Marion students competing at The History Bee, national scholastic event

MARION - Six students met in a small conference room at Oak Ridge Middle School in early May, quizzing one another on religions across the world, Chinese dynasties and U.S. wars throughout history.

Although school is nearly out for the summer, these students from Marion are preparing to have their knowledge tested this week at a national history competition.

The History Bee is an annual competition for elementary and middle school students on content split between United States and world history. This is the first year students from the middle school have participated.

'I'm just pumped for these kids,” said Jim Campbell, Oak Ridge behavioral support teacher and coach for the History Bee team.

Academic Competition Enterprises puts on the annual History Bee, as well as other national academic competitions, as an opportunity to recognize students for their intellect and to encourage further educational growth, according to the ACE website.

Eight students from Oak Ridge, 4901 Alburnett Rd., went to the History Bee regional finals in Wheaton, Ill., on March 25, which served as a qualifier for the national finals. They are sixth-graders Makoto Carolin and Ashna Karia; seventh-grader Danielle Sunseri; and eighth-graders Cavan O'Hara, Maxwell Riherd, Nathan Stark, Jared Stumpf and Nicholas Weaver.

Weaver and Karia placed third overall in their respective grades during the regional competition.

Six of the students ­- Carolin, Karia, O'Hara, Stark, Stumpf and Weaver - went on to qualify for the national competition to be held Thursday through Sunday in Atlanta, Ga.

However, due to scheduling conflicts and concerns over cost, only four of the qualified students participate later this week: Karia, O'Hara Stumpf and Weaver.

As the competition draws closer, the four Oak Ridge students - who are bent on performing well at nationals - continue to study for the competition.

O'Hara said that their social studies class 'doesn't cut it,” so they spend spare time reading history textbooks and researching online.

Campbell took on the task of forming a History Bee team in November by distributing a 50-question test to all 700-plus students at the middle school, eventually narrowing it down to a top 10.

'I was just hoping one kid would make it to regionals,” Campbell said. 'I didn't think anybody would make it to nationals.”

Campbell said the school is paying for part of all four students' registration fees, but the cost of travel and lodging is out of pocket for the parents.

Next year, Campbell said he hopes to fundraise the cost for the students to help those who otherwise couldn't attend.

'I can't promise anything, but we'll try,” Campbell told the students earlier in May.

For more information on History Bee, visit aceqb.com/historybee.

History Bee Qualifiers

Before a History Bee team could be formed at Oak Ridge Middle School in Marion, the team coach Jim Campbell had to narrow down the top students who could test their history knowledge on a national scale.

Of more than 700 students at Oak Ridge, Campbell said 10 qualified to take the online exam offered by History Bee organizers. The exam determined which students could compete in the regional finals of the History Bee on March 25 in Wheaton, Ill.

Here are the students who made it to the first round of the competition:

- Makoto Carolin, sixth grade**

- Ashna Karia, sixth grade**

- Cavan O'Hara, eighth grade**

- Keval Puranik, seventh grade

- Maxwell Riherd, eighth grade*

- Christopher Shipley, seventh grade

- Nathan Stark, eighth grade**

- Jared Stumpf, eighth grade**

- Danielle Sunseri, seventh grade*

- Nicolas Weaver, eighth grade**

* Qualified for regional competition

** Qualified for national competition

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