The Power of Independent Thinking

2024 Independent Review Essay Contest Winners
2024 Independent Review Essay Contest Winners

The deadline for the 2024 Independent Review student essay contest was May 15, 2024. The winning essays will be posted online in December, 2024. The winners, announced August 29, 2024:

First Place (tie)

“Profits for a Purpose: A Thomistic Analysis of the Friedman Doctrine” by Jonah Tran
Prize: $2,750 
Faculty sponsor: James Otteson, University of Notre Dame

“The State of Federalism and Police Powers in a Post COVID-19 Society” by Katie Kirk
Prize: $2,750
Faculty sponsor: William J. Watkins, Jr.

Third Place

“The Political Economy of Rights” by Daniel Mayorga
Prize: $1,500
Faculty sponsor: Joselo Andrade, Ecuadorian Institute of Political Economy

Runners Up

“Self-Interest and the French Revolution: The Redefinition of Ambition and Virtue” by Lauren Smyth
Faculty sponsor: Christopher Martin, Hillsdale College

“Marine Shell Beads as Primitive Money in Mississippian Culture” by Nathaniel Osborne
Faculty sponsor: Leonidas Zelmanovitz, Hillsdale College






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