Who is Jeopardy! contestant Samantha Meier? Details explored

Jeopardy! season 42, episode 60, premiered on November 28, 2025 on NBC with Harrison Whitaker delivering another winning performance, securing his 14th consecutive win on Friday.

He entered the studio already riding a massive 13 game winning streak and a total of $352,000 against two newcomers: Samantha Meier, an assistant principal from North Reading, Massachusetts and Wilder Seitz, a cashier and writer from Los Angeles.

After 15 clues, in the first Jeopardy! round included Not The State Capital, Rough Times In The Bible and Tropical Fruits. The scores stood at:

• Harrison: $9,200
• Wilder: $3,200
• Samantha: $3,000

After 60 clues were revealed, categories included Unmitigated Gaul, Clothes In Books and Animals’ Scientific Names. The scores in the Double Jeopardy! Round was:

• Harrison: $18,400
• Samantha: $7,400
• Wilder: $500

The final clue in the last round was from the category The European Union. The contestants were asked about the smallest member of the EU in area and population, which joined in 2004.

Both Harrison and Wilder correctly answered Malta, while Samantha guessed Iceland, leaving her score unchanged. The results in the Final Jeopardy! Round said:

• Harrison became the winner: $18,400 + $3,599 = $21,999 (What is Malta?) (14-day total: $373,999)
• Samantha: $7,400 - $0 = $7,400 (What is Iceland)
• Wilder: $500 + $499 = $999 (What is Malta?)

More details explored about Jeopardy! season 42 contestant Samantha Meier

Samantha Meier is an education leader originally from North Reading, Massachusetts with a professional background spanning classroom teaching, school administration and district leadership.

With a successful career in teaching, Meier has held multiple roles across the state, spanning teaching, administration and district-level leadership.

She served for six years as a biology and physics teacher at Revere High School, nine years as vice principal and three years as principal of Garfield Middle School and finally served as the deputy principal at Revere High.

Later, Samantha worked as principal in Salem High School, overseeing academic pathways, MTSS improvements and COVID-19 return-to-school operations.

Before working as an educator, Samantha worked for five years in the United States Coast Guard as a quartermaster second assistant from 1995 to 2000.

Completing her military service and then attending Cornell University, Samantha specialised in animal sciences during her bachelor’s degree.

She later pursued graduate studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston, completing both a master’s degree and a doctorate in urban education and leadership.

By 2021, Samantha had become assistant principal at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School, where she oversaw school improvement planning and helped redesign academic schedules.

She later served as Director of Teaching and Learning (STEM) for Peabody Public Schools. Then she moved into district-wide leadership as Director of Academics for the Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School District.

As of 2025, she serves as Dean of Students and Student Operations at Gloucester High School, overseeing all aspects of instructional strategies to campus operations.

Apart from administration, Samantha has also worked as an adjunct professor at UMass Boston, helping mentor and train the next generation of educators.

Fluent in both German and Spanish, she is proficient with educational data systems, analytics tools and instructional technologies and now her feat on Jeopardy! season 42.

Stay tuned for more updates.