The Paw Print

By Beatriz Whitford-Rodríguez, Staff Writer

Do you have a secret passion for history? What about research, writing, video editing, coding or even theater? Do you enjoy diving deep into a single topic? If the answer to any of those questions is “yes,” then National History Day might be for you. 

National History Day, or NHD, is an international nonprofit program that hosts annual regional, state, and national competitions for students in sixth through twelfth grade with an interest in history. Over the course of an academic year, participants develop an individual or group project in one of five categories — paper, documentary, website, exhibit and performance — that corresponds to an annual theme, such as the 2026 theme of Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History. 

Many Payton students have experience competing in National History Day at some level during their middle school years; nearly ten thousand students participate from the greater Chicago area at the school level annually, and the Chicago Metro History Day regional NHD affiliate hosted 1,637 competitors this year. However, few continue once they reach high school, often due to a combination of factors: an increased workload, higher time commitments to other clubs and, at Payton, a lack of school sponsorship. This changes the qualification path for the regional contest: Payton-based participants don’t compete at a school contest before Chicago Metro History Day, and instead must pay a $35 fee to be listed as “Independent Scholars.” 

Hugo Richards ’27, a Payton junior who has competed for the past four years and repeatedly qualified for the National Contest, said he “think[s] it’s a great shame that Payton doesn’t allow us to compete as Payton students…There are a lot of us at the school who compete each year and I think we would all love to represent Payton at each level of the competition.” 

Students interviewed by The Paw Print unanimously expressed that National History Day has been incredibly beneficial for their personal and academic growth. The organization’s slogan is “Studying the past to inform the present and shape the future,” and this is exactly what participants learn to do. Olivia Schleman ’29, a freshman who participated throughout middle school and has qualified for Illinois History Day on April 27, said, “The thing that I enjoy most about [National History Day] isn’t necessarily the end product, but the process…having that level of autonomy that you don’t really get in school, especially in topics that you personally really enjoy. [National History Day] is really unique in that regard and I’m really grateful for it.” 

Richards expressed a similar sentiment, stating, “NHD provides a way for students to spend their time on actually meaningful and interesting ideas and projects that people care about and want to hear about.” 

Another incentive for many high schoolers who continue to participate is the strong sense of community. In my experience, the longer one competes in National History Day, the more noticeable this becomes: I spent three years during middle school competing at the Illinois statewide and, once, National Contest in the junior division individual website category. During that time, I got to know many of my fellow competitors; seeing the same faces over and over instills an atmosphere of familiarity, even if you aren’t all close friends. 

“Before the national level, it can feel slightly competitive, but a lot of that goes away at Nationals,” Richards said. “To start, you join Team Illinois, a team of all the state champions who go to each other’s events and root for each other. There’s a lot of Team Illinois events that week, like tours of the Capitol and pizza parties. It’s a lot of fun.” 

Creating a National History Day project can be difficult. It takes months, from eagerly awaiting the year’s annual theme announcement to deciding on a topic and category for the project, researching, and finalizing your end product. In high school, we are all learning new lessons about time management and study habits; we are also juggling higher commitments to every extracurricular we choose to be a part of, and we have to be more selective about how we use that time. 

Still, the Payton community of National History Day lovers will be there with open arms for anyone who wants to get involved. “The more NHD enthusiasts at the school, the better for all of us!…It might feel a bit daunting at first but there’s a lot of support out there, including from those of us who have been through the process already,” said Richards. 

“I really think [National History Day] matters, at least for me, and I’m so very glad that I’ve been lucky enough to be able to dedicate so much time and effort each year – especially with the level of support in my initial years – to NHD,” Schleman said. 

Ultimately, Richards puts it well: “I say, do it.”