Sarah Henley will be going to the state competition with her documentary about the Peace Corps. She set out to prove how the organization relates to a "new model of peace making," she said.
FF students competing in state History Day
By Brandon Stahl
Several Fergus Falls students are hoping to turn their knowledge of history into a history all their own.
Five students from the Fergus Falls High School and 11 from the Middle School recently competed in the regional History Day competition, a yearly event where students are asked to tackle a historical theme through an exhibit, a play or a documentary.
High school sophomore Sarah Henley will be going to the state competition with her documentary about the Peace Corps. She set out to prove how the organization relates to a "new model of peace making," she said.
Aside from spending months combing through books and journals and the Internet for research, Henley said she interviewed several former peace corps members for her film. What she found surprised her.
"I was blown away by the communist influence on the Peace Corps," said Henley, who discovered that Kennedy formed the organization as a response to Russia's aggressive takeovers of countries.
Even if the students don't win at state, History Day advisor Sue DeNio said the students will be rewarded in other ways. She said several colleges and universities use the competition when reviewing entrance applications. One of the students who made it to state two years ago, Adam Nelson, has recently been accepted to Yale. DeNio said that Yale's admissions department was influenced by History Day.
"Most people don't do the kind of research these students did until they get to grad school," she said.
