For history buffs, it's the student triathlon of history competitions. More than 400 students from Northeast Ohio will participate in the Ohio District 3 History Day March 22 at CWRU.

This year's theme is "Rights and Responsibilities in History."

Through individual and group exhibits, papers, performances and documentaries, students will illustrate the theme through historical examples and defend their findings to a panel of judges during the competition. Students will compete for trophies and cash awards provided by the Early Settlers' Association.

"This event gives students the incentive to study history beyond the textbook," said John Vacha, CWRU coordinator of District 3 History Day.

District 3 winners will proceed to the state competition at Ohio State University on April 26, and those winners will go to the national competition June 15-19 in College Park, Md. The top winner from the state competition is eligible for a half-tuition scholarship to CWRU, and the national winner will receive a full-tuition scholarship to attend the University.

The local competition draws students from Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, Medina and Summit counties. It is divided into the junior division for sixth- through eighth-graders and the senior division for high school students in grades 9-12.

Participating middle schools in the junior division are: Bay, Beachwood, Birchwood, Center (Strongsville), Clara E. Westropp (Cleveland), Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, Emerson, Gilmour Academy's Lower School, Thomas Jefferson (Cleveland), Langston (Oberlin), Monticello, Roxboro and Whitney Young (Cleveland).

In the senior division are students from Beachwood, Cleveland Heights, Laurel, Magnificat, Medina, Oberlin, James Ford Rhodes, Shaker Heights and Wadsworth High Schools.

In 1974, History Day was founded at CWRU by the late David Van Tassel, a CWRU professor of history who encouraged interest in history by getting students involved in historical research for the competition. For information, contact Vacha at 368-4135.