Decorah HS and St. Benedict's students compete at National History Day Contest

St. Benedict's students at the State competition of National History Day (decorahnews.com file photo)

Seven students from the Decorah area have finished their trip to the University of Maryland this week for the National History Day Contest.

Five Decorah High School students competed in the Senior Group Presentation category, while two St. Benedict's students competed in the Junior Group Website category.  Neither team qualified for the finals, but a total of almost 3,000 students were competing, so the level of competition was high.

Decorah High School students Gara Lonning, Naomi Davidson, Kalle Solberg, Katelyn Yee and Linnea Carlson had qualified for Nationals by winning top honors in the Senior Group Performance category in the state history competition.  Their performance was titled "Night of Terror: The Battle for the Ballot."

St. Benedict's School students Abigail Toussaint and Emily Franzen had qualified for Nationals by winning top honors in the Junior Group Website category.  Their website covered the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling that struck down the "Separate but Equal" policy that kept schools segregated.