Seventy-four students learned yesterday that they have received the distinguished Hoopes Prize for outstanding academic research work.

The prize, which is funded by the estate of Thomas T. Hoopes ’19, carries with it a $2,500 award for the student and a $700 gift for the faculty advisor.

A panel of Faculty members awards the prize based on the breadth and impact of the nominated works, which are typically senior theses.

This year’s winning papers ran the gamut of scholarly research—from literary criticism on C.S. Lewis, to studies of obscure diseases to a sociological thesis on “the legitamacy of commercial sex.”

Miriam R. Asnes ’02, a joint concentrator in anthropology and women’s studies, said she was thrilled to win the prize for her work on the identity struggles of Israeli Palestinian women.

“You see the prize-winning theses on the bookshelf in Lamont, and it seems an unattainable goal,” she said. “I want more people to know about this issue, and the social and political struggles of these women.”

Asnes’ work was based on two summers she spent with Arab women’s rights organizations in Israel.

Like many other prize recipients, Asnes credited the scholarly assistance she received from her thesis advisor, Professor of Contemporary Arab Studies Steven C. Caton.

“Steve helped me figure out which aspects of my research I was really interested in. He told me what had and hadn’t been done before, and if I ever needed a particular book, he’d pull something straight out of his bookshelf,” Asnes said.

Asnes, who also wrote and recently directed a play about women in Israel, said she hope s to use her prize money to return to Israel in order to work with the Palestinian-Israeli Coalition of Women for Peace.

Racial and ethnic issues featured prominently in much of the winning work—some of which was more controversial than others.

Geoffrey Starks ’02, a Social Studies concentrator who won the prize for his research on reparations for blacks, said he hopes his thesis will prompt discussion.

“This is definitely a hot button topic, one that needs to be talked about,” he said.

For Starks and other recipients, the Hoopes was a final validation of the thousands of long hours they spent in the lab and library at the expense of sleep and time away from their friends.

“Without a doubt there were some dog days. This definitely feels good,” Starks said.