Dr. Shoshanah Trachtenberg Frackman Essay Competition

Our annual essay contest is named in memory of Dr. Shoshanah Trachtenberg Frackman, an Alumna of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Class of 1983. Following her untimely death in 1990, her family endowed a fund in her honor to support the study of biomedical ethics in the aim of furthering her ideals. Undergraduate students currently enrolled in any U.S. or Canadian college or university are eligible to submit an essay based on this year’s theme. Three essays will be selected and may be published on our website and social media platforms with monetary awards of $1,000 (first place), $750 (second place), and $250 (third place).

Truth, Trust, and Harm: The Ethics of Medical Misinformation and Disinformation
What ethical responsibilities do individuals, healthcare professionals, institutions, governments, media organizations, and other communicators have to prevent or respond to medical misinformation and disinformation? When, if ever, is limiting or correcting health-related speech ethically justified?
 
For our 2026-2027 competition, we invite students to submit an essay exploring how inaccurate and misleading medical information can influence individual healthcare decisions, undermine trust in health professionals and institutions, and contribute to broader public-health harms. Your essay should also consider how attempts to regulate health-related speech may threaten freedom of expression, reinforce institutional authority, or suppress legitimate disagreement and emerging scientific views. Students should use ethical theories and relevant examples to support their arguments and counterarguments. 

• Our essay competition is open to students who are currently enrolled, either full-time or part-time, in an undergraduate program (associate’s or bachelor’s degree) at an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada.
• Students may only submit one essay, and it must be based on the assigned theme.
• Students should present their essay topic in the form of a thesis statement with well-structured argument(s) supported by applicable ethical frameworks or ethical theories. Essays should also identify and respond to relevant counterarguments.
• Essays must be student applicant’s original work with expectation that any works consulted will be properly cited.
• Essays should be approximately 800 to 1,200 words in length (citations not included in word count).
• Essays must be submitted as an attached word document or pdf from your college/university email account.
• Email submissions must include student’s full name and telephone number as well as the name of your college/university, the degree program you are enrolled in, and your academic year in school. Submissions without this information will be ineligible.

Essay must be submitted via email to patrick.herron@einsteinmed.edu no later than 5:00pm (ET) on Friday, January 15th, 2027. Please include “STF Essay Competition” in the subject line of your email.

2026 Dr. Shoshanah Trachtenberg Frackman Essay Competition

• First Place: Shah Wasif Fabian, Eastern Illinois University (Charleston, Illinois)
• Second Place: Ibrahim Mohammed Ibrahim, Ivy Tech Community College (Noblesville, Indiana)
• Third Place: Jiya Dave, Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, Ohio)
• Honorable Mention: Sharna Saha, Yale University (New Haven, Connecticut)

2025 Dr. Shoshanah Trachtenberg Frackman Essay Competition

• First Place: Vera Fotopoulos, Indiana University (Bloomington, Indiana)
• Second Place: Hallie Young, University of Texas at Arlington (Arlington, Texas)
• Third Place: Abigail Murphy, University of Guelph (Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
• Honorable Mention: Anuli Onyemaechi, Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, Ohio)
• Honorable Mention: Alex Zheyuan Xue, Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, Ohio)

2024 Dr. Shoshanah Trachtenberg Frackman Essay Competition

• First Place: Elijah Deters, University of Louisville (Louisville, Kentucky)
• Second Place: Kyler Squirrell, Washington University (St. Louis, Missouri)
• Third Place: Henry Mondschein, American University (Washington, D.C.)