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Indian-American Yale Professor honored with 2024 Barry Prize

Akhil Reed Amar received the Barry Prize for advancing public understanding and scholarship in constitutional law.

Professor Akhil Reed Amar ’84 (fifth from right) and fellow honorees. / Image - American Academy of Sciences and Letters

Yale’s Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science, Akhil Reed Amar, has been awarded the Barry Prize for Distinguished Intellectual Achievement by the American Academy of Sciences and Letters (AASL). 

Amar, a Yale alumnus from the class of 1984, was among 10 recipients of the prize, recognized for his intellectual excellence and courage. The award ceremony took place at the Library of Congress last week, led by Academy president Donald W. Landry of Columbia University and board chair Sanjeev R. Kulkarni of Princeton University.

The Barry Prize, awarded annually to scholars across diverse fields, honors individuals whose work has profoundly contributed to humanity's understanding of "the good, the true, and the beautiful." The Academy commended Amar’s contributions to constitutional law, noting his exceptional scholarship, dedication to public understanding, and influence in the academic and legal fields.

“Akhil Reed Amar has deepened America’s understanding of its constitutional system of government. The combination of extraordinary erudition and his gift for enlightening audiences has established him as one of the most-cited legal scholars of all time as well as a leading contributor to public understanding of constitutional law,” the Academy’s citation read.

Amar, a constitutional law expert, teaches at both Yale College and Yale Law School. His research has been widely cited by justices across the U.S. Supreme Court and has earned awards from organizations such as the American Bar Association and the Federalist Society. 

He is the author of numerous influential books, including “The Bill of Rights,” “America’s Constitution,” and “The Words That Made Us.” His weekly podcast, "Amarica’s Constitution", explores constitutional history and its relevance today.

Born to Indian immigrants, Michigan-native Amar attended Yale University and majored in history and economics, post which he obtained his Juris Doctor from Yale law school. 
 

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