Welcome to the...

Undergraduate Research Conference in German Studies

March 28, 2026

at ɫ��ֱ�� and Lafayette College, Pennsylvania

We extend our heartfelt thanks to all students who attended the fifteenth annual conference and presented their research projects in German Studies. The large variety and high quality of the papers and the meaningful and stimulating discussions following each session were truly impressive. We also want to convey our deep gratitude to our colleagues for mentoring their students to reach these remarkable levels of achievement in German Studies and also for moderating a session.

The jury had a difficult task to select the best papers. The decision was aided by the following criteria:

                  1.             Clarity and subtlety of the thesis (argument)
                  2.             Recognition of and critical work with the multiplicity of interpretive voices
      3.             Recognition of the complexity of primary sources
4.             Elegance and persuasiveness in answering the questions from the audience

The Max Kade Prize for the best research project and presentation is awarded to (in alphabetical order):

Olivia Booth (Georgetown University, D.C.) 
Ethan Eisenberg (Lafayette College, PA)

Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order): �Ĩ

Nora Archer (Kenyon College, OH)
Caroline Battersby (Bryn Mawr College, PA)
Zachary Chen (Hillsdale College, MI) 
Earle Cheshire-Wood (Macalester College, MN) 
John Hanson (Colby College, ME)
Aria Petrella (University of Chicago, IL)
Jemella Piersol-Freedman (The College of Wooster, OH)

Axel Hildebrandt, Professor of German, ɫ��ֱ��
Margarete Lamb-Faffelberger, Professor of German, Lafayette College