Princeton University celebrated the academic accomplishments of its students with the awarding of undergraduate prizes to seven students at Opening Exercises on Sunday, Aug. 31.

“It is truly a privilege to honor this year’s prize winners,” said Dean of the College Michael D. Gordin. “Princeton students can be justly proud of many accomplishments, but it is fitting that we as a university take this moment to celebrate today’s prize winners, who are in a category of their own.”

“Their stratospheric academic achievements both in their chosen disciplines and across the curriculum are a testament to the vibrancy of the liberal arts in the twenty-first century,” Gordin said. “My colleagues and I wish them the warmest congratulations and continued success in the future.”

President Christopher L. Eisgruber (center) and Dean of the College Michael D. Gordin (far right) stand with undergraduate academic prize winners (from left to right) Braeden Carroll, Katie Daniels, Uma Fox, Alexander Luna, Haruka Nabeshima, Zechang (Charlie) Yang and Andrei Dragomir.

Photo by

Denise Applewhite, Office of Communications

Freshman First Honor Prize

This year’s Freshman First Honor Prize is shared by Andrei Dragomir and Alexander Luna. The prize is awarded to members of the sophomore class in recognition of exceptional achievement during their first year.

Dragomir, of Brașov, Romania, attended the International Computer High School of Bucharest. A member of Butler College, he is considering majoring in physics, astrophysical sciences or computer science and pursuing minors in East Asian studies or Japanese language, as well as statistics and machine learning. He is a recipient of the 2025 Manfred Pyka Memorial Physics Prize.

This summer, Dragomir participated in Princeton in Ishikawa, an eight-week intensive Japanese language program.

Outside the classroom, he is an outreach officer with the Princeton Astronomy Club and has performed with Songline Slam Poetry.

Luna, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, attended Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire. A member of Forbes College, he is considering majoring in molecular biology and pursuing minors in quantitative and computational biology and statistics and machine learning. He is a recipient of the 2025 Dorothea van Dyke McLane Prize in Italian.

This summer, Luna participated in the Summer Undergraduate Research Program in Molecular and Quantitative and Computational Biology, where he conducted laboratory research with Martin Wühr, associate professor of molecular biology and the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics. He also attended Princeton in Pisa in Italy.

The George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize

This year’s George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize is shared by Haruka Nabeshima and Zechang (Charlie) Yang. The prize is awarded each year to members of the junior class in recognition of exceptional academic achievement during their sophomore year.

Nabeshima, of Newton, Massachusetts, attended Newton North High School there. A recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence for the 2023–24 academic year, she is a psychology major who is also pursuing minors in cognitive science and finance. She is a member of Rockefeller College.

This summer, Nabeshima interned at the investment firm WestBridge Capital in Bengaluru, India, through the Princeton Startup Immersion Program-Bengaluru. She has also interned at WOWS Global in Bangkok, Thailand, through the International Internship Program.

Nabeshima serves as treasurer of Princeton Model Congress, production manager of BodyHype Dance Company, and a research assistant in the Concepts and Cognition Lab under Tania Lombrozo, the Arthur W. Marks '19 Professor of Psychology and director of the Program in Cognitive Science. She was previously the executive director of the student-run startup competition TigerLaunch, president of the Honorary Debate Panel and a Matriculate advising fellow.

She will serve as a community living adviser for Rockefeller College this fall.

Yang, of Beijing, China, attended Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland. A recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence for the 2023–24 academic year, he is a mathematics major who is also pursuing minors in computer science and optimization and quantitative decision science, as well as considering a minor in classics.

He received the Manfred Pyka Memorial Physics Prize in 2024 and the Department of German’s Book Prize in 2025. He is a member of Butler College.

This summer, Yang participated in the PIIRS Global Seminar “Contemporary Japan” and conducted a research project with Bjoern Bringmann, assistant professor of mathematics, as part of Princeton's Summer Program for Mathematics Majors.

Outside the classroom, Yang serves as an undergraduate course assistant in ORF 309: Probability and Stochastic Systems. He is a member of the Princeton Equestrian Team, the Classics Club and the Math Club. He also attended a 2024 PIIRS Global Seminar in Chile.

The George B. Wood Legacy Junior Prize

This year’s George B. Wood Legacy Junior Prize is shared by Braeden Carroll and Katie Daniels. The prize is awarded to members of the senior class in recognition of exceptional academic achievement during their junior year.

Carroll, of Kinnelon, New Jersey, attended Kinnelon High School there. A co-winner of the George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize in 2024 and a two-time recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence, he is a civil and environmental engineering major who is also pursuing a minor in sustainable energy. Carroll is a member of Rockefeller College.

His senior thesis uses machine learning to model the impacts of deterioration and aging on historic timber frame barns. His advisers are Branko Glišić, professor of civil and environmental engineering and department chair, and graduate student Moriah Hughes.

Carroll has interned twice with the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI), first to study long-term impacts of Super Typhoon Haiyan with the Blue Lab in 2023 and then to design a hybrid bridge-flood barrier with Glišić and Maria Garlock, also a professor of civil and environmental engineering, last summer.

He studied in Greece over fall break for HUM 417: Historical Structures: Ancient Architecture's Materials, Construction and Engineering.

Outside the classroom, Carroll is a member of the men’s varsity lightweight rowing team and the Princeton chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

This summer, he interned at the management consulting firm Bain & Company.

Daniels, of Newtown, Pennsylvania, attended Council Rock North High School there. A recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence for the 2022–23 academic year, she is a neuroscience major and a member of New College West.

Her senior thesis, advised by Daniel Notterman, a senior research scholar in molecular biology, will investigate the effects of repetitive traumatic brain injuries in fruit flies.

This summer, Daniels continued her senior thesis research on campus with support from the Boyce Batey Senior Thesis Award. She also served as a volunteer EMT with the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad and worked on clinical research projects at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., where she interned through the Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS) program in 2024.

Daniels is a research assistant for Notterman and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute’s Dettwiler Concussion Lab, led by principal investigator Annegret Dettwiler-Danspeckgruber. She serves as a fellow with the Office of Disability Services' AccessAbility Center and leads community service projects through the PACE Center's Civic Leadership Council, where she serves as chair of its health division. She is a peer academic adviser in New College West and a Health Professions Advising peer adviser.

Class of 1939 Scholar Award

Uma Fox received the Class of 1939 Princeton Scholar Award, which is awarded each year to the undergraduate who, at the end of junior year, has achieved the highest academic standing for all preceding college work at the University.

Fox, of Silver Spring, Maryland, attended school at Li Po Chun United World College of Hong Kong in Wu Kai Sha, Hong Kong. A two-time recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence, she is a history major who is also pursuing minors in South Asian studies and journalism. Fox is a member of Yeh College.

Her senior thesis, advised by Divya Cherian, associate professor of history, will focus on the transnational human rights implications of Indian counterterrorism prosecutions and national security policy in the 1980s and ‘90s. She received the Department of History’s Lawrence Stone and Shelby Cullom Davis Prize in 2023.

This summer, Fox continued her senior thesis research in India and the United Kingdom. She also conducted research on post-war accountability and human rights issues in Colombo, Sri Lanka, as a Streicker International Fellow, and on constitutional rights litigation in New Delhi, India, heard in front of the Supreme Court of India.

Fox has previously interned at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section as part of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA)’s 2024 cohort of the Scholars in the Nation’s Service Initiative. She has also held internships in the office of U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland in Washington, D.C., and with the National Forum for Colombia in Bogotá, Colombia.

On campus, Fox is co-editor-in-chief of the Princeton Historical Review, a research assistant and senior international policy associate with the Liechtenstein Institute on Self Determination, and a U-Councilor of the Undergraduate Student Government, where she previously served as treasurer. She served as a research assistant with SPIA’s Bridging Divides Initiative. Fox is also a member of the Princeton International Relations Council.