Huntington has been a Long Island and state power in the National History Day initiative, which continues to grow in the district. Sixth graders participating in the district’s SEARCH program and seventh and eighth graders in J. Taylor Finley Middle School’s Yorker Club will join their high school counterparts in creating projects for the 2019 contest.
The 2019 national theme is “Triumph & Tragedy in History.” Students will conduct months of research to develop their projects, which will then be submitted in one of five formats: historical research papers, museum exhibits, video or computer generated documentaries, theatrical performances, and websites. Besides individual entries, all categories except papers can be completed by a group of up to five students.
Huntington High School’s National History Day club is up and running for 2018/19. “This year we have a great group of juniors who are leading the charge, said teacher Lauren Desiderio, who serves as the club’s advisor and who coordinates the initiative in the district. “They are eager to help students on all levels with their research projects. They’ve conducted several meetings already at the high school.”
This year’s National History Day club has an enthusiastic executive board, which includes Maddy Kye (president), Natalie Ciccone (vice president), Abby Semelsberger (treasurer), Neil Jean-Baptiste (recording secretary), Julien Rentsch (corresponding secretary), Diya Rai-Gersappe (historian) and administrative assistants Kyra DeSalvo, Claudia Villatoro, Maggie Lalor and Moira Contino.
The club meets weekly on Wednesday in Room 204. “Our club officers are especially excited to mentor our SEARCH students and those that will be doing NHD through the Yorker Club at Finley Middle School,” Mrs. Desiderio said. “We are excited to have members of the SEARCH program tackle a National History Day project this year.”
Teacher Jessica Risalvato worked closely with her students last year to introduce the concept of National History Day to the SEARCH program. “This year’s club officers are looking forward to mentoring and expanding the program at the sixth grade level,” Mrs. Desiderio said.
Huntington High School National History Day club members recently visited Woodhull Intermediate School for a presentation to sixth grade SEARCH students there
“They explained each of the National History Day categories and gave some advice on how to research and how to capture a judge’s attention,” Ms. Risalvato said. “The best advice they gave, in my opinion, was to choose a subject you are passionate about. The high school students also helped students brainstorm some topic ideas in relation to this year’s theme of ‘Triumph and Tragedy in History.’”
The SEARCH sixth graders were inspired. “I can’t wait to learn about the history of the world and see where our project takes us,” Emily Kustera said.
As the high school students spoke, the minds of the sixth graders were racing. “National History Day is like a history book, but more interactive for students,” Nicholas Plachta said.
Huntington High School’s National History Day club is open to all students who are participating in the initiative. “In addition, we hope to increase our participation in other research competitions such as the New York State Archives student research program,” Mrs. Desiderio said. “We’ve had a handful of students participate in this program in years past and we hope increase our participation this year.”
The trip to Woodhull was time well spent as far as the NHD club officers were concerned. “In working with the sixth graders, I hope that our program will continue to grow in both prestige and student participation,” Ms. Kye said.
There is little doubt that SEARCH students will participate in this year’s NHD initiative in high numbers. “It is fantastic to observe young students who have the distinct desire to dive deeply into researching history,” Mr. Jean-Baptiste said. “Researching will be a valuable asset in their near and distant futures. It brings me joy to be able to inspire and consequently see a student’s full excitement in discovering history.”
The SEARCH students asked plenty of good questions during the recent presentation. “Working with the sixth graders at Woodhull was a fantastic experience that I am so glad I was able to be a part of,” Ms. Ciccone said. “I loved seeing their enthusiasm and interest in National History Day. I cannot wait to continue to work with them.”
With so many young students participating in the NHD initiative, the district is expected to keep its successful edge in the program for years to come.
“I really enjoyed seeing all of the sixth graders want to learn and research more about history,” Ms. Contino said. “It is such an important subject and to see the younger kids be so excited to be a part of National History Day was great.”
Huntington’s National History Day local competition will be held on Thursday, February 7 from 6-9 p.m. at the high school. The top finishers in each of the categories will advance to the Long Island regional finals in March at Hofstra University.
The high school students were downright impressed by their sixth grade SEARCH counterparts. “I definitely believe that it is very worthwhile for kids at this young age to start participating in the program, as the research and history skills they learn now will be extremely beneficial through all of their middle and high school years,” Ms. DeSalvo said.
State History Day will be held on Monday, April 29, 2019 in Cooperstown. Huntington has enjoyed enormous success in the state contest.
Many of the Woodhull SEARCH sixth graders have already settled on their research topics. “I really loved seeing all of their excitement to learn more about topics in history,” Ms. Rai-Gersappe said. “I think they were able to really enjoy the process of picking their topics and it was an amazing experience.”
The Huntington High School students are already looking forward to their next session with the sixth graders. “It was great to see young learners so interested in history and research,” Mr. Rentsch said. “Their interests prevailed through their topic choice. Working with them to learn about what they love was a wonderful experience.”
No one would be surprised if one of the SEARCH students was a statewide honoree in the near future. “Working with the Woodhull kids was so rewarding,” Ms. Semelsberger said. “I can’t wait to see how their projects turn out. National History Day is really such a rewarding program. I hope that the Woodhull students will ultimately share that feeling of satisfaction that makes the whole experience worthwhile.”
Finley to Vie in NHD 2019
Finley students will also be vying in the 2019 National History Day competition. The school’s Yorker Club is filled with students who love history and who plan on developing a project for the initiative.
“The Yorker Club is now in full swing at Finley,” said teacher Jarrad Richter, who serves as the club’s faculty advisor. “The club members have chosen their topics to fit this year’s theme and they are currently diving into a variety of great primary and secondary sources to kick off their research. We have a great group of enthusiastic seventh and eighth grade historians who are participating in this year’s program.”
Contact Mrs. Desiderio (ldesiderio@hufsd.edu) for more information about the district’s National History Day program or to sponsor an award.
