The last eyewitnesses to the initial meeting between Pocahontas and English settlers of Jamestown died about four centuries ago. Faced with recreating that encounter in a dramatic performance, Highland Christian sixth-grader Maria Ignas consulted the next-best thing: the journal of Capt. John Smith, who legends indicate was rescued by Pocahontas after his capture by her tribe.
Ignas will join another Highland Christian student as well as two groups of Kouts High School juniors in competition today at the National History Day in Indiana contest at Ivy Tech’s Indianapolis campus. are among 496 Indiana students
The local entrants are among 496 Indiana students who advanced to state level with their projects created with the theme of Exploration, Encounter and Exchange. If they are awarded a first or second place this weekend, they will qualify for the national competition in June. The contest is sponsored by the Indiana Historical Society with support from Teachers Credit Union.
Ignas’ dramatic performance, “The Peace of Pocahontas: Encountering the English,” qualified for state with a third place award in February at the North District contest in South Bend. Rick Vander Woude, a history teacher at Highland Christian, said besides staging her performance, Ignas had to present her research in an annotated bibliography.
“She also had to write a process paper on how she cited her project and conducted her research. She had some very interesting sources,” Vander Woude said, including Smith’s journal, accounts from other Jamestown-era eyewitnesses and an interview with an archaeologist currently working at the historic site in Virginia.
Fellow Highland Christian student Olivia DeYoung, an eighth-grader, also hopes to carry on the school’s legacy of National History Day success. For the past four years, HCS students qualified at state to compete among nearly 3,000 students at The Kenneth E. Behring National History Day Contest at University of Maryland, College Park. The contest draws entries from throughout the country as well as Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico and even China, Korea and south Asia. Last year, Highland Christian School eighth-graders Cate Peerbolte and Julia Oostema won second place in the Junior Group Documentary at the national competition for their documentary, “Marie Curie: Impacting Science through Radioactivity.”
DeYoung created a website about inventor Nicola Tesla, taking second place at the district event to advance to today’s competition. Vander Woude said the website is titled “Nicola Tesla: Exploring Electricity.”
“Each student is given access to (site design website) Weebly,” he said. “There’s a basic given structure, but room for creativity.”
Kouts High School students Kyla Roney and Madeline Garcia will present their exhibit, “Anatomy During the Renaissance.” Gabe Conway will present his documentary “Which Side Are You On?”
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Nancy Coltun Webster is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.