Woodgrove High School freshman Arabella Horton is advancing to the National History Day® (NHD) competition this June after earning first place in the Senior Individual Exhibit category at the 2025 Virginia History Day Contest. She will represent Woodgrove High School, Loudoun County Public Schools and the Commonwealth of Virginia at the national competition held at the University of Maryland.
This year’s NHD theme, Rights and Responsibilities in History, provided the foundation for Horton’s award-winning exhibit, “The Greatest Mistake of Modern Medicine”: The Psychosurgical Procedure that Permanently Altered Personalities. Her project explored the history of lobotomies and the medical community’s failure to uphold ethical standards, particularly in relation to patient rights, gender discrimination and the violation of medical responsibilities. The topic connected directly to her interest in neuroscience, a field she hopes to study in college.
Now in her third year participating in National History Day, Horton first became involved in seventh grade through her SPECTRUM program. She was the only student from her school to compete at the district level and has gone on to advance to the national contest each year. Among her past achievements are a top 10 global finalist ranking and recognition as the Outstanding Affiliate Junior entry from Virginia.
While she previously earned first place in the Junior Individual Exhibit category, this year’s victory marked a new level of accomplishment. As a freshman competing in the highest age division, Horton received “Exemplary” marks across every judging category—an accomplishment she had never achieved before.
National History Day is a globally recognized academic program that reaches more than half a million students each year. Through the competition, students in grades 6-12 develop historical research projects and present their findings in the form of exhibits, papers, documentaries, performances or websites. Projects are evaluated by historians and educators as students advance through local, regional and state levels to the national stage.
Horton credits the program with developing her research, public speaking and critical thinking skills—tools she now uses regularly in her honors and pre-AP courses. The process of gathering and citing sources, building evidence-based arguments and analyzing historical context has prepared her for continued academic success and future pursuits.
Congratulations to Arabella Horton on this outstanding achievement and best of luck at the 2025 National History Day Contest!