California High School Students Win The History Channel(R) Award for Best Senior Entry: Group Documentary at 2007 National History Day Ceremony

California High School Students Win The History Channel(R) Award for Best Senior Entry: Group Documentary at 2007 National History Day Ceremony

COLLEGE PARK, Md., June 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- After months of intensive research, Kimi Ibello and Chelsea Gonzales from Buchanan High School in Clovis, California, earned The History Channel(R) Award for "Best Senior Entry for a Group Documentary" at the National History Day (NHD) ceremonies today for their documentary titled "An Unlikely Hero: Japanese Visas to Save the Jews."

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051031/HISTORYLOGO)

National History Day, Inc. is a nonprofit education program that presents an annual national history contest. Students present the findings of in-depth historical research in the form of documentaries, performances, exhibits, and papers and are judged by a panel of experts. More than half a million students nationwide participate in National History Day. The national finals are held at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Dr. Kimberly Gilmore, Historian and Director of Corporate Outreach at The History Channel, presented a $5,000 prize for the project to the students. More than 2,300 students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and American Samoa participated in the national event. During the competition, students presented research addressing the 2007 National History Day theme: "Triumph and Tragedy in History."

The documentary details the heroic efforts of Japanese Consul Chiune Sugihara. As a Japanese diplomat in Lithuania in 1940, Sugihara was unwilling to stand by and do nothing during the Holocaust. Sugihara, taking full advantage of diplomatic authority, saved the lives of 6000 thousand Lithuanian Jews by issuing them Japanese visas. Ironically, Sugihara was shunned by the Japanese government for his actions and lived the rest of his life in poverty.

Ibello and Gonzales skillfully wove together archival footage and present- day interviews with their extensive research to tell this story in their compelling documentary. The project was produced under the guidance of their teacher Linda Linder.

Satellite Feed Opportunity: June 14, 2007, 19:00-19:30 ET. Transponder: IA6C 15 (TELSTAR 6C/15) analog (analog C band), 97 degrees West Longitude, Uplink: 6225 - Horizontal Up, Downlink: 4000 Vertical Down.

Transmissions Trouble: 202-408-3424

The goal of National History Day, Inc. is to promote the study of history by engaging students in the excitement of historic inquiry and creative presentation. Through publications and education programs, National History Day trains teachers to move students beyond textbooks and expand their classrooms to include libraries, museums and archives. Nationwide 40,000 teachers currently use NHD curriculum materials. The National History Day program received the Charles Frankel Prize for Public Programming and collaborated with the National Archives to create "Our Documents," a national initiative on American history, civics, and service. More information is available at http://www.nhd.org/.

The History Channel(R) is a leading cable television network featuring compelling original, non-fiction specials and series that bring history to life in a powerful and entertaining manner across multiple platforms. The network provides an inviting place where people experience history in new and exciting ways enabling them to connect their lives today to the great lives and events of the past that provide a blueprint for the future. The History Channel has earned four Peabody Awards, three Primetime Emmy(R) Awards, 10 News & Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and received the prestigious Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's Save Our History(R) campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel reaches more than 93 million Nielsen subscribers. The website is located at http://www.history.com/.

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Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051031/HISTORYLOGO
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: The History Channel

CONTACT: Chuck Wentzel of The History Channel, +1-201-362-6183,
Chuckw07030@aol.com; or Mark Robinson of National History Day, Inc.,
+1-301-314-9542, mark@nhd.org

Web site:

http://www.history.com/
http://www.nhd.org/

NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information and photography please visit us on the web at www.historychannelpress.com.

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