Contact: Jeff Morgan, Jeff.Morgan@iowa.gov, (515) 281-3858

DES MOINES – The State Historical Society of Iowa today announced 25 Iowa students qualified for the National History Day national finals at the University of Maryland where they will compete with nearly 2,000 students from across the country for cash prizes up to $1,000.

Monday’s NHD in Iowa junior division contest featured 307 students in grades 6-8. The senior division contest featuring 205 students in grades 9-12 will be May 1 at the State Historical Building, 600 E. Locust Street in the heart of Des Moines’ Historic East Village.

Working individually or collaboratively in groups of two to five, NHD students prepare and present research papers, exhibits, documentaries and performances about historical issues, ideas, people and events. The year-long academic-enrichment program fosters their enthusiasm for learning and encourages them to use primary, secondary, community and statewide resources on a subject of their choice related to an annual theme. This year’s theme is “Taking a Stand in History: People, Ideas, Events.”

“We have been very impressed with the quality of the students’ entries this year,” said Naomi Peuse, the state coordinator for NHD in Iowa. “These kids have worked very hard during the school year and today’s winners will have a chance in June to see how their work matches up against students from the rest of the country.”

More than 4,000 Iowa students participated in NHD school district competitions this academic year. About 60 winners from Monday’s junior division contest and next week’s senior division contest will advance to the national finals June 11-15 at the University of Maryland. Last year, Iowa had four national winners.

A highlight of Monday’s event was a presentation by Des Moines native, John Tinker, who rose to national prominence in 1965 when he joined four other students to protest the Vietnam War by wearing black arm bands in defiance of school policy. Suspended on disciplinary grounds that were upheld in federal court, the students took their case to the Supreme Court, arguing that they had been denied their right of freedom of expression under the First Amendment. In 1969, the Court ruled in their favor, determining that arm bands did not constitute a sufficient reason to abridge free speech – a decision which helped provide a legal foundation for subsequent anti-war protests.

In his remarks to about 650 NHD students, teachers, parents and volunteers, Tinker said he grew up in a household that embraced civil rights causes, especially when his father became the peace education secretary for the American Friends Service Committee after working as a minister for a number of churches in Iowa.

“A lot of people questioned whether our decision to wear the black arm bands was ours or whether we were put up to it by our fathers,” Tinker said. “Truthfully, it was our protest. When my dad found out what we were going to do he said I shouldn’t do it. After we talked about it, he realized it was a matter of conscience and said he would support me.”

Tinker, his fellow students and their families received a large amount of criticism for taking a stand on the Vietnam War.

“I’ve been called unpatriotic,” he said. “We had red paint dumped on our property and buck shot sprayed at our house from drive-by shootings. But free speech is important, perhaps the most important – it’s amendment number one. The ability to think what you want and the ability to communicate what you think is imperative for a free society.”

Tinker and his sister, Mary Beth Tinker, will also present at next week’s senior division contest.

A gala to celebrate NHD in Iowa will be Friday, May 12 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Teachers, administrators and friends of history are invited. Reservations are $15 per person and can be made by contacting Naomi Peuse at 515-281-6860 or Naomi.Peuse@iowa.gov.

NHD in Iowa has been coordinated by the State Historical Society of Iowa since 1994. Major funding comes from the State Historical Society of Iowa, Inc. of Iowa City, a federal earmark, the American Legion of Iowa Foundation and Cargill.

More information about NHD in Iowa is available at www.iowahistory.org or by contacting Naomi Peuse at 515-281-6860 or naomi.peuse@iowa.gov.

The State Historical Society of Iowa is a trustee of Iowa’s historical legacy and an advocate for understanding Iowa’s past. It identifies, records, collects, preserves, manages and provides access to Iowa’s historical resources. Its dual mission of preservation and education serves Iowans of all ages, conducts and stimulates research, disseminates information, and encourages and supports historical preservation and education efforts of others throughout the state.

Following are the NHD in Iowa junior division winners:

(Category)
(Student)
(Title of Project)
(School
(Town)
(Teacher)

Historical Paper
Claire Nagel
“Simon Wiesenthal: The Man Who Refused to Forget”
Summit Middle School
Johnston, Iowa
Kathy Paul, Connie Pruitt

Historical Paper
Kristyn Griesbach
“A Necessary Measure: Abraham Lincoln’s Suspension of Habeas Corpus”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Individual Performance
Leah Bowman
“Harmony Between Races: Marian Anderson and Eleanor Roosevelt Take a Stand”
Summit Middle School
Johnston, Iowa
Connie Pruitt

Individual Performance
Katherine Tindall
“Tennessee vs. John Scopes: An Event Which Stormed the Century”
Akron-Westfield Community Schools
Akron, Iowa
Valorie Philips

Group Performance
Claire Boerigter, Megan Cotter, Daniel Meyers, Indigo Scott
“Standing Up For Their Kause: The Women of the Ku Klux Klan”
Waverly-Shell Rock
Waverly, Iowa
Sally Thorson

Group Performance
Derek Appley, Marissa Harvey, Anthony Miller, Caine Westergard
“Amelia Earhart: Taking a Stand by Taking to the Skies”
Akron-Westfield Community Schools
Akron, Iowa
Colleen Westergard

Individual Documentary
Allison Koch
“No Choice but to Resist: Diet Eman’s Stand Against the Nazi Regime”
Taft Middle School
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Shirley Jarzombek

Individual Documentary
Sean Lovellette
“Der Aufstand! The 1953 German Uprising: Taking a Stand for a Voice”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Group Documentary
Dirk Opland, Blake Schlawin
“Martin Luther: Taking a Stand for His Beliefs”
Summit Middle School
Johnston, Iowa
Kathy Paul, Connie Pruitt

Group Documentary
Tyler Cahill, Nolan Swanson
“Jackie Robinson: Taking a Stand for African Americans, Baseball and Beyond”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Individual Exhibit
Kirstin Marriott
“Mahatma Gandhi: Taking a Nonviolent Stand for Freedom”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Individual Exhibit
Amanda Arp
“Cuban Missile Crisis”
North Tama Community
Traer, Iowa
Brent Thoren

Group Exhibit
Andrew Haler, Grant McDonald, Chase Wallace
“Bloody Omaha”
Summit Middle School
Johnston, Iowa
Connie Pruitt

Group Exhibit
Cory Greenleaf, Matt Pacha
“The 1909 Cherry Mine Disaster: Taking a Stand for Mining Safety”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Special awards were presented to the following students:

(Category)
(Student)
(Project)
(School)
(Town)
(Teacher)

Brooke Walden Memorial Award Outstanding Individual Performance
Katherine Tindall
“Tennessee v. John Scopes: An Event Which Stormed the Century”
Akron-Westfield Community Schools
Akron, Iowa
Valorie Philips

Outstanding Entry Related to Islam or the Arab World
Courtney Garnica
“Our Cry for Help: Taking a Stand for Women’s Suffrage in Egypt”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Outstanding Entry in African American History
Sam Leonard
“Black Panther Party: A Stand that Changed the Civil Right Movement”
LeMars Middle School
LeMars, Iowa
Jeanne Rust

Outstanding Use of Primary Sources
Julia Emery, Andrea Nemecek
“John Calvin, Radical Reformer”
Franklin Middle School
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Leon Lueck

Camp Silo Award
Palani Permeswaran
“Farmer’s Holiday Movement: Taking a Stand for Survival”
LeMars Middle School
LeMars, Iowa
Jeanne Rust

Outstanding Entry Related to the West
Morgan Campbell, Maddie Mandsager, Lexie Swift
“Wilma Mankiller”
Johnston Middle School
Johnston, Iowa
Kathy Paul

Outstanding Use of Newspaper Source
Aishwarya Vijay
“Influenza 1918: The Pandemic that Ravaged the Nation”
Oak Ridge School
Marion, Iowa
Julie Pegump

The American Perspective Award
Christina Clarey, Grant DeRocher, Amanda Heyl
“Abraham Lincoln: Taking a Stand and Emancipation the US at all Costs”
Akron School
Akron, Iowa
Colleen Westergard

Outstanding Overall Project
Dallas Evers
“Charles Robert Darwin: A Stand for Evolution”
Hudson Middle School
Hudson, Iowa
Wayne Hascovec

Outstanding Entry in Women’s History – First Place
Deena Altschwager
“Belva Lockwood: The First Woman to Run for President”
Harding Middle School
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Jean Oberbrockling

Outstanding Entry in Women’s History – Second Place
Ashlee Hulbert
“Exceptional Soldiers: The Long March to Equality”
Summit Middle Schoo
Johnston, Iowa
Connie Pruitt

Outstanding Entry in Women’s History – Third Place
Jenni Theisen
“Girls Basketball: Taking A Stand Against Tradition”
LeMars Middle School
LeMars, Iowa
Jeanne Rust

Country Schoolhouse Award
Austin Bennett
“Country Schools: The Foundation of Education in Iowa”
Pekin Middle School
Pekin, Iowa
Brian Stone

Early History Award
Aaron Viner
“Heir Stehe Ich!”
North Scott Middle School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Charlene Weaver Social Justice Award
Courtney Ruff
“Gandhi: A Frail Little Man and the Great Power of Nonviolence”
Wilson Junior High School
Council Bluffs, Iowa
Carrie Booms-Ryan, Betsy Rouse

Military History Award
Scott Borcher, Tim Burwitz
“Bunker Hill: Taking a Stand Against Tyranny”
LeMars Middle School
LeMars, Iowa
Jeanne Rust

Best of Iowa Award
Andrea Wilson, Abbie Cahill
“To See the Need, Is to See the Remedy: Annie Wittenmyer Takes a Stand”
North Scott Junior High School
Eldridge, Iowa
Chris Green

Kids Count! Award

Iowa Women’s Archive

Teachers selected to attend the NHD national finals with the Iowa delegation on scholarship include Laura Sievers of Sioux Central and Albert City-Truesdale schools, Jeanne Rust of LeMars Middle School, Leah Mattox of Anson Middle School in Marshalltown and Peggy Beatty of Decorah Middle School.

The NHD junior division teacher of the year is Deb Masker of Kirn Junior High School in Council Bluffs.

The NHD junior division schools of the year are: North Scott Junior High School of Eldridge, Iowa (first place); Summit Middle School of Johnston, Iowa (second place) and Akron-Westfield Community School of Akron, Iowa (third place).

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