Jordan Center Blog Graduate Student Essay Competition
NYU Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia
Official Competition Rules (“Official Rules”)
Who Can Enter
1. No purchase necessary. Void outside of the U.S. and where prohibited by law. Competition subject to all U.S. federal, state and local laws. Winners may be required to execute prize acceptance documents, including U.S. tax reporting forms and return them within fourteen (14) days of notification that they have won a prize.
2. By entering this competition, you hereby represent and warrant that you have read and agree to these official rules.
3. To be eligible to participate in this competition, entrants must be legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia, 18 years of age or older and have not previously been published in the Jordan Center blog. For clarity, students lawfully in the U.S. on F-1 visas may participate in the competition and will be bound to all requirements set forth in these Official Rules, including the execution of the Prize Acceptance Documents.
4. Competition is sponsored by the NYU Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia (“Jordan Center”). Officers and directors of the Jordan Center and their immediate families are not eligible to participate in the Competition. Anyone who has been previously published in the Jordan Center Blog is not eligible. The term “immediate family” includes spouses, grandparents, parents, siblings, children and grandchildren.
How to Enter
1. Enter through this Google Form.
2. To enter, submit an original 750-1200-word article on any topic described in the competition announcement. No previously published works will be accepted. Only one entry submission allowed per person.
3. The competition starts on November 27, 2023, and all entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST March 15, 2024. The Jordan Center is not responsible for lost, late, or misdirected entries, printing errors, server unavailability, computer, or any other electronic malfunction. Entries that are late, incomplete, unreadable, inaccurate, unintelligible or otherwise not in compliance with these Official Rules will be disqualified.
4. You represent and warrant that you have all necessary rights in your article to submit it as described in these Official Rules, and that you have obtained all necessary permissions from any person identified in or implicated by your submission. You further represent and warrant that your submission: (i) is wholly original and has not been previously published for any purpose; (ii) does not violate or infringe the rights of privacy, publicity, or any other rights, including but not limited to copyrights or trademarks or any intellectual property rights, of any third party, and (iii) does not contain libelous or defamatory material. By submitting your entry, you grant the Jordan Center a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, fully sub-licensable, transferable, license to publish, reproduce, distribute, display, perform, edit, adapt, modify, translate, create derivative works, make, sell, offer for sale, export, and otherwise use and exploit your submission (or any portion thereof) in any way that we want and in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed. You hereby waive any moral rights you may have in your submission.
Selection of Winners
1. Seven (7) winners will be selected: three grand-prize ($500) winners in the fields of history, cultural studies, and social sciences; and four additional judges’ choice ($200)
2. Entries will be judged and winners selected based on their originality, clarity, and argumentation.
3. Winners will be notified via email by the Jordan Center Blog Summer 2024. The number of eligible entries will determine the odds of winning. In the Jordan Center’s sole discretion, a selected winner may be required to forfeit a prize and an alternate winner may be selected in accordance with these Official Rules from among the remaining eligible entries for that prize if selected winner (i) is unreachable, (ii) declines or cannot accept, receive or use the prize for any reason, or (iii) fails to comply with these Official Rules. Before claiming the prize, the winner must provide his/her correct name, address and telephone number to the Jordan Center at the time of notification. The Jordan Center
reserves the right to examine additional identification and may choose to accept or deny awarding the prize based on the identification presented.
4. If a winner cannot be notified within fourteen (14) days, or does not timely sign and return the release and affidavit of eligibility, then the prize will be forfeited, and the prize will be awarded to an alternate winner selected from among remaining valid entries.
Prizes
The grand-prize winners will receive $500 each and the judges' choice winners $200 each. In addition, each winner will have their essay published on the Jordan Center Blog, subject to working with the Editor to prepare the essay for publication. No transfer or assignment of prizes is allowed. Winner is responsible for paying all local, county, state and federal taxes on prizes based on the estimated retail value of the prizes as set forth in these rules. Each winner must complete and sign all appropriate forms as directed by New York University.
Limitation of Liability and General Conditions
1. By participating in this Competition, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the judges, which are final and binding in all respects. By entering, each entrant agrees to release, discharge, indemnify, and hold harmless the Jordan Center and
each of their respective parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries and advertising and marketing agencies and each of their respective employees, officers, shareholders, directors, representatives and agents (collectively, “Releasees”) from and against any claims, damages or liability involving or arising out of (i) late, lost, delayed, misdirected, postage due, mutilated, incomplete, unreadable, inaccurate, garbled or unintelligible entries; (ii) telephone system, technical or computer malfunctions, lost connections, disconnections, transmission or other errors of any kind whether mechanical, human, electronic or otherwise; (iii) data corruption, theft, destruction, unauthorized access to or alteration of entry or other materials; (iv) any injuries, losses or damages of any kind caused, including death, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, by the prize or resulting from acceptance, possession or use or misuse of any prize or from participating in the Competition or any Competition related activity; (v) any printing, distribution, typographical, administrative, human or technological errors involving or associated with the Competition or (vi)
participation in the Competition or any prize-related activities, including the infringement or alleged infringement or violation of the intellectual property or other rights of any third party (including but not limited to the right of privacy, publicity or personality) by the Entry. Sponsors disclaim any liability for damage to any computer system resulting from participating in, or accessing or downloading information in connection with the Competition.
2. The Jordan Center reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify, cancel or suspend this Competition (or any portion of the Competition) should any virus, bug, computer problem or other cause or problem corrupt or inhibit the administration, security or proper operation of the Competition and, in such situation (or in the event of any type of error), to select the winners from eligible entries received prior to the action taken or in such manner as deemed fair and appropriate by the Jordan Center. In no event will the Jordan Center be liable for more than the stated number of prizes in these Official Rules. The Jordan Center may prohibit entrant from participating in the Competition or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines entrant is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Competition by cheating, hacking, deception, or other unfair practices or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrant or the Jordan Center’s representatives. Releasees have not made and/or are not responsible for any misrepresentation or guaranty, express or implied, in fact or in law, relative to the prizes.
3. By accepting a prize, the winner agrees and acknowledges that the Jordan Center may use winners’ name, voice, biographical data, likeness and city name in any and all media throughout the universe and in perpetuity for promotional purposes without additional compensation, except where prohibited by law.
Choice of Law and Forum
1. THE COURTS (STATE AND FEDERAL) OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL HAVE SOLE JURISDICTION FOR ANY CONTROVERSIES REGARDING THE COMPETITION AND THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, WITHOUT
REGARD TO CONFLICTS OF LAWS PRINCIPLES, SHALL GOVERN THE COMPETITION. ENTRANTS WAIVE ANY AND ALL OBJECTIONS TO JURISDICTION AND VENUE IN THESE COURTS AND HEREBY SUBMIT TO THE
JURISDICTION OF THOSE COURTS REGARDLESS OF WHERE ANY SUCH ENTRANT HAS CITIZENSHIP OR PERMANENT RESIDENCY.
2. BY ENTERING THE COMPETITION, ENTRANTS AGREE THAT: (1) ANY AND ALL DISPUTES, CLAIMS, AND CAUSES OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR CONNECTED WITH THE COMPETITION, OR any PRIZES AWARDED, SHALL BE RESOLVED INDIVIDUALLY, WITHOUT RESORT TO ANY FORM OF CLASS ACTION; (2) ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, JUDGMENTS AND AWARDS SHALL BE LIMITED TO ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET COSTS INCURRED, INCLUDING COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH ENTERING THE COMPETITION, BUT IN NO EVENT WILL ATTORNEYS’ FEES BE AWARDED OR RECOVERABLE; AND (3) UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL ANY ENTRANT BE PERMITTED TO OBTAIN ANY AWARD FOR, AND ENTRANT HEREBY KNOWINGLY AND EXPRESSLY WAIVES ALL RIGHTS TO SEEK, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES AND/OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES, OTHER THAN ACTUAL OUT-OF POCKET EXPENSES, AND/OR ANY AND ALL RIGHTS TO HAVE DAMAGES MULTIPLIED OR OTHERWISE INCREASED.
Winners’ List and Copy of Rules
For the names of the prize winners, available on or after September 1, 2024 or a copy of these Official Rules, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: The Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia, 19 University Place, New York, NY 10002. Please specify "Official Rules" or "Winners List." Requests must be received by October 31, 2024.