Montana Students Earn Recognition at 2026 National History Day Contest

• July 10 2026

Helena, MT — Thirty-seven students from Montana competed at the 2026 National History Day National Contest, held June 14–18 at the University of Maryland in College Park — the largest Montana delegation to the national competition in recent memory. Montana students earned special prizes, Smithsonian showcase selections, and top-20% finishes across multiple categories, representing communities from across the state on a national stage.

This year's theme, Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History, coincided with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Montana's 37 competitors were drawn from 25 projects and 16 schools, including five schools participating in National History Day for the very first time. In all, 325 Montana students competed at the regional and state levels to earn their spots in the national field of nearly 3,000 students from 49 states and international affiliates.

"These students spent months doing the kind of rigorous, original historical research that most people never attempt,” said Melissa Hibbard, historian and National History Day in Montana co-coordinator with the Montana Historical Society. “They traveled to Maryland and shared that work with the nation, and every one of them represented Montana wonderfully."

Student accomplishments at the national contest included:

Ella Cooney, Harlowton High School — Cooney competed with her paper "The Last Best Promise: Revolution, Reaction, and Reform on Montana's Homestead Frontier." At the state level, she earned the Montana Achievers and Achievements special award, sponsored by the Montana 250th Commission. At nationals, she placed in the top 30% of all Senior Papers in the preliminary round and earned the Special Prize for the History of Agriculture and Rural Life — the first time in eight years that a Montana project has won an award at nationals. She was also selected for a writing workshop at the White House Historical Society during the contest.

Jimmy Kelly, Superior High School — Kelly competed with her Senior Individual Exhibit, "Rodeo Queen of the World: Alice Greenough, a Revolutionary Woman that Changed Rodeo." In addition to finishing in the top half of her category, Kelly was selected as Montana's representative at the Exhibit Showcase at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, where she spent the day presenting Greenough's story to dozens of museum visitors.

Billy Eastman and K'lell Stump, Hardin High School — Eastman and Stump, both Apsáalooke and recent graduates of Hardin High School, competed with a Senior Group Performance about the Native American Church. Their project was one of only a dozen performances selected from across all national affiliates for the Performance Showcase at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History — an honor reserved for projects representing undertold stories in history.

Thomas Johnson, Jefferson High School — Johnson, a rising junior, competed with a Senior Group Performance entitled "Wobblies in the Woods: War, Work, and the Fight for Reform in Montana's Timber Camps," a solo dramatic performance about the 1917 timber strike in northwest Montana. Johnson's project was also selected for the Performance Showcase at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, where he performed in the museum's Hall of Music before a public audience. At the state level, he earned two special awards from the Montana Historical Society: the Martha Plassmann Prize for outstanding use of digital newspapers, and the Dave Walter Travel Scholarship for the best Montana history project advancing to the national contest.

Fletcher Baer and Jaxin Erickson, Lolo Middle School — Competing in Junior Group Documentary for the third consecutive year, Baer and Erickson had their strongest national performance yet with "The Space Race: How Revolutions in Aeronautics Sparked a Public Reaction of Nationalism and Caused a Reform of Government Policies." They placed 2nd in the preliminary round — top 20% of all Junior Group Documentaries — earning the title of Outstanding Junior Affiliate from Montana at the national contest. At the state level, they received the Future Leaders of Montana Scholarship from the Great Adventure Foundation, awarded to the highest-scoring Junior Division project.

Kinsey Bradstreet and Lillie Suffia, Bigfork High School — Bradstreet and Suffia competed with their Senior Group Documentary, "Where Magic Meets Media: The Conversation That Redefined HIV Awareness." They placed 2nd in the preliminary round, finishing in the top 20% of all Senior Group Documentaries and earning the title of Outstanding Senior Affiliate from Montana at the national contest.

For more information about National History Day in Montana and how to get involved, visit nationalhistorydaymt.org, or email nationalhistorydaymt@gmail.com. For more information on the Montana Historical Society, visit mths.mt.gov.