Every year National History Day frames students' research within a historical theme. History is more than facts and dates. The annual theme is broad to allow students to explore topics in ancient, world, national or state history. Students draw a connection to the theme by understanding their topic's historical context and significance. The 2023 NHD theme is Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas.
Need some ideas to help get you started? Check out what previous Ohio History Day students have done in the sample projects below.
Documentary
Exhibit
Paper
Performance
Website
See below for brief descriptions of the contest submission procedures for each category. Pay close attention to the requirements for the written materials (title page, process paper, annotated bibliography). Please note: For full instructions and required guidelines read the Contest Submission Guide (coming Fall 2022).
Websites
URLs for Website entries should be submitted through your contest’s NHD registration site.
Papers
Students who compete in this category should upload their papers and written materials to their contest’s registration site. Please note, your original paper uploaded with your registration at the regional level will follow your project to the state contest registration if you advance to the state contest. If you need to edit your paper, remember to upload the updated entry before the registration deadline.
Documentary
Documentary students need to record and save their projects in .MP4 format and their required written materials as a PDF. These will then be uploaded to your contest’s registration site.
Exhibit
All exhibit participants are required to create a physical exhibit for all regional and the state Ohio History Day contests. Students are required to save their written materials as a PDF and upload them to your contest’s registration site.
Performance
All performances will take place live at the in-person contests. Students are required to save their written materials as a PDF and upload them to your contest’s registration site.
All judging evaluations will be collected, sorted by schools and returned to participating teachers the following school week. Evaluating history is a subjective process, but criteria and methods have been established to achieve fair decisions. Here is a description of how the judging process will work at Ohio History Day:
Use of Evaluation Forms: Each judge will have an evaluation form for the entries they are judging. They are instructed to use these sheets to write positive, critical evaluations of each entry. Written comments are stressed in judging orientation because this is the principal feedback students receive from the event. Click to view the revised 2022 evaluation forms. (For a list of significant updates click here.)
Ratings: All History Day judging decisions are made by the consensus of the judging teams. In effect, History Day judging is a jury process where the judges have to reach a shared conclusion, rather than an arbitrary point system. Ratings vary from one judging group to another. Each set of judges establishes their own standards for ratings. Ratings cannot be compared across different judging teams.
Final Judging: Categories with a single team of judges will have award decisions made by those teams. Categories with multiple teams of judges will have run-offs that will consider the top two-three entries from the initial judging groups. A new set of judges, or a combination from the original teams, will evaluate the final entries and determine state award winners.
Run-Offs: Be advised that there WILL BE judging run-offs in at least the exhibit, documentary and performance categories. We hold run-offs or a second round of judging for any category that has enough entries to warrant two-judge teams. The top picks from each judging team will then advance to a second round. A new set of judges, or a combination from the original teams, will evaluate the final entries and determine rankings.
Contest Date: Sat., March 4 |
Contest Location: Cleveland History Center/Case Western Reserve University
Contest Date: Sat., Feb. 25 |
Contest Location: McKinley Presidential Library & Museum
Counties:
Allen, Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Lucas, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert, Williams, Wood
Register Here
Coordinator:
Becky Brown
Bowling Green State University
Department of History
137 Williams Hall
Bowling Green, Ohio 43403
p. 419.372.2030
[email protected]
Contest Date - TBD
Registration Dates and Fees:
Counties:
Ashland, Crawford, Erie, Huron, Marion, Morrow, Ottawa, Richland, Sandusky, Seneca, Wyandot
Register Here
Coordinator:
Jeremy Angstadt
Museum Services Manager
Sandusky Library
114 W. Adams St.
Sandusky, OH 44870
p. 419.625.3834
[email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., March 25, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees
Counties:
Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Summit
Register Here
Coordinator:
Dr. Mary Manning
Cleveland History Center
10825 E. Blvd.
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
p. 216.721.5722 x1503
[email protected] | History Day at Western Reserve Historical Society
Contest Date - Sat., March 4, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees:
Counties:
Ashtabula, Geauga, Mahoning, Portage, Trumbull
Register Here
Coordinator:
David Simonelli
Youngstown State University
Department of History | DeBartolo Hall, Room 537
One University Plaza
Youngstown, OH 44555
p. 330.941.1601
f. 330.941.2304
e: [email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., April 1, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees
2021 Region 4 Winners
Counties:
Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Stark, Tuscarawas, Wayne
Register Here
Coordinator:
Allyson Carlson
The McKinley Museum & Presidential Library
800 Mc Kinley Monument Dr NW
Canton, OH 44708
p. 330.455.7043
e: [email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., February 25, 2023
Registration Deadlines & Fees
Counties:
Delaware, Fairfield, Fayette, Franklin, Knox, Licking, Madison, Pickaway, Union
Register Here
Coordinator:
Emily Volkmann
Museums & Programs Coordinator
Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board
Ohio Statehouse
p. 614.466.9335
e. [email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., March 11, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees
Counties:
Auglaize, Champaign, Clark, Darke, Greene, Logan, Mercer, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, Shelby
Register Here
Coordinator:
Andy Hite
Johnston Farm and Indian Agency
9845 N. Hardin Rd.
Piqua, Ohio 45356
p. 937.773.2522 / 800.752.2619
e: [email protected]
Contest Date - TBD
Registration Dates and Fees
Counties:
Adams, Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton, Highland, Warren
Register Here
Coordinator:
Tony Lawson
Cincinnati Museum Center
1301 Western Ave.
Cincinatti, OH 45203
p. 513.287.7000 ext 7201
e: [email protected]
Contest Date - TBD
Counties:
Athens, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs, Pike, Ross, Scioto, Vinton
Register Here
Coordinator:
David A. Moore & Gwen Daniels
Gallia-Vinton ESC
University of Rio Grande, Wood Hall Rm. 131
p. 740.245.0593
e: [email protected] | [email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., March 4, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees
Counties:
Belmont, Coshocton, Guernsey, Monroe, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Perry, Washington
Register Here
Coordinator:
Dr. William Kerrigan
Muskingum University
112 Cambridge Hall
10 College Dr.
New Concord, Ohio
p. 740.826.8273
e: [email protected]
Contest Date - Sat., March 25, 2023
Registration Dates and Fees
The 2023 State Contest will take place in-person on Saturday, April 22, 2023.
Qualify for the State Contest? Congrats! Click here to log in to the state contest. Use your username and password that you registered with for your regional contest. For more detailed instructions, please view the State Qualifier Packet. Got questions? Reach out to the Ohio History Day team at [email protected].
Interested in applying for a special award at the State Contest? Nominate yourself through your online registration, AND email us a copy of your process paper and annotated bibliography with a copy of the Special Award Cover Sheet. You MUST send in a full application for EACH award nomination.
All submissions must be emailed to [email protected] by Monday, April 10, 2023. Follow the instructions in the online registration system carefully. See the list of available special awards below.
On Mon., April 25, 2022 we held our live Virtual Awards Ceremony, celebrating all the hard work of Ohio's students! Missed the ceremony? Be sure to check out the recording below. Popcorn and noise-makers are not included, but are highly recommended!
AWARD CEREMONY RECORDING COMING SOON!
The Final Stage! Each year nearly 3,000 students, their families and teachers gather at the University of Maryland, College Park for this week-long event. These enthusiastic groups come from all over the United States, Guam, American Samoa, and affiliates in China, Korea, Latin America and southeast Asia. After spending months researching and preparing their projects, and competing at local and state contests, these students are eager to show their hard work on the national stage. For more information visit: https://www.nhd.org/national-contest.
Virtual Contest Date - Sun., June 12 through Thurs., June 16, 2022
History of the Physical Sciences and Technology
The Montreal Protocol: A Successful Diplomatic Achievement That Resolved the Debate Over the Ozone Layer
Students: Siya Lakireddy, Aanya Lakireddy
School: Birchwood School of Hawken
Teacher: Constance Miller, Joe Parrino
Junior Division
Loving v. Virginia: Striking Down Interracial Marriage Bans
Students: Reena Sivakumar
School: Mason Middle School
Teacher: Erin White
Senior Division
Debating Reproductive Rights: Definition, Interpretation, & Uneasy Diplomacy in the Shadow of Roe v Wade
Students: Mackenzie Mathers, Abigail Fracker
School: Maysville High School
Teacher: Lance McGee
Junior Group Documentary
The Great Divide: The Bloody Legacy of the India-Pakistan Partition
Student: Atidya Mohan, Shashini Mohan, Nakshatra Mohan
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
Junior Group Exhibit
Dorothea Dix – Diplomat for the “Insane”
Students: Mariana Del Rio, Tarunika Saravanan
School: Birchwood School of Hawken
Teacher: Connie Miller, Joe Parrino
Barbed Wire County
Students: Emilea Gilber, Julianna Trudden
School: Genoa Middle School
Teacher: Deanna McDaniels, Leslie Thompson
Junior Group Performance
Meetings in the Monroe Room: Press Conference Diplomacy with Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt
Students: Brylee Preston, Daphne McCombs, Rory Martin, Elexis Ray
School: River Valley Middle School
Teacher: Lisa Richie
Jane Goodall and the Debate over Primate Intelligence
Students: Jonas Baird, Lilah Baird
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
Junior Group Website
"WE HOLD THE ROCK!" The American Indian Occupation which Sparked a Debate Toward Self-Determination
Students: Ayat Jaffar, Stephen Parrino, Joshua Chen
School: Birchwood School of Hawken
Teacher: Joseph Parrino, Connie Miller
Jane Addams: Debates of Her Diplomatic Efforts
Students: Onna Spiker, Joelle Moreland, Kaitlyn Sanders, Camdyn Tyson
School: Dresden Elementary School
Teacher: Molly Orr
Junior Individual Documentary
The Cuban Missile Crisis: Diplomacy of Kennedy vs. Khrushchev
Students: Jack D'Cruz
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
May 4, 1970: Four Dead in Ohio - The Debate Over Who is to Blame
Students: Oliver Sekorky
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
Junior Individual Exhibit
The Ghost Army: Communication and Deception by the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops
Students: Cehan Ahmad
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
The Geneva Convention of 1949 - The Diplomatic Effort to Protect a Common Humanity
Student: Angel Commager
School: St. Barnabas School
Teacher: Judith Darus
Junior Individual Performance
Graham vs. Connor: the Successful Promotion of the Reasonableness Standard and the Debate Over its Failure to Hold Police Accountable
Students: Isabella Bixler
School: Birchwood School of Hawken
Teacher: Joe Parrino, Connie Miller
“They’ve Labeled Us the Hollywood Ten”: The Debate against the House Un-American Activities Committee
Students: Jackson Kenny
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
Junior Individual Website
The Portsmouth Peace Treaty: President Theodore Roosevelt's Double-Edged Diplomacy during the Russo-Japanese War
Students: Ethan Chen
School: Menlo Park Academy
Teacher: Frank O’Grady
Junior Paper
Hamilton vs. Jefferson: Early Republic Diplomacy and the Debate That Shaped the Nation
Students: Omar Elbadawy
School: Birchwood School of Hawken
Teacher: Connie Miller, Joe Parrino
Debate and Diplomacy in Cold War Spying: The Successes, Failures, and Consequences of the U-2 spy plane incident
Student: Neelesh Gupta
School: Lee Burneson Middle School
Teacher: Linda Worthington
Senior Group Documentary
Liberty Through Diplomacy: The Iran Hostage Crisis
Students: Taye Ziv, Henry York, Shawn Yu
School: Shaker Heights High School
Teacher: Sarah Davis
Toxic Waste Dump: The Debate and Diplomacy Behind Love Canal
Student: Jillian Nelson, Jonas Conn, Ellie Dew
School: Whetstone High School
Teacher: Krista Buckley
Senior Group Exhibit
Integral Integration: Story of the Little Rock Nine
Students: Annabel Coxon, Shelby McBee
School: Shaker Heights High School
Teacher: Sarah Davis
Concert of the Century: A First Lady's Diplomatic Fight for Social Justice
Student: Linnea Koops, Madeleine Fraser, Eilidh Horn, Julia Babic
School: Shaker Heights High School
Teacher: Sarah Davis
Senior Group Performance
The Kent State Massacre: A Debate and Eventual Failed Diplomacy Regarding Nixon's Honesty and Intension to End the War in Vietnam
Students: Parker Williams, Matthew Davis, Derek Combs
School: Tri-County North High School
Teacher: Stacy Williams
Abolition in Ohio: Plymouth Church
Student: Vivian Auten, Josie Mayhew, Matthew Huang
School: Shaker Heights High School
Teacher: Sarah Davis
Senior Group Website
Texas v. Johnson: A Case of Debate and Diplomacy Over Symbolic Speech
Students: Rebecca Chin, Liam Workman, Abby Gemechu
School: Hawken Upper School
Teacher: Kenneth Clark
Senior Individual Documentary
Dimsum Diplomacy: Chinatowns in America
Students: Annie Nguyen
School: Western Reserve Academy
Teacher: Sarah Horgan
"As Long as the Grass Shall Grow”
Students: Sophia Alleman
School: Ursuline High School
Teacher: Nicole Uerling
Senior Individual Exhibit
Scopes Monkey Trial: The Continuing Debate Over What Is Taught As Truth
Students: Nevada Williams
School: Christian Community School
Teacher: Michael Hoehn
Saloon Smashers to Suffrage
Students: Julia Filby
School: Shaker Heights High School
Teacher: Sarah Davis
Senior Individual Performance
Elizabeth Cady Stanton: A Diplomat Who Brought the Debate Over Women's Rights to the Public Eye
Students: Brianna Wagoner
School: Tri-County North
Teacher: Stacy Williams
The Pinochet Trial
Student: Charlotte Quick
School: Northview High School
Teacher: Ian Malcolm
Senior Individual Website
Banana Diplomacy to Banana Rebellion
Students: Ela Mody
School: Western Reserve Academy
Teacher: Sarah Hogan
Debate and Diplomacy: The Presidential Debates of 1960
Student: Autumn Barrows
School: Maysville High School
Teacher: Lance McGee
Senior Paper
Lack of Diplomacy in the United Nations; The Effects of the Negroponte Doctrine
Students: Sumedha Mahesh
School: Western Reserve Academy
Teacher: Sarah Hogan
The Defenestration of Prague: Failed Diplomacy between Catholics and Protestants and its Dire Consequences
Student: Ashley Allton
School: St. Francis DeSales High School
Teacher: Colleen Mascarin
