Middle and High School Students Earn State History Day Awards at UW

girl dressed in period costume
Liberty Skalicky, of Sheridan Junior High School, won first place in the Junior Individual Performance category at the recent Wyoming History Day state contest hosted by the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center. Skalicky qualifies for the national contest next month at the University of Maryland in College Park. (Theoren Sheppard Photo)

More than 125 students from across the state recently participated in the 44th Wyoming History Day competition at the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center (AHC) for the opportunity to compete on the national level.

Middle and high school students participated in yearlong research projects based on the National History Day theme “Turning Points in History.” The AHC and the Wyoming Historical Society sponsored the event.

First- and second-place winners from the state event move on to the National History Day competition next month at the University of Maryland in College Park.

Winners, listed by category, name and school, are:

Junior Group Documentary

First place: Lilliann Otto and Reagan Vigil, Greybull Middle School.

Second place: Gavin Erickson and Kaden Vouk, Pinedale Middle School.

Senior Group Documentary

First place: Jack Tobiason and Phoebe Turner, Jackson Hole High School.

Second place: Adrian Behringer and Bryce Behringer, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

Junior Group Exhibit

First place: Grant Stewart and Will Walsh, UW Lab School.

Second place: Maisey Davidson, Alina Peterson and Joyce Valdez, Clear Creek Middle School, Buffalo.

Senior Group Exhibit

First place: Lyli Kelly and Lillyke Martinek, Jackson Hole High School.

Second place: Kaydence Mosley and Nora Reid, Worland High School.

Junior Group Performance

First place: Lilla Beaulier and Roma Beaulier, Laramie Home School.

Second place: Drew McDaniel and Coy Robertson, Wheatland Middle School.

Junior Group Website

First place: Andrea Fox and Chaizley Williams, Wheatland Middle School.

Second place: Oz Koci and Remedios Mata, Pinedale Middle School.

Senior Group Website

First place: James Maxim, Jackson Mayer and Logan Owings, Jackson Hole High School.

Second place: Brayden Douglas and Hudson Keller, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

Junior Individual Documentary

First place: Nursena Bicer, UW Lab School.

Senior Individual Documentary

First place: Jack Pharaoh, Greybull High School.

Second place: Rylan Duffy, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

Junior Individual Exhibit

First place: Emily Mai, UW Lab School.

Second place: Caeli Martin, Shoshoni K-12 School.

Senior Individual Exhibit

First place: Elaina Wronko, Jackson Hole High School.

Second place: Mia Kautza, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

Junior Individual Performance

First place: Liberty Skalicky, Sheridan Junior High School.

Second place: Rose Whelan, Cody Middle School.

Junior Individual Website

First place: Henry Russell, Wheatland Middle School.

Two young women explaining exhibit to onlookers
Maren Hayword, left, and Mallory Galles, both from Casper Kelly Walsh High School, present their Senior Group Exhibit on “Beatlemania” to a pair of judges at the recent 2024 Wyoming History Day state contest hosted by the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center. (Theoren Sheppard Photo)

Senior Individual Website

First place: Metta Curzon, Jackson Hole High School.

Second place: Morgan DeStefano, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

Junior Paper

First place: Elif Bicer, UW Lab School.

Second place: Grant Weierman, Rocky Mountain Middle School, Cowley.

Senior Paper

First place: Oscar Andersen, Jackson Hole Classical Academy.

Second place: Georgiana Mueller, Jackson Hole High School.

Special Topical Awards

The Clara Jensen Award, sponsored by the Wyoming Historical Society, is for the best overall entry on Wyoming history.

Emma Crowley and Jaylen Kaufman, Wheatland Middle School.

The Family History Award, sponsored by the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in Wyoming, is for the best use of family history or genealogy.

Liberty Skalicky, Sheridan Junior High School.

The Jim Gatchell History of Science Award, sponsored by the Jim Gatchell Memorial Museum, is for an outstanding project in the history of general, medicinal, technological or veterinary science.

Drew McDaniel and Coy Robertson, Wheatland Middle School.

The Mark A. Greene Excellence Award, sponsored by UW’s AHC, is for an outstanding demonstration in the use of primary sources.

Emma Crowley and Jaylen Kaufman, Wheatland Middle School.

The Dr. Joseph Stepans Junior Award, sponsored by the Stepans family, is for an outstanding entry that authentically tells the story of a marginalized person(s) or community in Wyoming.

Ava Kendrick and Natalie Kim, Cody Middle School.

The Dr. Joseph Stepans Senior Award, sponsored by the Stepans family, is for an outstanding entry that authentically tells the story of a marginalized person(s) or community in Wyoming.

Mia Kautza, Casper Kelly Walsh High School.

The Sissy Goodwin Award, sponsored by Wyoming Humanities, is for the most outstanding project celebrating stories of identity and persistence.

Lilla Beaulier and Roma Beaulier, Laramie Home School.

The Wyoming Historical Society Scholarship, sponsored by the Wyoming Historical Society, is awarded to a senior in high school planning to attend UW or a college in Wyoming.

Evelynn Shivers, Pinedale High School.

The Dr. Robert Campbell Teacher Award, sponsored by the Stepans family, is for a teacher who promotes marginalized stories and communities through education.

Greta Class, Cody Middle School.

Contact Us

Institutional Communications
Bureau of Mines Building, Room 137
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: (307) 766-2929
Email: cbaldwin@uwyo.edu


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