Approximately 150 junior high and high school students will put their historical knowledge on display during the 2017 Brazos Valley Regional History Fair held Friday, Feb. 10, at Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site.
Sponsored by the Star of the Republic Museum and local businesses and organizations, the theme for this year’s history fair is “Taking a Stand in History.” Entries are open to students in grades 6-12 who have qualified for the regional competition by competing in their local school history fair.
Students from Brazos, Grimes, Madison, and Washington counties will compete, including students from Navasota Junior High School, Navasota High School, Anderson-Shiro Secondary School, Brenham Junior High School, Brazos Christian Academy, and Bryan ISD’s Stephen F. Austin Middle School, Arthur Davila Middle School, Sam Rayburn Middle School and Jane Long Middle School.
“I am excited to see the results of these students’ work,” said Lisa Berg, Star of the Republic Museum Curator of Education and coordinator of the Brazos Valley Regional History Fair. “It’s a tremendous learning opportunity for the students. They do their own research, analyze the results, and put a lot of effort into these projects.”
Project categories include historical paper, exhibit, documentary, performance, and interpretive website. Judging takes place throughout the morning, and each student has a scheduled interview time with the judges to answer questions and describe the project’s research and analysis. The judges include several Blinn faculty, area educators, volunteers from local historical commissions, and history enthusiasts from the community.
Some presentations will take place inside the museum, while other projects will be on display at the site’s education, visitor’s and conference centers. This marks the 12th year the history fair has been hosted at Washington-on-the-Brazos.
At 3 p.m., the awards ceremony will announce the winners, including those who will advance to the state competition to be held April 29 in Austin. Winners at the state competition can advance to the National History Day competition held at the University of Maryland in June.
The public is invited to view the performances beginning at 9 a.m., and the exhibits, historical papers, and websites will be available for public viewing after judging ends at 11:45 a.m. Student documentaries can be viewed in the museum theater during the mid-day break prior to the awards ceremony.
Star of the Republic Museum is located at Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site off state Highway 105. It was created by the Texas Legislature and is administered by Blinn College as a cultural and educational institution. Daily museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information, call 936-878-2461 or visit: www.starmuseum.org.