BROOKINGS – The National History Day in South Dakota program is looking for volunteers to help virtually judge for the 40th annual state contest.
The contest, typically held at the University Student Union at South Dakota State University, will be held virtually this year due to COVID-19.
Judging will take place on your own schedule from March 31 through April 6, and awards will be announced April 8. Students participating at the state contest compete for a chance to represent the state of South Dakota at the virtual national contest held in June.
Volunteers are needed to help judge projects virtually with other judges assigned on their team and will be offered virtual training opportunities. National History Day in South Dakota, operated through the South Dakota Agricultural Heritage Museum, needs volunteer judges to evaluate projects and select award winners in project categories and special awards. The top two projects in each category can move on to the national contest in June, which will also be held virtually due to COVID-19. If you are interested in being a judge, register online at sd.nhd.org or contact Sarah Jacobs at sarah.jacobs@sdstate.edu or by calling 605-688-4582.
Students participating in the state contest are the top entries from four regional contests to be held both virtually and in person in Aberdeen, Buffalo, Pierre and Sioux Falls throughout March. To participate in a National History Day contest, students create a historical research project using in and out of school time. National History Day projects are truly led by students as they pick their topic, whether they want to work as an individual or in a group, and what kind of project they want to make (documentary, exhibit, paper, performance or website).
“The great part about judging at the state contest is that people can help with what topic they are interested in. People who enjoy watching documentaries at home can choose to be a documentary judge. If someone likes watching plays or musicals, they can judge in the performance category. Even if you don’t know a lot about history, the students will show you what’s important about their project,” said Sarah Jacobs, affiliate coordinator of National History Day in South Dakota. “With the state contest being virtual again in 2021, we are able to get people from an even wider audience involved in judging since you won’t have to be in or travel to Brookings to judge.”
For more information on National History Day in South Dakota, visit https://www.sdstate.edu/south-dakota-agricultural-heritage-museum/national-history-day-south-dakota or https://www.facebook.com/SDNHD/.
