National History Day is an American academic competition focusing on history for students in grades 6-12. It started as a local program in Cleveland, Ohio, headed by David Van Tassell, a history professor at Case Western Reserve University. It grew from 129 students in 1974 to over 500,000 students in 48 states in 1991, and 700,000 students and 40,000 teachers in 2001. Today more than half a million students enter through local schools. They construct entries as an individual or in a group in one of five categories-Documentary, Exhibit, Paper, Performance or Website. Students then compete in a series of contests (School, Regional, and State) to proceed to the National Contest.