Fugett Middle School Students Move on to Final Phase of the 2018 National History Day Competition

Jake Coombe (left,) Tommy Scheuer, Liam Aylsworth, Chase Latyak, Alison Alexis

Students from Fugett Middle School are moving on to the final phase of the 2018 National History Day Contest after a strong showing in the state competition on May 11 & 12 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

8th-graders Liam Aylsworth, Jake Coombe, Chase Latyak, and Tommy Scheuer won 1st place in the Junior Group Documentary category with their film entitled "The Space Race: From Competitive Fight to Cooperative Flight." Click here to view their winning documentary. 

8th-grader Alison Alexis essay "The Comics Code: Conflict and Compromise," took second place in the Junior Paper category.  Sixteen students in all from Fugett submitted projects. This year's contest marks the first time Fugett has had more than one project qualify for nationals in the same year.

A different theme for the contest is chosen every year. According to the National History Day website, the theme is based on the broad application to world, national, or state history and its relevance to ancient history or to the more recent past. This year's theme is Conflict and Compromise in History. The categories include documentaries, exhibits, papers, performances, and websites.

National History Day is a year-round academic program for students in grades 6-12. The Chester County Historical Society in the coordinator for National History Day in Chester and Delaware Counties. Over 2,000 students compete in the contest locally, with approximately 400 advancing to the regional level. Many students continue on to the state and national competition. The National Contest will be held June 10-14 at the University of Maryland, College Park.