The William Scott Ferguson Award was founded in 1951 through gifts from anonymous donors. The prize is awarded each year to the student or students who have written an outstanding essay for the sophomore tutorial at Harvard College.
The award was established to honor William Scott Ferguson, McLean Professor of Ancient and Modern History, Emeritus, and formerly Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) at Harvard University.
United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts won the prize while he attended Harvard College for his essay Marxism and Bolshevism: Theory and Practice.