GS Celebrates Excellence at the 2026 Academic Prizes Ceremony

On Friday, May 15, the School of General Studies (GS) celebrated the 2026 Academic Prizes Ceremony, where high achieving students are awarded for their academic excellence. These prizes honor students’ commitment to research, writing, and scholarship inside the classroom. This year, more than 40 of GS’s best and brightest were celebrated.

Dean Lisa Rosen-Metsch ‘90GS welcomed the awardees and their families, highlighting all the ways their GS stories have led them to this moment. “You have shown a remarkable commitment to your education, scholarship, and academic goals. Whether you are pursuing your undergraduate degree for the first time or returning to school after a hiatus, you have all demonstrated tremendous resilience, perseverance, and determination.”

Congratulations to this year’s awardees!

Dean’s Prize in Anthropology
Awarded for excellence in the study of anthropology
Diego Chiat

Best Senior Thesis in American Studies
Awarded for outstanding senior thesis in American Studies
Patrick Johnson

Marcia Mead Design Award in Architecture
Awarded for excellence in architectural design
Shaun Ray Ong

Judith Lee Stronach Memorial Prize
Awarded for outstanding contributions in art history or archaeology
Charlotte Chesbro, Sydney Smith

Brian Brent Award
Awarded for an outstanding undergraduate teaching assistant in chemistry
Liv Shalom

The Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak Prize
Awarded for an outstanding thesis in comparative literature and society
Gabriela Orozco

Andrew P. Kosoresow Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching and Service
Awarded for outstanding contributions to teaching in the Department of Computer Science and exemplary service to the Department and its mission
Amit Aharoni

Computer Science Scholarship Award
Awarded for outstanding academic achievement
Xiang Yu Tuang

Jonathan L. Gross Award
Awarded for academic excellence in computer science
Jasper Shen

Dean’s Prize in Creative Writing
Awarded for excellence in the study of creative writing
Bea Cohen, Alejandra Ramos

Albert E. Gollin Prize
Awarded for excellence in the study of sociology, media, or journalism
Sierra Marques

Louis Sudler Prize in the Arts
Awarded for excellence in performance or execution or in the field of composition in one of the general areas of performing and creative arts
Patrick Johnson

The Walter Pitman Senior Thesis Award in Earth and Environmental Sciences
Awarded in recognition of the best thesis paper in earth science or environmental science
Megan Marostica

Dean’s Prize in Economics
Awarded for excellence in the study of economics
Yasmin Abbasoy

Professor John Angus Burrell Memorial Prize
Awarded for distinction in English and comparative literature
Julie Chen, Dalton Mobley, Esperanza Montero

Ella Rose Feely Mills Memorial Prize in English Literature
Awarded for outstanding achievement and excellence in the major
Olivia Bulis

Arthur E. Ford Poetry Prize
Awarded for the best collections of poems
Nicole Hur

George Edward Woodberry Prize
Awarded for the best original poem
Bea Cohen, Yousef Bhimani

Center for the Study of Ethnicity and Race Award for Outstanding Thesis
Awarded for an outstanding senior thesis in ethnicity and race studies
Sarah Bukowski

Guy Gallo Memorial Award in Screenwriting
Awarded for screenwriting
Kaci Walfall

Pat Anderson Prize in Film Criticism
Awarded for an essay of distinction in the field of film criticism
Weston Maher

Garrett Mattingly Thesis Prize in History
Awarded for a senior thesis of distinction in any historical field or period in history
Elizabeth Tamarelli

Herbert H. Lehman Prize
Awarded for excellence in history
Toma Ito-Chihaia

Undergraduate Education Committee Prize
Awarded for a thesis of excellence written in any field of history
Leo Gerza

Charles S. Miller Award in Music
Awarded for excellence of the highest standard in the field of music composition
Isabella Bi

Arthur Ross Foundation Award
Awarded for excellence in political science
River Alexander

Jennifer A. Pack Prize
Awarded for excellence in the study of psychology
Ronak Elias, Jeanne Fontaine

Stacy M. and Russell D. Paul Prize
Awarded for excellence in the study of psychology
Una Aleksic, Brea Sloboda

Lillian L. Hacker Prize
Awarded for excellence in the study of sociology
Glenn Paul

ACTR Post-Secondary Russian Scholar Laureate Award
Awarded for a student who embodies an enthusiasm for studying the Russian language and learning about Russian area studies
Alex Nagin

Pushkin Poetry Prize
Awarded for the best translation of a Slavic poem into English
Viktor Loh

Antonio G. Mier Prize
Awarded for the for excellence in the study of Spanish
Inés Namuth

Stuart Gaffin Award for Leadership and Engagement
Awarded for demonstrated leadership and service in the spirit of sustainable development
Ana Vieira Semeghini

The Women’s and Gender Studies Award
Awarded for excellence in research and writing in the fields of women’s and gender studies
Xingxing Hu