(EL PASO INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT – Mar. 5, 2025) – Fifty-four El Paso ISD students are heading to Austin this April to compete in the Texas History Day competition. They earned their spots after showcasing their research and presentation skills at the El Paso History Day event in February. The district-level competition, held at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), featured 261 students from across the district who demonstrated excellence in historical research, analysis, and creativity.
MORE PHOTOS: El Paso History Day Competition 2025
The top two winners from each category at the state competition will qualify for the National History Day event in June at the University of Maryland.
Outstanding Teacher Award
El Paso ISD educators played a crucial role in guiding students through the competition. Mrs. Kristen Shaver from Hornedo Middle School was honored with the Outstanding Teacher Award for her dedication to fostering excellence in historical research and education.
State Qualifiers: A Celebration of Excellence
The competition featured students across multiple divisions, including documentary, exhibits, performances, websites, and research papers. Here’s a breakdown of El Paso ISD’s top-performing students and their award-winning projects:
Junior Division (Middle School) Winners
• Group Documentary
o 1st Place: Social Responsibility – Wiggs Middle School (Henry O’Rourke, Leo Villa, David Dominguez, Henry Gunn)
o 2nd Place: Yousafzai: A Global Icon – Hornedo Middle School (Maryam Acevedo, Marissa Reveles, Thomas Donaldson, Noor Hussein)
• Individual Documentary
o 1st Place: Executive Order 9981: The Road from Segregation to Service – Hornedo MS (Morgan Caldwell)
o 2nd Place: Apartheid in South Africa – Hornedo MS (Gustavo Cisneros)
• Group Exhibit
o 1st Place: Hiroshima Bombing – Wiggs MS (Victoria Benitez, Camila Gallegos)
• Individual Exhibit
o 1st Place: Women’s Responsibilities During WWII – Young Women’s Academy (Kimberly Adauto)
o 2nd Place: Downwinders – Hornedo MS (Ellie Smith)
• Group Performance
o 1st Place: Injustice – Hornedo MS (Ifeomachi Ezewuiro, Luciana Rosales, Abigail DeVora, Paulina Torres, Yuli Tomita)
o 2nd Place: The Triangle Tragedy – Wiggs MS (Anya Jones, Andrea Jurado, Georgia Rico, Milania Wilder)
• Individual Performance
o 1st Place: Women in Disney: Bianca Majolie – Young Women’s Academy (Addison Rangel)
• Group Website
o 1st Place: Equality – Hornedo MS (Angela Ochoa, Mila Arizpe, Savanna Ricci)
o 2nd Place: Breaking Barriers: The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 – Hornedo MS (Charles Ivey, Iker Lara)
• Individual Website
o 1st Place: One Man Can Change Thousands of Lives – Young Women’s Academy (Annalee Sheldon)
o 2nd Place: War II – Don Haskins PK-8 (Dresden Roedler)
• Historical Paper
o 1st Place: The Impact of the Factory Act of 1833 on Manchester’s Cotton Mills – Hornedo MS (Temilayo Aduroja)
o 2nd Place: Sunk: The Hidden History of the RMS Titanic – Wiggs MS (Zenia Martinez)
Senior Division (High School) Winners
• Group Documentary
o 1st Place: Amendment – Burges HS (Penelope Feldman, Lynda Lou Valerio, Natalie Clancy)
o 2nd Place: The Tylenol Tragedy and the Evolution of Crisis Management – El Paso HS (Arnav Tonde, Francisco Guemez Stone, Joaquin Vazquez, Ross Lipson)
• Individual Documentary
o 1st Place: Gandhi’s Legacy of Independence through Non-Violence – El Paso HS (Asher Lopes)
• Group Exhibit
o 1st Place: Amendment – Franklin HS (Ascher Vicini, Madison Miller)
• Individual Performance
o 2nd Place: Checkpoints – Franklin HS (Isabella Shiel)
• Group Website
o 1st Place: In the Shadow of the Beret: Defenders of Chicano Rights – El Paso HS (Jazmine Garcia, Ana Boughner, Lilah May, Alexa Curiel)
o 2nd Place: Road to Reproductive Rights: Roe v. Wade – El Paso HS (Indira Johnson, Jack Nance, Zuzeth Gonzalez, Gonzague Ceberio)
• Individual Website
o 2nd Place: The Innovator’s Dilemma – Coronado HS (Kamilah Graciano)
• Historical Paper
o 1st Place: The Partition of South Asia: The Fight for Rights & Lack of Colonial Responsibility – Young Women’s Academy (Marium Zahra)
With 54 students advancing to the Texas History Day competition in April, El Paso ISD is hopeful that many will qualify for the National History Day competition in June at the University of Maryland.
El Paso ISD congratulates all the participants, teachers, and winners for their dedication to history and academic excellence. Good luck to our students competing at the state level!