In response to the need to reflect collectively on their enterprise, an array of contemporary North American medievalists met at the University of Notre Dame's Medieval Institute. Each of the essays presented here offers the perspective of a specialty within the diverse and interdisciplinary field of medieval studies, considering the development, present status and future prospects of medieval studies in the American university. Contributors include: Michael M. Sheehan, Kathleen Biddick, Patrick J. Geary, Michael McCormick, Jeremy Cohen, Richard Bulliet, Sabine MacCormack, Randolph Starn, Mark Jordan, E. Ann Matter, Joseph Wawrykow, Marcia Colish, Roberta Frank, Derek Pearsall, Lee Patterson, Judith Bennett, William Chester Jordan, Karl Morrison, Richard Rouse, Brigitte Bedos-Rezak, Leo Treitler, Michael Camille, Jeffrey Hamburger, and John Van Engen.