Tiffany Bullman, a McKinleyville High School teacher and coordinator of Humboldt County History Day, has been honored as one of two National History Day – California Teachers of the Year for 2020.

Bullman, who has been teaching for 13 years and involved with History Day for the last seven, was named the California 2020 Mrs. Hannah E. (Liz) Macgregor Senior Division Teacher of the Year, and will receive a $500 prize, as well as have a chance to be named the National History Day Teacher of the Year in June.

“Students will become passionate about history if they see how it relates to their life, and they need to interact with curriculum that they can connect to,” said Bullman. “History Day allows students to make a personal connection to history since they are able to pick their research topic.”

Bullman strongly believes that participating in events like History Day sets a solid foundation for a student’s future in education, and sees evidence of that in students she’s taught in the past.

“My students gain writing skills that help them in all of their high school classes and college,” she said. “Several of my past students that won at County History Day are now in college, and they frequently let me know that their college papers are easier for them thanks to their History Day project writing. My students also gain immeasurable confidence from participating in this program. I’ve watched some of my shy students grow into confident public speakers that are proud of their work.”

In addition to Bullman, three local students received awards at the state level this year:

• Anya Seiler from Jacoby Creek School received a Special Award for Science in History for her project, “Galileo Galilei Breaking Barriers; Science and Christianity in the 1600s.”
• Jacob Gores of South Bay Middle School was named as runner-up in the Junior Individual Websites category for his website, “The Indian Child Welfare Act: How Saving Cultures Broke Barriers.”
• Delaney Holland from Academy of the Redwoods received an Honorable Mention in the Senior Individual Websites category for her website, “Roe v. Wade: A Decision of Life or Death?”

Sponsored by the Humboldt County Office of Education and Humboldt State University, Humboldt History Day has traditionally been one of the largest in the state. Hundreds of young students in Humboldt County join more than 40,000 across the state in this annual event that encourages students from fourth grade through high school to learn about the past and how it connects to the future.

Through the rigorous process of researching and preparing creative and original History Day projects, students analyze information about issues, ideas, people and events in history and apply that knowledge to their projects. The projects this year reflected the 2020 National History Day theme, “Breaking Barriers in History,” and students could participate individually or in groups. More than 110 local educators and community members volunteer to assist with the event and judge projects.

Learn more about Humboldt History Day at https://hcoe.org/history-day/