During NHD historical tales came back to life in the Blue Dungeon on Thursday, Nov.1 as underclassmen and faculty gathered for the annual National History Day event. Students demonstrated their knowledge of their research topic related to this year’s “Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History” theme through papers, documentaries, exhibits, websites, performances, and more.

“I thought that the live performances were very interesting. One of them was about a topic [The Salem Witch Trials] I haven’t learned about much, and the actors [participating students] did very well embracing their roles. Overall, it was a very educational and entertaining performance to watch,” freshman Bryce Merner said. 

Students focused on accurately educating their peers on history in an entertaining manner; for example, students who performed live dressed up as and embraced their characters.

“National History Day was a fun project where my friends and I were able to find a [historical] topic that we found interesting and make a project on it. This lets us have creativity along with work on our teamwork skills, freshman Juan Valeri Bermudez said. 

Previous NHD competitors were impressed with how the passion of their classmates translated into rigorous historical analysis. 

“I was walking through the Blue Dungeon today, and I was impressed with all of the [historical] projects and exhibits that were built. I created an [NHD] project last year, and it was an amazing experience. I learned a lot about a topic I was truly interested in, and it was  fun,. ” sophomore Tomas Irribaren said. 

Students reflected on history as a whole during NHD bringing light to all the aspects of history. Whether it be reflecting on a positive or a negative event in history, students gained a deeper understanding of the events that have shaped our current society, helping them avoid repeating history’s mistakes while inspiring positive change.