Students advance to State History Fair after placing at Regionals

Charles County Public Schools hosted the 2018 History, Industry, Technology and Science (HITS) Expo on March 24 at St. Charles High School, during which students presented History Day entries. First- and second-place category winners advance to the state competition on April 28 at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

The following students placed at the Charles County History Day competition. 

Winners in the Historical Paper are

• Nathan Londres, first place, seventh grade, Mattawoman Middle School, “The Marshall Plan;”
• Riley James, second place, seventh grade, Piccowaxen Middle School, “The Pullman Strike;” and
• Tony Edwards, third place, seventh grade, John Hanson Middle School, “Did the New York City Draft Riots Expose a Social Divide Among the Citizens?”

Winners in the Performance category are  

• Nina Dizon, Khushi Pannu and Kiya Thomas, first place, seventh grade, Mattawoman, “Witches on Trial;” and
• Maggie Chen, Sienna Scott and Kayleigh Waddell, second place, seventh grade, Theodore G. Davis Middle School, “The Holocaust Death Camps.”

Winners in the Individual Documentary, junior division, are  

• Joshua Sandifer, first place, seventh grade, General Smallwood Middle School, “Martin Luther’s 95 Theses and the Protestant Reformation;”
• Robert Taylor, second place, seventh grade, Davis, “The Salem Witch Trials;” and
• Caleb Batchelor, third place, seventh grade, Smallwood, “The Pullman Strike.”

Winner in the Individual Documentary, senior division, is 

• Samaa Ayyad, first place, senior, St. Charles High School, “The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict.”

Winners in the Group Documentary, junior division, are

• Samantha Goldenberg and Skylah Phillip, first place, seventh grade, Matthew Henson Middle School, “First Female Actress: Margaret Hughes;”
• Jaden Mangum and Lauryn Simpson, second place, seventh grade, Davis, “The Camp David Accords;” and
• Bianca Etheridge and Paulene Grier, third place, seventh grade, Mattawoman, “The Cuban Missile Crisis.” 

Winners in the Individual Website, junior division, are  

• Nathan Todd, first place, seventh grade, Piccowaxen, “UAW v. General Motors: Sit Down for Compromise;”
• Brady Keech, second place, seventh grade, Piccowaxen, “The Maryland Toleration Act of 1649;” and
• Caitlyn Gaskill, third place, seventh grade, Piccowaxen, “Japanese Internment.”

Winners in the Group Website, junior division, are 

• Graciella Ndjampa, Kelsey Njembu and Nehemiah Strawberry, first place, eighth grade, Hanson, “Nelson Mandela: The Fight to End Apartheid;”
• Marissa Hayden and Cenia Sims, second place, seventh grade, Smallwood, “Working Women;” and
• Victoria Herrera and Madison Koontz, third place, seventh grade, Piccowaxen, “Japanese Internment.”

Winners in the Individual Exhibit, junior division, are  

• Jasmin Ali, first place, seventh grade, Mattawoman, “The Sikh Conflict;”
• Michaela Raqueno, second place, seventh grade, Mattawoman, “The Prohibition Act of 1920;” and
• Peter Luster, third place, seventh grade, St. Mary’s Bryantown School, “The Compromise of 1877.”

Winners in the Group Exhibit, junior division, are 

• Alizah Carter and Rashaad Carter, first place, seventh grade, Hanson, “The Division of Berlin After WWII;”
• Madyson Ferrer and Erika Quenano, second place, eighth grade, St. Mary’s Bryantown, “WAC Program;” and
• Anna Compton, Trinity Treadway and Delaney Weiss, third place, seventh grade, Milton M. Somers Middle School, “Bloody Mary.”

Winners in the Group Exhibit, senior division, are

• McKenzie Curtis, Morgan Curtis and Ashlyn Milstead, first place, sophomores, St. Charles, “The Salem Witch Trials;” and
• Anna Bylan, Rachel Jover and Faith Washington, second place, sophomores, St. Charles, “Equality: The Time is Now.”

The following students received special awards:

• Brady Keech, seventh grade, Piccowaxen, “The Maryland Toleration Act of 1649,” award from the African American Heritage Society of Charles County;
• Jazmine Richardson, seventh grade, Davis, “Race and Voting in Reconstruction South,” award from the African American Heritage Society of Charles County;
• McKenzie Curtis, Morgan Curtis and Ashlyn Milstead, sophomores, St. Charles, “Salem Witch Trials,” award from the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.;
• Dailyn Gaines, seventh grade, Hanson, “Brown v. Board of Education,” award from the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.;
• Marissa Hayden and Cenia Sims, seventh grade, Smallwood, “Working Women,” award from the American Legion Randolph Furey Post 170;
• Jalyn Kennedy, seventh grade, Mattawoman, “Tobacco Farming in Maryland,” award from the Charles County Archaeological Society of Maryland;
• Megan Luther, seventh grade, Hanson, “Rosie the Riveter,” award from the Charles County Commission for Women;
• Gavin Dobbins, seventh grade, Hanson, “Big Man, Little Hearts: Vivien Thomas’ Rise Over Conflict,” award from the Charles County Heritage Commission;
• Tiffany Abell, seventh grade, Smallwood, “Patrick Henry and the American Revolution,” award from the Ella Virginia Houck Holloway Chapter, U.S. Daughters of 1812;
• Jazmine Richardson, seventh grade, Davis, “Race and Voting in the Reconstruction South,” award from the Eta Omicron Sigma Chapter, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc.;
• Olivia McNeil, seventh grade, Henson, “Charles A. Lancaster, Sr.,” award from the Eta Omicron Sigma Chapter, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc.;
• Alivia Forbes, seventh grade, Smallwood, “Lincoln Assassination: The Conspiracy,” award from the Historical Society of Charles County;
• Nicole Silbermann, seventh grade, Smallwood, “The Road to Revolution,” award from the Port Tobacco Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution;
• Samantha Goldenberg and Skylah Phillip, seventh grade, Henson, “First Female Actress: Margaret Hughes,” award from the Port Tobacco Players; and
• Princesa Sibilia-Depaz, seventh grade, Davis, “Bloody Mary,” award from the Southern Maryland Chain Chapter, The Links Inc.

A complete list of students who received awards in the science fair portion of the HITS Expo is posted on the Charles County Public Schools website at www.ccboe.com/pr/. 

About CCPS

Charles County Public Schools provides 26,900 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 36 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.

The Charles County public school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability in its programs, activities or employment practices. For inquiries, please contact Dr. Patricia Vaira, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (students) or Nikial M. Majors, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 coordinator (employees/adults), at Charles County Public Schools, Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, P.O. Box 2770, La Plata, MD 20646; 301-932-6610/301-870-3814. For special accommodations call 301-934-7230 or TDD 1-800-735-2258 two weeks prior to the event.