Princeton University’s Lewis Center for the Arts is honored to provide funding through an award established in memory of Alexander Jay Adam ’07. The Alex Adam ’07 Award, made possible by a generous gift from his family, will provide support to undergraduates who want to spend a summer pursuing a project that will result in the creation of an original work of art.
A gifted student, Adam’s artistic interests focused on creative writing and theater. Acclaimed author Joyce Carol Oates, his creative writing professor, praised his work as “sharp-edged, unexpectedly corrosive and very funny.”
“I remember telling him during the workshop,” she said, “as I don’t believe that I have ever told any other student in such circumstances, before or since, that he could have a career as a playwright or a writer of first-rate television scripts.” Adam was also an actor, and performed with the Princeton Shakespeare Company, Theatre Intime and the Program in Theater and Dance. Friends, classmates and fellow students remember Alex Adam as kind and gentle, with a genuine interest in others.
Princeton First-years, Sophomores and Juniors are eligible for the awards. The award provides $7,500 in support to each of three undergraduate students. The award can be used to support a variety of activities, such as interning at theater or dance festivals; directing, designing, or acting in a show; composing poems or short stories; making short films; or mastering a photographic technique. The activity should culminate in the creation or production of an original work.
Open to ALL Princeton First-years, Sophomores & Juniors
Current Winners
The winners of the 2024 Alex Adam ’07 Award are rising seniors Dana Corbo ’25, Wasif Sami ’25, and Paige Sherman ’25. Learn more about their creative work and summer plans
Past Winners
2023
Tanaka Dunbar Ngwara ’24
Max Diallo Jakobsen ’24
Storm Stokes ’24
2022
Kaelani Burja ’23
Cassandra James ’23
Kakuyon Mataeh ’23
2021
Silma Berrada ’22
Dylan Fox ’22
Amanda Kural ’23
2020
Sophie Blue ’21
Hamza Hashem ’21
Adia Weaver ’21
2019
Runako Campbell ’21
Gabriella Pollner ’20
Jhor van der Horst ’20
2018
Anna Berghuis ’19
Eli Berman ’20
Cooper Young ’19
2017
William Kesier ’19
Ugonna Nwabueze ’18
Shruthi Rajasekar ’18
2016
Abigail Jean-Baptiste ’18
William Lathrop ’17
Simon Wu ’17
2015
Cameron Johanning ’16
Maya Wahrman ’16
Bri White ’16
2014
Yessica Martinez ’15
John Somers Fairchild’15
Tula B. Strong ’15
2013
Casey Brown ’14
Sean Drohan ’14
Cara Michell ’14
2012
Daisy Radevsky ’13
Tanyaradzwa Ashleigh Tawengwa ’14
Ava Geyer ’15
2011
Lisa Einstein ’13
Ruthie Nachmany ’12 (in collaboration with Aunna Wilson ’12)
Samantha Ritter ’13
2010
Gabriel Crouse ’12
Sarah Fingerhood ’11
Adrian Gallegos ’11
2009
Sydney Schiff ’10
Talia Nussbaum ’10
Dominique Salerno ’10
2008
Samuel Zetumer ’09
Halcyon Person ’10