Sitting on the other side of the desk, serving as a National History Day (NHD) judge, was a new experience for University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point sophomore Noah Stachovak. The history and social studies education major said his goal was to be fair and provide honest critiques on the student papers at the regional competition held April 4, 2025, at UW-Stevens Point.
For seven years as a student, he stood across from judges, presenting his own projects on historical topics that fit the NHD yearly theme. There are four other categories, but most years, Stachovak entered his work in the documentary category. His earliest work was a presentation on the 1972 Summer Olympics attack in Munich, Germany.
He said the NHD challenged him to stay organized while spending so many hours researching history topics. His documentary about the Suez Canal crisis won awards at the state level and advanced to nationals in Washington, D.C., held virtually due to the pandemic.
Some of the topics are heavy, but there’s always a takeaway moment, Stachovak said. Well before they present, the students are researching sources, using critical thinking skills, writing, designing and organizing information. In addition to class time, many will devote 15 or more hours a week perfecting their history project.
“It gave me immense confidence with my own work, and it was kind of daunting with people judging your work,” he said.
For his high school senior year project documenting the historical use of the Wisconsin River, he traveled to the source at the Michigan border and the river’s mouth near Prairie du Chien, Wis. to take his own photographs.
“I felt like there was an aspect I was missing, and it adds a sense of personality to get the specific shots you want to have,” Stachovak said.
He said he put his competitiveness into the work and expected his projects to score better year over year. All those years working on historical projects deepened Stachovak’s motivation to make history into a career. He enrolled at UWSP with the aspiration to teach following the example set by his two parents, both educators.
“I want to shine that light on the next generation and be a resource for young students,” he said. “I’m so thankful to all of my teachers and want to give back.”
He will train to lead discussion groups for the United States Since 1877 history course, interning in the Tutoring-Learning Center this fall. Cory Haala, an assistant professor of history who instructs the course, said Stachovak was always intentional with his class contributions.
“You could see he was always thinking of how to apply the lessons of history,” said Haala.
Stachovak looks forward to supporting others and making lessons come alive as a peer facilitator for the Reading in the Disciplines course in history. He would like to model the dynamic teaching style of Haala, he said.
“It’s not just about history; it’s making it appealing to students so they get something out of it. You give them practical applications and ways to know why history is important.”
