This is a guest blog post written by Special Collections intern Skyler Putman.
Every spring, the Northwest Arkansas Community College hosts the region 10 National History Day. National History Day is a chance for students in sixth through twelfth grade to participate in history based research projects, contesting to reach regionals, state and nationals. Multiple institutions help with this event, including Special Collections at Mullins Library through Joshua Youngblood and Rebekah Love. As the spring intern of Special Collections this semester, I got to participate in this year’s National History Day.
I sought out an internship at Mullins Library to further explore any skills one could learn before beginning a career with Special Collections and archives at institutions like libraries and museums. My passion for history and learning led me here, but although I love history, and am a history major, I had never heard of National History Day (being more involved in forensics and theater in high school). Being involved in the hosting of an event focused on helping students with history and research was an opportunity to fulfill an aspect of high school I didn’t have a chance to be in.
My role up until National History Day was objectively minimal, with much of the heavy lifting given to Mr. Youngblood and Miss Love. I focused primarily on editing presentations, the UARK LibGuide for students to use for research, and reaching out to a local museum for participation. These all helped facilitate more skills training that I can use for my career in archives and preservation, which I find incredibly valuable. Finally, on March fourth, I got to see the hard work many people had put into making this event successful, as well as the additions of my contributions.
The morning started with immediate engagement to have classrooms ready for students and judges, with the latter arriving early for training. I have had experience in setting up for events before – making sure there is food out for students, checking participants from different schools, etc. But now I could contribute more than the standard – I was able to be directly involved in the process of executing the event successfully. I became more involved through behind the scenes actions, like adding the names, rankings, and events that students placed in for the final presentation. This was my favorite involvement by far for National History Day, as it allowed me to be placed in a room with judges and coordinators; I felt like I was bringing something to the table to help these students succeed in advancing to state competition. I also feel like any practice working with technology and editing is valuable to sharpening skills I spoke of.
After the busy work by judges to place these students who worked hard to qualify for state, as well as others to keep students and judges fed and continue the flow of the event, the final ceremony was about to begin. Seeing the white hall auditorium fill with students and teachers alike (as well as parents coming to support their children) reminded me of when I would wait for the ceremonies at forensics and theater events, and made me even more glad that these students still carry on tradition of competition as well as research in history that I never experienced. I was able to further capture this, literally, through a camera as students went to the stage to collect their prizes. As I sat amongst the crowd capturing the photos of students to promote National History Day, I got to observe how their hard work paid off, as well as the teachers who were extremely proud to see their students accept awards.
My experience with National History Day continued after the event ended, as I was able to witness a meeting between Mr. Youngblood and Katelyn Dwyer, a first place student who will be heading towards state to compete once again (Katelyn is pictured here with the State tournament organizer, Angela Adams). In these meetings, students who are advancing can see how they are able to improve their essay, bibliography, and other materials to present for state. I was able to talk with Miss Dwyer about her experience with National History Day; Miss Dwyer placed first in the senior paper division through her research on Chief Standing Bear and how he stood in the court of law for Ponca people’s rights. She first heard about National History Day through her history teacher Dr. Dickinson, and wanted to begin competing to share the story of Chief Standing Bear after first hearing about his story on NPR (national public radio). As Miss Dwyer did more research, she “wanted to share his story with an audience and NHD allows me that opportunity”. Overall, she loved participating in National History Day, and seems excited to participate in state.
Although I myself wasn’t able to compete in National History Day as a 6-12 student, participating in the hosting of the event was a valuable experience as a history major, as well as listening to a personal testament from a student who will continue to participate in the state competition. It was a special opportunity to work through the NWACC institution, with this year’s National History Day being their last to host. It was also nice to be able to work with Rebekah Love, who will be advancing in her career, with this year’s event also being her last. National History Day is a great experience for students, as well as me as an intern, and may be something I’d like to be part of again in the future if possible.