Pa. Professor Becomes Jeopardy! Champion With ‘Perfect Wager'

Melissa Klapper, a professor at Rowan University, is the current Jeopardy! champion.

On the latest episode that aired Monday night, Klapper beat returning champion Kelly Barry and Jake Garret.

Klapper was leading with $24,400 until Garret took the lead in the Final Jeopardy round by doubling his score to $24,800 since, as the host Ken Jennings put it, "Melissa did not wager quite enough on the Final Daily Double."

It was Klapper’s perfect wager of $401 that put her over the top by just one dollar when she also got the answer correct to the clue: “At one time a province of the Roman Empire, this kingdom is known to Arabic scholars as Al-Maghrib Al-Aqsa, ‘the far west.’”

Klapper teaches American and women’s history with a focus on the late 19th and early 20th century.

She will be the returning champion Tuesday night going against Brandon Anderson and Charlotte Diffendale.