One of Dwight’s longest-standing traditions, which has been extended across our global network of Schools in recent years, is the Camerer Essay Competition. It is named for Dr. Emil E. Camerer, who was a prominent educator in his day and Dwight’s Headmaster from 1895-1926.
Dr. Camerer’s impressive tenure began not long after Dwight became part of The New York Preparatory School in 1889, which operated a division in Manhattan and another in Brooklyn. Upon joining forces with Dwight, the Manhattan division relocated to Dwight’s then-home, 15 West 43rd Street, and Dwight retained its name as a new third division. Together, they comprised the largest private preparatory school in the U.S. at that time. Over time, Dwight criss-crossed Manhattan a few more times, landing in our current and permanent home at 18 West 89th Street in 1993.
How Does the Competition Work?
Early in the academic year, each one of our participating campuses initiates its own School-wide competition for students in grades 9-11, who write personal essays sharing their experiences, reflections, and creative talents. They submit these narratives to their English teachers, who select the best in each grade to share with all faculty in their English Department for another round of review and judging.
The winning entries are then entered into our global competition, which is just one of many Dwight cross-campus programs and collaborations that connect our students around the world. This year, students from every School participated: New York, London, Seoul, Shanghai, Dubai, and Global Online participated.
Administrators from across our network have the difficult task of judging the well-crafted essays, which are always as diverse, unique, and impressive as the students who write them. Vice Chancellor Blake Spahn then has the honor of announcing our winners. Please click below to find out which students have been named our 2023 global winners.
Congratulations to all of our finalists and winners!