Vista Middle School
Teachers: Jonathan Millers and Lianne Linck
Fifth Place – Senior Group Exhibit
“Maps to Apps: How the NAVSTAR GPS Advanced Frontiers in Satellite Navigation”
Kayla Fu, Sol Kwak, Philip Park and Sean Yu
Northwood High School
Teacher: Deanna Myers
Ninth Place – Junior Individual Documentary
“Germ Theory: How an Idea Revolutionized the Medical Field”
Mahima Wuppalapati
Beacon Park K-8 School
Teacher: Jonathan Millers
Ninth Place – Junior Group Exhibit
“123 Sesame Street: The Frontier of Childhood Growth”
Anna Cao and Jennica Alixes
Sierra Vista Middle School
Teachers: Jonathan Millers and Lianne Linck
Honorable Mention – Junior Group Website
“Negotiating Identity at the Frontier: The Role of the Carlisle School in Cultural Assimilation”
Ansh Gosain and Matthew Lee
Sierra Vista Middle School
Teachers: Jonathan Millers & Lianne Linck
Special Awards
Asian American Special Award / Outstanding in State (Junior Division)
“Making the American Experience Visible: How Amy Tan’s Frontier Allowed Chinese-Americans Positive Representation in Western Media”
Zixuan Cui, Yongjing Li and Isabelle Yang
Sierra Vista Middle School
Teachers: Jonathan Millers and Lianne Linck