Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Contest Grand Prize Winner Announced

Brandeis Student Wins Free Semester of College Tuition

SPRINGFIELD, MA, November 2007—Things are “looking up” for Shira Rosenblum of Teaneck, NJ. As the grand prize winner of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Contest—an  online competition sponsored this summer by the publishers of the best-selling Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, Eleventh Edition—she will receive a free semester of college tuition at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, where she is currently enrolled. Shira aced her way thorough a series of challenging dictionary-themed questions posted throughout August and September at www.Collegiate.com, and this month her name has been randomly selected from thousands of eligible submissions spanning the United States and Canada. In addition to the free semester at Brandeis, Shira’s lexicographical skills have also earned her a complete set of Merriam-Webster references,  Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition on CD-ROM (courtesy of Innovative Knowledge), Merriam-Webster's Dictionary for iPod digital player (courtesy of iPREPpress), and Merriam-Webster's Word Sweep board game (courtesy of Intellinitiative).

“When I got the message saying I won the tuition contest, I couldn’t believe it,” said Ms. Rosenblum. “I have never won anything important before, so when I entered the contest I did not really expect to win. Winning this contest means so much to me and my family. We are grateful to the entire Merriam-Webster group for having this contest and for helping make my college experience better.”

The Second Prize of the Collegiate Contest—a Dell notebook computer—goes to Neal Duggan of Troy, Michigan. Angel Jones of Jarrettsville, Michigan will receive a 30GB iPod digital player as Third Prize winner. A complete list of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Contest winners and prizes can be viewed at www.Collegiate.com. The contest site also provides direct links to a number of popular free features of Merriam-Webster OnLine (www.Merriam-Webster.com), including the Merriam-Webster Toolbar, for quick look-ups, Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day, for daily HTML e-mails, and Merriam-Webster’s Open Dictionary—where visitors submit their own new words and definitions. 

Merriam-Webster Inc. acquired the rights to revise and publish Noah Webster’s dictionaries in 1843. Since then, Merriam-Webster has maintained an ongoing commitment to innovation, scholarship, and love of language. Today, the company continues as the leader in both print and electronic language reference publishing with reference products, learning tools, and word games. For more information about the company, and about Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Contest, visit www.Collegiate.com or Merriam-Webster OnLine at www.Merriam-Webster.com.

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