Pueblo Students earn Honors at Colorado History Day

Pueblo- Two students from The Connect School came up big at the Colorado History Day competition held at the University of Colorado campus in Boulder last Saturday.
Aspen Williams placed second in the Junior Individual Performance category for her characterization of “Mother Jones: The Most Dangerous Woman in America.” Steven Martinez won a special prize as the Best Junior Project in Arab or Islamic History for his entry, “Muhammad Ali: Taking a Stand for Conscientious Objectors.”

Williams and Martinez were among more than 60 students from the Pueblo area who qualified for the state competition at the Southeastern Colorado History Day competition held March 11 on the Colorado State University-Pueblo campus. In addition to Connect, state qualifiers came from Pleasant View Middle School, Dolores Huerta Preparatory High School, La Junta Middle and High School, and Cesar Chavez Academy.

By placing in the top two at CU-Boulder, Aspen Williams qualified for the National History Day competition held June 11-15. Students from all over the country will compete at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD. Her achievement marks the second year in a row that a student taught by Connect teacher Dana Ferguson has qualified for Nationals in the Individual Performance category. Last year, Caitlyn Darnell went to Maryland for her portrayal of Annie Sullivan, the teacher of Helen Keller.

Financial support for Pueblo-area National History Day contestants at the regional, state, and national levels is provided by the Southeastern Colorado American History Project, a partnership among Pueblo School District 70, CSU-Pueblo, and the Southern Colorado Teacher Education Alliance that is funded by the US Department of Education.


Colorado State University - Pueblo is a regional, comprehensive university emphasizing professional, career-oriented, and applied programs. Displaying excellence in teaching, celebrating diversity, and engaging in service and outreach, CSU-Pueblo is distinguished by access, opportunity, and the overall quality of services provided to its students.