Every year National History Day engages and inspires thousands of students in the work of history through papers, websites, documentaries, exhibits, and performances. This year’s competition (centered on the theme of “Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, and Consequences”) culminated this week in national-level competitions at the University of Maryland at College Park.

The winners were announced yesterday, through a live broadcast. Within each division, Junior (grades 6, 7, and 8) and Senior (grades 9, 10, 11, and 12), there are 9 competition categories: Individual Exhibit, Group Exhibit, Individual Documentary, Group Documentary, Individual Performance, Group Performance, Paper, Group Web Site, and Individual Web Site.  First, second, and third prize medals are given out in each category, accompanied by $1,000, $500, and $250 respectively. A number of special prizes are also given out.

Congratulations to all the winners, as well as to all the students (estimated at well over a million students at the local and state level) who participated across the U.S., getting engaged in history in new ways, stepping into archives, conducting interviews, and experiencing the work that historians do every day.

This post first appeared on AHA Today.