Melissa Klapper

Melissa R. Klapper
Alma materGoucher College
Rutgers University–New Brunswick
AwardsNational Jewish Book Award (2013)
Scientific career
FieldsAmerican history, women's history, modern Jewish history, history of childhood
InstitutionsRowan University
Doctoral advisorAlice Kessler-Harris

Melissa Rose Klapper is an American historian and storyteller. She is a professor of American and women's history at Rowan University. Klapper has authored books on American Jewish women's history and the history of children and youth in the United States.

Life

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Klapper completed a B.A. at Goucher College in 1995.[1][2] Peter Bardaglio, Julie Roy Jeffrey, and Laurie Kaplan served as undergraduate mentors of Klapper.[3] She earned a Ph.D. in history from Rutgers University–New Brunswick.[2] Her 2001 dissertation was titled "A Fair Portion of the World's Knowledge": Jewish Girls Coming of Age in America, 1860-1920. Alice Kessler-Harris was Klapper's doctoral advisor.[3]

Since 2001 Klapper has been a professor of American and women's history at Rowan University, where she is also director of the Women's & Gender Studies Program.[2][4] Klapper specializes in the late 19th and early 20th century.[2] Klapper served as co-chair of the Modern Jewish History, The Americas division of the Association for Jewish Studies.[2] Her 2013 book, Ballots, Babies, and Banners of Peace: American Jewish Women's Activism, 1890-1940, won a National Jewish Book Award in women's studies.[2] In March 2023, she became a three-day champion on Jeopardy!, winning a total of $60,100.[1] In March 2024, she competed in Jeopardy!'s Tournament of Champions.[5]

Selected works

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  • Klapper, Melissa R. (2005). Jewish Girls Coming of Age in America, 1860-1920. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-4780-3.[6]
  • Klapper, Melissa R. (2007). Small Strangers: The Experiences of Immigrant Children in America, 1880-1925. Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 978-1-56663-733-6.[7]
  • Klapper, Melissa R. (2013). Ballots, Babies, and Banners of Peace: American Jewish Women's Activism, 1890-1940. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-4894-7.[8]
  • Klapper, Melissa R. (2020). Ballet Class: An American History. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-090868-3.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Feiler, Alan (2023-03-20). "Baltimore Native Dr. Melissa R. Klapper Wins on 'Jeopardy!'". JMORE. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Melissa Klapper, Ph.D." chss.rowan.edu. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
  3. ^ a b Klapper, Melissa Rose (2001). "A fair portion of the world's knowledge" : Jewish girls coming of age in America, 1860-1920 (Ph.D. thesis). Rutgers University–New Brunswick. OCLC 56898108.
  4. ^ "Amplifying voices of women and children in history". today.rowan.edu. May 5, 2022. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
  5. ^ "2024 Tournament of Champions". Jeopardy. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  6. ^ Reviews of Jewish Girls Coming of Age in America, 1860-1920:
  7. ^ Reviews of Small Strangers:
  8. ^ Reviews of Ballots, Babies, and Banners of Peace: