Liberal Education Initiative

The Currency of the Liberal Arts and Sciences: Rethinking Liberal Education in Wisconsin

The Recipients of the First Annual
Liberal Arts Essay Scholarship Competition

Undergraduate students from University of Wisconsin System campuses were honored for writing outstanding essays on the value of a liberal arts education in the 21st century.

The three scholarship recipients (with links to their essays) are:

• Heather Damitz, UW-Sheboygan, for "Significant and Applicable Knowledge: Liberal Arts in the 21st Century";
• Andrew Myszewski, UW-Madison, for "Empowering Citizens for the Twenty-First Century"; and
• Jennifer Urbanek, UW-Milwaukee, for "The Liberal Arts: Preserving Humanity."

Each winner received a $2,000 scholarship to help fund the remainder of their undergraduate educational costs.

In addition, honorable mentions were awarded to Dawn Freese of UW-Platteville; Jennifer Ernie of UW-Green Bay, and Laura Cummings of UW-Whitewater.

The first annual competition attracted more than 115 essays, and was open to undergraduate students at each of the UW System's 26 campuses. Sponsored by the UW System Advisory Group on the Liberal Arts, the first annual Liberal Arts Scholarship Competition was funded by private funds, and was modeled after a similar competition at UW-Oshkosh.