The Jeanne Kissner Undergraduate Essay Award was created in honor of the late Jeanne Kissner, Co-Director of the Center for the Study of Canada at Plattsburgh State University. Professor Kissner was unflagging in her support of Canadian studies education at the undergraduate level and had always hoped that such an award would be established.

The award will recognize an undergraduate essay that presents a scholarly exploration of any Canadian studies theme. Essays in all fields are welcome.

The competition is open to all undergraduates in the United States who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States and enrolled in a course in Canadian studies during the two years preceding the biennial ACSUS Conference.

The author of the winning essay will receive free registration for the next ACSUS biennial conference (Ottawa, November 2011), complimentary membership in ACSUS for two years, and a cetificate of recognition. 

Procedures

Instructors are asked to select and submit one essay on any Canadian topic from one student enrolled in each of their Canadian Studies courses. A paper between 5-15 typed pages (double-spaced) in length is preferred.

Please send the nominated essays by email to info@acsus.org no later than July 1, 2011. 

Essays will be judged in terms of their originality and effective presentation. The student will be notified promptly of the award and presented with a certificate of citation.

2009

Gina Kim, a student at Western Washington University, is the recipient of the 2009 Jeanne Kissner Award for “Gender-Based Persecution Claims in Canada's Refugee Process: Accomplishments and Future Actions." The committee was impressed by the   original analysis and excellent references which demonstrated the depth of Kim’s   research.

2007

The recipient of the 2007 award is Matthew Kireker, Princeton University for "How Objective?  Or Subjective? A Study of Two Major Newspapers in Canada

and the United States."