(Hartford, CT) June 18, 2026 – Fifty-six students in grades 6-12 represented Connecticut at the prestigious 2026 National History Day® Contest at the University of Maryland this past week. The Connecticut History Day team, sponsored by LesserEvil of Danbury, joined over 2,800 students from the U.S. and overseas to compete in the 51st National History Day® Contest last week. Middle and high school students earned a spot on the Connecticut team by finishing in the top two at the Connecticut History Day State Contest following a win at regional contests held earlier in the spring. Connecticut History Day, an affiliate of National History Day®, is a Connecticut Democracy Center program in-residence at Connecticut’s Old State House.
The National History Day® awards ceremony was live streamed from the Xfinity Center at the University of Maryland, College Park. To view the Welcome Ceremony or Awards Ceremony, visit https://nhd.org/en/contest/national-contest/ . The Connecticut Democracy Center is pleased to share the names of the students who were honored:
First Place
Student: Ruopan (Tiger) Song
Category: Senior Paper
School: Loomis Chaffee School (Windsor)
Title: “The Railway That Toppled the State: The Sichuan Railway Protection Movement and China’s Gentry-State Rupture of 1911”
First Place
Student: Aaron Aldrin
Category: Junior Individual Website
School: Timothy Edwards Middle School (South Windsor)
Title: “The Day the Sun Took Center Stage: Copernicus’ Silent Revolution and the Collapse of an Old Cosmos”
Second Place
Students: Julianne Pashe, Katie Smith
Category: Junior Group Exhibit
School: Ellington Middle School
Title: “Once Seen, Never Forgotten: How the Revolutionary Coney Island Incubator Babies Reformed Neonatal Care”
Third Place
Student: Tyler Malkin
Category: Senior Paper
School: Greenwich High School
Title: “A Tale of Two Revolutions: How the Response to a Revolutionary Medical Breakthrough Saved the American Revolution”
Tyler’s paper was one of only 14 projects selected for the special National History Day®
White House Historical Association Writers Seminar that took place on June 17.
Special Prizes
Outstanding CT Award Junior Division and 5th Place
Students: Salma Hassan, Sohyla Hassan
Category: Junior Group Website
School: Madina Academy (Windsor)
Title: “A Prescription for Revolutionary Transformation: How Reactions to the Thalidomide Crisis Catalyzed Global Reform”
Outstanding CT Award Senior Division and 6th Place
Students: Jacob Brown, Charles Guida
Category: Senior Group Exhibit
School: Rockville High School (Vernon)
Title: “Vietnam: The Televised War”
Finalists
6th Place
Students: Amelia Winn, Cameron Smith
Category: Junior Group Exhibit
School: Center School (Ellington)
Title: “A Teaching Revolution: The Creation of ABA Therapy”
7th Place
Student: Noah Bruno
Category: Senior Individual Documentary
School: Staples High School (Westport)
Title: “NASA: How a Space Agency Drove Civil Rights Reforms”
Noah’s documentary was selected as one of only twenty-two projects featured in a special National History Day® Documentary Showcase at the National Museum of African American History on Wednesday, June 17.
8th Place
Students: Sahana Bhandary-Alexander, Titiladeoluwa Adeniran
Category: Senior Group Documentary
School: Engineering- Science Magnet School (New Haven)
Title: “A Trail of Principles: Prudence Crandall’s Case for Education and the Legal Foundation of American Civil Rights”
Honorable Mentions
Student: Emilie Mathieu
School: Sedgwick Middle School (West Hartford)
Category: Junior Paper
Title: “The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom: How the Reactions to the Revolution Reformed American Society”
Students: Aryahi Chavadi, Yissa Lin
School: Timothy Edwards Middle School (South Windsor)
Category: Junior Group Documentary
Title: “Back from the Dead: The Surgery that Redefined Life and Death”
Student: Mishka Sahoo
School: Timothy Edwards Middle School (South Windsor)
Category: Junior Individual Exhibit
Title: “George W. Coy: A Revolution in Telecommunication”
Student: Aarit Vilekar
School: Amity Middle School (Bethany)
Category: Junior Individual Exhibit
Title: “Industrial Democracy: The Wagner Act—Labor’s Magna Carta”
In addition to recognition at the National History Day® Awards Ceremony, Connecticut students were selected for special experiences during the week-long National Contest.
NATIONAL HISTORY DAY® PERFORMANCE SHOWCASE
National Museum of American History
A’Charee Sampson, Abigail Gaspard, and Christiza Lustin from Norwich Free Academy were selected to participate in a special Performance Showcase at the National Museum of American History during the National Contest. The students project, It Never Stops Speaking: Black Women, Revolution, Reaction, and the Fight for Freedom, was one of only thirteen performances selected for this honor. The performances took place on Wednesday, June 17.
Exhibit at National Museum of American History
Mya Stettinger from High School in the Community (New Haven) represented Connecticut with her exhibit, Progress, Backlash, and Denial: The Tulsa Race Massacre through the Lens of Revolution, Reaction, and Reform. Mya was one of 85 students from 46 affiliates showing their exhibits at the National Museum of American History as part of a day-long display.
“I am so proud of the students who represented Connecticut at the 2026 National Contest! They have done such incredible work- creative topics, outstanding research, and incredible dedication. It was an honor to see them present their work to a wider audience and participate in so many wonderful experiences during the National Contest. Congratulations to Team CT members for their participation in the National Contest,” said Rebecca Taber, Director of Secondary Education Programs for the Connecticut Democracy
Students interested in the Connecticut History Day/National History Day® program can participate in the program in various ways, including classroom instruction, after-school clubs, enrichment programs, or as an independent project. They are permitted to explore any aspect of history, from local to international. They can work individually or in groups on topics of their own choice. Students must present projects in one of five categories – exhibits, documentaries, websites, papers, or performances and learn how to identify primary sources, conduct research, and write a historical argument and thesis statement.
Inspired by the 2026 Annual Theme of Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History, Connecticut students chose a range of topics ranging from China’s Cultural Revolution to the Tulsa Race Massacre, to the Social Security Act and Mary Wollstonecraft.
During the week-long competition (June 14-18), Connecticut students presented their work to teams of volunteer judges who reviewed entries, provided students valuable feedback, and selected the top finishers. Rebecca Taber also organized several activities for the Connecticut Team, including a trip to Washington, D.C., to meet with Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal and a visit the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Capitol.
Additional support for Connecticut History Day has been provided to CTDC by Liberty Bank, Draper Foundation Fund, Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut, Community Foundation of Middlesex County, Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area, and the Franklin Foundation. For more information, visit historydayct.org.
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The Connecticut Democracy Center (CTDC) provides people of all ages with a lifetime pathway to active citizenship and the tools to take civic action in their communities. With a broad range of initiatives including The Connecticut Network (CT-N), Connecticut’s Old State House, Connecticut History Day, Connecticut’s Kid Governor®, The Connecticut Democracy Center Debate Tournament, and We The People: The Citizen and The Constitution, The CTDC envisions a society where everyone is empowered to participate in our democracy. Learn more by visiting ctdemocracycenter.org and engaging on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram.
CONTACT:
Barbara Glassman Dell
Marketing Manager
Connecticut Democracy Center
barbara.dell@ctdemocracycenter.org