2025 Commencement and Upper School Awards

Awards presented at COMMENCEMENT 

Awards presented at the UPPER SCHOOL AWARDS Ceremony

Class of 2025 initiates: Jason Broome, Abby Burstein, Lauren Geddes, Hannah Gray, Cole Karpovich, Josie Kibel, Shruti Nair, Annie Nemoy, Avery Park, Meera Rami, Langston Riding, Katherine Schlossnagle, Max Stanziale, Abbey Suk, Zewdi Tesfayohannes, and Mason Tortora.

Class of 2026 initiates: Lizzy Albertine, William Ashley, Jolie Citron, Harris Gordon, Shivank Gupta, Nathan Huang, Philemon Kuo, Minoo Nassiri, Zoe Reicher, Emma Riley, Maya Rodriguez, Kyle Rollins, Duncan Sciubba, Milie Singh, Arjun Sood, Reid Swirnow, Landon Tamaddon, and Anya Viswanathan.

The Dedication Award: Callum Bullers '26
Presented to juniors whose contributions and efforts have been in a range of school undertakings and who show promise of excellence in those endeavors.

The Faculty Prize for the Eleventh Grade: Maya Rodriguez '26
This prize is presented to a junior who shows outstanding intellectual and personal promise.

The Blanche A. C. Wells Award: Fola Bankole '27 and Kaelin Watkins '27
This award is presented to two sophomores who have most nearly lived up to the ideals taught by Louis E. Lamborn during his 26 years as Headmaster.

The Underclass Leadership Award: Jake Klein '28, Huy Le '27, Arianna Benjamin '26, and Minoo Nassiri '26
This award is presented to those students who, throughout the year, have exerted a major positive influence on the life of the school through conduct as a person and capacity as a leader.

The Gary ’58 and Peter Dimling ’63 Award: Maxine Koymen '28
This award is presented to the freshman who has been the greatest inspiration to fellow students throughout the year.

The Class of ’40 Award: Nengi Briggs '27
This award is presented to the sophomores who have been the greatest inspiration to fellow students throughout the year.

The Louis E. Lamborn Award: JJ Di Monte '26 and Reid Swirnow '26
This award is presented to the junior who best exemplifies the ideals taught by Louis E. Lamborn, Headmaster 1926-1952.

The Excellence in English Award: Ruth Elias '25
This award is presented to a senior who has excelled in the study of English.

The Eustace Straughn Glascock 1879 Award: Hannah Gray '25
This award is presented to a senior who has excelled in creative writing.

The English Achievement Award: Mark Cherches '25 and Lauren Geddes '25
This award is presented to the senior who has combined outstanding achievement and extraordinary passion in the study of English over the past four years.

The Shirley Klein Journalism Award: Jolie Citron '26 and Julia Holthaus ’27
This award is presented to the underclass student who has demonstrated interest in and enthusiasm for school journalism and student publications to attend a journalism seminar.

The Charles C. Kinard Award: Amanda Bavar '25 and Lauren Geddes '25
This award is presented to the seniors who, through writing, leadership, energy, and concern for others, have contributed most consistently to high standards of school journalism.

The Photojournalism Award: Jolie Citron '26
This award is presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding dedication to and talent for photojournalism in the service of school publications.

The Underclass Chinese Award: Harris Gordon '26
This award is presented to the underclass student with the most achievement in and enthusiasm for the Chinese language both inside and outside the classroom.

The Senior Chinese Award: Michael Tardivo '25
This award is presented to the senior with the most achievement in and enthusiasm for the Chinese language both inside and outside the classroom.

The French Award: Emma Riley '26
This award is presented to the underclass student who has shown the most achievement and interest in French both inside and outside the classroom.

The Marion Sparks Prize: Langston Duncan '25
This prize is presented to the senior who has shown marked proficiency in French.

The Underclass Latin Award: Jansen Craig '26
This award is presented to the underclass student who has shown the most achievement and interest in Latin.

The Senior Latin Award: London James-Golas '25
This award is presented to the senior who has shown the greatest achievement and interest in Latin.

The Spanish Award: Reid Swirnow '26
This award is presented to the underclass student who has shown the most achievement and interest in Spanish both inside and outside the classroom.

The Ruth Keebler White Award: Maggie Johnston '25
This award is presented to the senior who has shown outstanding promise in the study of the Spanish language.

The World History Award: Sammie Keane '27
This award is presented to the student who has shown outstanding appreciation of, curiosity about, and achievement in the study of world history.

The Paul Carre ’21 Award: Landon Tamaddon '26
This award is presented to the student who has excelled in the study of United States history.

The Martin H. McKibbin, Jr. Excellence in History and Social Studies Award: Madison Pegram '25
This award is presented to the seniors who have excelled in the study of history and social studies

The General Excellence in Mathematics Award: Shivank Gupta '26 and Philemon Kuo '26
This award is presented to the juniors who have shown outstanding proficiency and interest in mathematics.

The Francis L. Fenwick ’68 Award: Ruth Elias '25 and Sebastian Pio Roda '25
is presented to the senior who has shown outstanding excellence in mathematics in the last two years at McDonogh.

The Robert C. Smoot III ’51 Award: Eva Bisset '27
Presented to a freshman or sophomore who has shown outstanding ability and understanding in chemistry.

The Howard B. Henry ’51 Award: Philemon Kuo '26
This award is presented to an upperclass student who has shown outstanding ability and understanding in chemistry.

The Robert C. White Award: Zain Naqvi '25
This award is presented to the senior who exhibits outstanding appreciation of and achievement in physical science.

The Alfred Ogden Ramsay Award: Savannah Radz '25
This award is presented to the student who exhibits outstanding appreciation of and achievement in biology.

The Dr. Herbert E. Wilgis ’53 Award: Shruti Nair '25 and Isabella Sodhi '25
This award is presented to upperclass students of biology whose interest, application, and proficiency suggest that good use will be made of those talents in medicine or some related field of endeavor.

The Robert E. Seigman ’64 Excellence in Science Award: Annie Guan '26
This award is presented to a junior in recognition of outstanding academic achievement, good character, and superior intellectual promise in the field of science.

The Albert C. Schauman ’31 Award: Sebastian Pio Roda '25
This award is presented to a senior who has shown promise in the field of science, been actively involved in science, and demonstrated a sensitivity to the spirit of the discipline.

The Engineering Award: Mason Tortora '25
This award is presented to the senior who has shown achievement and promise in the field of engineering.

The Computer Science Award: Duncan Sciubba '26
This award is presented to the student who exhibits outstanding achievement and interest in computer science.

The Underclass Dance Award: Evelyn Davies '28 and Callie La Testa '26
This award is presented to the underclass students who have demonstrated outstanding proficiency and interest in dance.

The Dance Award: Kelsey Coley '25 and Jada Reid '25
This award is presented to the seniors who have demonstrated outstanding achievement as performing artists and dedication to the McDonogh dance program.

The General Excellence in Instrumental Music Award: Alicia An '28 and Nathan Huang '26
This award is presented to the underclass students who have excelled in instrumental music.

The Marshall C. Anders, Jr. Instrumental Music Award: Derek Copeland '25 and Tenley Lambert '25
This award is presented to the seniors who have excelled in instrumental music.

The Marshall C. Anders, Jr. Vocal Music Award: Ashley Ince '25 and Katherine Schlossnagle '25
This award is presented to the seniors who have excelled in vocal music

The Theatre Arts Award: Mason Bainbridge '25 and Ebonie Bogle '25
Chosen by their peers, the award is presented to the students who have made significant contributions to theatre productions of the School.

The John Van Meter Award for Technical Theatre: Ebonie Bogle '25
This award is presented to students who have demonstrated excellence in technical theatre and made significant contributions to the performing arts.

The Robert Eric Farmer ’81 Art Achievement Award: Callum Bullers '26 and Eva Schultz '26
This award is presented to the art students who have evidenced the most improvement in expressing their art talent.

The Cleveland Award: Hannah Gray '25, Anna Livermore '25, and Abbey Suk '25
This award is presented to the seniors whose enthusiasm, effort, and talent have contributed to the encouragement of the visual arts at McDonogh.

The Simon Minkove Debate Award: Aryan Prabhakar '26 and Arjun Sood '26
This award is presented to the underclass students who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the school’s debate program.

The North-Edwards Award: Mark Cherches '25 and Muyiwa Ogunsola '25
This award is presented to the seniors who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the school’s Allan Debating Society.

The Willis K. Lynch ’28 Award: Sophie Winter '26
This award is presented to the student who has made the greatest contribution to the School’s equestrian tradition.

The Robotics Technology Award: Tristan Brewer '26, Ellen Heavers '25, Zain Naqvi '25, and Sebastian Pio Roda '25
This award is presented to the students whose leadership and dedicated contributions have promoted and fostered the continued growth of the robotics technology program.

The Admissions Ambassador Service Award: Langston Duncan '25 and Sydney Glass '28
This award is presented to students who embody the McDonogh Spirit of "giving something more than we take" and are outstanding ambassadors for the Admissions Office to new and prospective families.

The Golden Eagle Award: Mckenzie Brown ’25, Gabriela Chiappetta ’25, Emily Cussimanio ’25, Grace Hannemann ’25, Cole Karpovich ’25, Lucas Parks ’25, Owen Paterson ’25, Savannah Radz ’25, Julia Waldron ’25, and Liam Zinsmeister ’25
This award is presented to the dedicated athletes who have participated in an interscholastic sport every season of their Upper School careers.