Reflections on Vermont History Day 2025

By Danielle Harris-Burnett 

“Cows! Cows! Cows!”  

I’m not sure how we arrived at this for our rallying cry at the closing ceremony, but here we are. A dozen Vermont students hold up inflatable cows, and a Vermont History Day banner, as we march around the court of the Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland. Around, there’s at least two thousand other students from across the United States and several international affiliates, they’re all here to celebrate the end of National History Day. For the contest, students create a project on a history topic of their choice, around an annual theme.  

This year, about 350 students participated at Vermont History Day on April 5th, 45 of those students went on to participate at the National Contest from June 8-12th. Throughout the week, students attended their judging sessions, met with Vermont Congresswoman Becca Balint, and toured their national monuments and museums. This year, Vermont students also participated in some exciting showcases and finals rounds Adela Johns and Lila McLernon participated in an exhibit showcase at the National Museum of American History with their project titled, “Roe v. Wade: Deciding History.” Celia and Mattea McCormick brought their performance “Jane Addams: Advocate for All, Heroine in Action” all the way to the finals round.  

At the closing ceremony, the junior division paper “The Case of Mendez v. Westminster: How it Changed School Segregation and Civil Rights for Children of Mexican Descent” by Aitana Seville and the senior division documentary “The Equal Rights Amendment: Where are We Now?” by Ace McCarthy-Beam and Jumana Nsour received Outstanding Affiliate Awards. Each year, our Vermont students inspire me, they’re dedicated to their topics and learn life-long skills about historical research and analysis.

Congratulations to all of our participating students and teachers, I can’t wait to see what you create next year!