Texas Teacher Selected for National History Day® Research Program to Memorialize Military Service Members

AUSTIN, TX, UNITED STATES, February 4, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- National History Day (NHD) and Texas History Day (THD), an affiliate of NHD, are proud to announce a Texas educator was selected as one of the 55 educators representing 32 states and two Department of Defense (DoDEA) schools overseas

NHD’s Researching Silent Heroes webinar series, in coordination with the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). The men and women researched for this webinar series died during World War I, World War II, the Korean War, or the Vietnam War and are buried or memorialized in an American military cemetery cared for by the ABMC.

Ms. Ashley Barshaw from Heritage Middle School in San Antonio was tasked with selecting a Silent Hero buried or memorialized at one of 17 ABMC Cemeteries. She chose World War II U.S. Army Private Edwin Van Der Vaart, who is interred at the Florence American Cemetery in Italy. Ms. Barshaw will research his life and service, then create a profile for their Silent Hero®. “I am thrilled one of our Texas History Day teachers is going to not only hone her skills, but we will also be able learn more about and honor an American World War II soldier,” stated Lisa Berg, THD State Coordinator and Director of Education for Texas State Historical Association. Educators chosen for this cost-free learning opportunity receive hands-on training ending March 2025. Teachers meet monthly with both a historian and research specialist to set their Silent Heroes into historical context and learn strategies to research their lives. They discuss effective research strategies and discuss how to deal with roadblocks that historical research creates such as missing or incomplete records, alternate spellings, or reconciling memories with the historical record. When the teachers complete their research in April, they will write a profile for NHD’s Silent Heroes' website for publication in late spring/summer 2025. This work will be shared with the American Battle Monuments Commission for future use in their educational materials. “National History Day’s Researching Silent Heroes program is essential to our work to improve the teaching and learning of history,” said Cathy Gorn, Ph.D., Executive Director of National History Day. “Thanks to ABMC, teachers across the country and around the world get to dive into primary source research about the lives of service members from twentieth century conflicts. I can’t wait to read the impactful profiles the teachers will write about these fallen service members’ lives.”