Nora Gillum, an eighth-grade student at Dripping Springs Middle School, captured a third consecutive title at the Texas History Day Contest on Saturday, April 11, at The University of Texas at Austin.
A two-time defending state champion, Gillum placed first out of 29 competitors in the Junior Division Individual Website category for her project, “The King’s Revolutions: Rethinking the Historical Significance of Elvis Presley in 1950s America.”
Gillum’s research included visits to archives at Graceland, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Briscoe Center for American History. She also traveled to Tupelo, Mississippi, to Elvis Presley’s childhood home and the church where he first performed. Her website explores how Elvis melded different musical genres, impacted race in the music industry, and created a rebellious youth culture.
Gillum now advances to compete at the National History Day Contest on June 14-18 at the University of Maryland, College Park.
National History Day® (NHD) is a non-profit education organization that offers year-long academic programs that engage more than 500,000 middle- and high-school students around the world annually in conducting original research on historical topics of interest. The 2026 National History Day theme is “Revolution, Reaction, Reform.”