The Peter J. Theune Memorial Essay Prize
To enter the Peter J. Theune Memorial Essay Prize, students should submit one essay, double-spaced, of no more than 5,000 words (shorter essays are more than acceptable!). Traditional as well as more experimental forms of the essay are welcomed.
Recipients
2025 Winner: Dana Janiec for 淥n the Streets of Berlin"
Honorable Mention: Lily Sakalys for "Thaw"
2024 Winner: Brooke Pacchetti for 淣ew Year, Same Place� and 淧aternity Scandal at the Funeral�
Honorable Mention: Van Le for 淎 Communistic McDonald檚 Advertisement�
2023 Winner: MJ Soria, "Grocery Shoppping"
2022 Winner: Nina DeBoni, "My Grievances with Math, As a Concept"
Honorable Mention: Farah Bassyouni, "Tahrir Square: The Story of a Childhood"
2021 Winner: Gabrielle Ghaderi, 淪ilent Flames: Barcelona after Uprising�
Honorable Mention: Nicole Brennan, "I am an Idiopathic, Not a Crazy Drug Addict�
2020 Winner: Rachel Williams, for her essay "Cancer Can't Take It All"
Honorable Mention: Paraskevi (Vi) Kakares, for her essay 溛� E�
2019 Winner: Kathryn Halford, for her essay "Vulnerability in 5 Stages"
2018 Winner: Emily Salomon, for her essay 淭he Devil檚 Playground�
2017 Winner: Mayra Gonzalez for her essay 淎ssests-Liabilities=Equ[ality]�
Honorable Mention: Vandhana Rajarathnam, for 淭he Garage�
2016 Winner: Hanna Peterson, for her essay 淢y Own Way.�
Honorable Mention: Savannah Feher, for 淔our Plywood Walls.�
2015 Winner: Olivia Anderson, for her essay, 淏lood Tide.�
Honorable Mentions: Olivian Heffernan, for 淚n the Same Bed,� and Jasmine
Wright, for 淎s Best He Could.�
2014 Winner: Colleen O機onnor, for her essay, 淒arling, It檚 Better�
Honorable Mentions: Olivia Anderson and Mack Rivkin
2013 Winner: Sydney White, for her essay, 淗allways and Home�
Honorable Mentions: Savannah Davis and Shane McGowan
Michael Theune - Robert Harrington Endowed Professor of English and Chair of English
Department - English