Since 1999, the Klaus P. Jankofsky Fund for Medieval and Renaissance Studies has supported an annual lecture by a notable scholar of Medieval or Renaissance Studies and an essay competition, in which a $250 prize is awarded to the best student essay on any topic in Medieval and/or Renaissance Studies (roughly AD 350-1660, including History, Art History, English, Foreign Languages, Linguistics, etc.) by a UMD student. The Committee will select winners based on the strength and presentation of the argument, as well as originality of research, where appropriate. A prize of $250 will be awarded to the best essay, which will be published in a booklet also funded by our anonymous donor and dedicated to the memory of Professor Jankofsky and the student-scholars who carry on his intellectual legacy. Any UMD student may compete in the contest. The winner is announced at the Jankofsky Lecture in the spring.
The Jankofsky Essay Contest Winners for 2021 are:
Ethan Bergman
"Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Mortality: Interpreting Machiavelli through Richard III and Barabas"
Michael Hugunin
"Herrnhutters in Pennsylvania: Confrontations between Pietism and Evangelicalism in Colonial America"