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Ramapo College has a summer reading program that is academically linked to the First-Year Seminar (FYS) course. Students read the book over the summer and come to campus prepared to discuss the book with their FYS classmates. They will also be assigned an essay question in their FYS class based on the book that asks students to exercise their critical thinking skills, their reasoning and analytical thinking skills, and their writing and communication skills.
The book is selected by a committee composed of students, faculty, and staff from the Ramapo College community. Committee members use selection criteria to ensure that the book that is chosen will:
The 2024 summer read is The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. The book will be featured in the Opening Convocation on September 3, 2024.
Past essay winners:
Tastes Like War: A Memoir tells both Grace Cho’s personal story of growing up as a mixed race child in a rural community and imagines the experiences of her mother as a Korean immigrant who struggles with mental illness. What aspects of the story resonate the most with you?
Or
Through her mother’s experiences, Grace Cho explores the effects of the Korean War and the cultural experiences of mental illness, all through the lens of food. How does the author conduct this research and what argument does she make about these historical realities?
Contest Parameters:
1) Make sure to reference the summer reading in your essay. You may use supporting evidence from other sources, but your primary source should be Tastes Like War.
2) Please consider the context of critical thinking when writing your essay.
3) Essays will be judged based on use of text, effectiveness of reflection, and use of supporting evidence.
4) Please limit your response to 1000 words to help us ensure that all submissions receive fair evaluation.
5) All work must be your original contribution.
6) All essays must be received by August 13th, 2023 at 5:00 PM. The three winning essays will be announced at the Opening Convocation.
7) Entries must be submitted to Prof. Yvette Kisor, Director of First-Year Seminar, by attaching your essay to an e-mail message and sending it to this address: ykisor@ramapo.edu.
8) Please send your essay as a Word (.doc or .docx) or PDF file. You will receive an email acknowledgement of your submission.
Good luck!
If you’ve read a book that you believe is a “must-read” for new students, please click on the button below and let us know! We’re always open to good suggestions.
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