Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Manu’a High School represented American Samoa at the National History Day Summer Institute in Hawaii this week.
The student, Lama Petelo was escorted by his teacher, Lio Alofaituli who is American Samoa’s Teacher of the Year 2022.
American Samoa was among the 16 schools selected for the National History Day and Pearl Harbor Historic Sites Provide Learning research project, for an all expenses paid trip.
This was confirmed in a letter by National History Day director of programs, Lynne O’hara to all the 16 schools selected for this trip.
According to the letter this is a way to connect the past with the present and future.
“The National History Day and its sponsors, the Pearl Harbor Historic Site Partners, which includes the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, Pacific Historic Parks, Battleship Missouri Memorial, and the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum at Pearl Harbor have selected sixteen teacher-student high school teams to participate in Sacrifice for Freedom; World War II in the Pacific Student & Teacher Institute, an all expenses paid program that offers an exceptional opportunity to study World War II history on Oahu, Hawaiʻi.
“This meaningful program provides an opportunity for each team to research the context of World War II in the Pacific and specifically, the life of a Silent Hero who died during World War II and is buried in or memorialized at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi.
“The duos will select a Silent Hero from the same region they are from—a true hometown hero. The culmination of six months of research and preparation will lead the teams to Hawaiʻi, where they will share their “eulogies” of their Silent Hero graveside at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
“Programs like this one help to share the true sacrifice of freedom, it allows young students, our future leaders, to honor those who have paved the way for their future success.”
Neil Yamamoto, Education Outreach Coordinator, Battleship Missouri Memorial said it’s such an honor to have these students and teachers sharing the stories of their hometown heroes in hopes that it will further connect them to a war fought so many years ago.
“As much as history comes alive for them while here visiting, they are the ones who keep it alive in their classrooms and communities.”
The letter states that this year, 68 teams applied for the competitive summer institute.
“Selected teams hail from Arkansas, American Samoa, Arizona, Guam, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin. Past teacher participants noted that the Institute was a significant professional development experience that changed how they viewed World War II in the Pacific.
“Student participants reported that the research and Hawaiʻi-based learning activities challenged their thinking and expanded their perspective of history.”
Executive Director Cathy Gorn states that this program makes history tangible as students trace the steps of soldiers and visit locations that were instrumental in the Pacific during World War II.
“Each year, when students read their eulogies for their Silent Heroes in Hawaiʻi, I can see the deep meaningful connections that transcend time and place.
“The past becomes the present in that moment.”
At the culmination of the Sacrifice for Freedom program, the students will develop a Silent Hero profile to be published online during the 2023–2024 academic year at NHDSilentHeroes.org.
“Funded by the Pearl Harbor Historic Sites, which includes the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, Pacific Historic Parks, Battleship Missouri Memorial, and the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum at Pearl Harbor, travel and program expenses are provided for all participants.”
BACKGROUND
The National History Day (NHD) NHD is a non-profit organization based in College Park, MD that seeks to improve the teaching and learning of history.
The National History Day Contest was established in 1974 and currently engages more than half a million students in conducting original research on historical topics of interest.
Students present their research as a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance, or website. Projects compete first at the local and affiliate levels.
The top entries are invited to the National Contest at the University of Maryland at College Park. NHD is sponsored in part by HISTORY®, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Park Service.”
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