Underclass Awards and Prizes Announced

As the 2025–26 school year came to a close and students departed from Northfield Mount Hermon for summer break, 59 9th-, 10th-, and 11th-graders were recognized for their academic achievements and curiosity, engagement on and off campus, and general contributions to the NMH community.

"It's definitely my honor to receive these awards,” said Eric Zhao ’27, who received the Gregory Dean Legon Memorial Scholar Award and the Mary Ellen Peller Award. He credits NMH’s cross-disciplinary curriculum with helping him develop a community-minded attitude that focuses on more than academic success.

“To quote from my junior year English teacher, I think NMH's academic education is unique in its ability to ‘motivate students to ask good questions,’” Zhao said.

Joelle Yang ’27, this year’s recipient of the Excellence in American Literature Prize and the Elliot Computing Prize, said the reading materials and projects assigned in her classes helped her connect her academic studies to real-world issues.

“NMH has taught me to identify problems in my community and address them through my passions,” said Yang. “I learned to take initiative, dig deeper into subjects we touched on, and apply my knowledge to different exploratory projects.”

The 2025-26 Underclass Awards and Prizes recipients:

• The Anne Walline Service Prize was established in 1995 by Mrs. Mario Dicesare in memory of her Northfield friend and roommate, Anne Walline of the Class of 1951. It is given to the 9th- to 11th-grade student whose volunteer work in the community brings help and humor into the lives of others. - Adebimpe Omotosho '27
   
• The Award in Chinese is given to a student who has developed a deep interest in the language and culture and has worked with patience and consistency. - Alexander Wirth '27
   
• The Award in Spanish is awarded to the student who has shown high academic promise in the study of Spanish. - Frieda Milner '27
   
• The Alice B. and John E. Baldwin Award for excellence in English is presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding ability in scholarship and criticism, who has read widely and well, and who, like Chaucer's clerk from Oxford, doth "gladly lerne." - Haven Freedman '27
   
• The Barbara E. Southard Prize in Religious Studies was established to honor Ms. Southard, former chair of religious studies, for her visionary leadership, creative teaching, and sensitivity to the inner life of the spirit. The prize is awarded to a 10th-grader who has excelled in introductory religious studies courses, displaying an openness to the spiritual reality of human life. - Zuri Wallace '28
   
• The Bausch and Lomb Honorary Science Award was first given at Mount Hermon in 1945 and is awarded to a member of the 11th-grade class who has done outstanding work in science while engaged in a rigorous program including science and mathematics. - Sophie Cao '27
   
• The Brown University Book Award is awarded to an outstanding 11th-grader who best combines academic excellence with clarity in written and spoken expression. - Eavan Connelly '27
   
• The C. Russell Bragg History Prize is awarded to a student whose distinguished and sustained effort in the study of U. S. history emulates the responsible social commitment of Charles Russell Bragg and his dedication to the knowledge of the past and its application to the present and the future. - Oliver Newman '27
   
• The Campus Life Special Recognition is given annually to 11th-graders who have demonstrated outstanding citizenship and character and who have made notable contributions to campus life that further Northfield Mount Hermon's mission of acting with humanity and purpose. - Brielle Evensen '27, Laurence Pan '27, Seneca Smith '27, Uma Guha '27
   
• The Canterbury Chemistry Prize was established in memory of Nathan D. Canterbury, Class of 1915, and is given to honor that student who has shown general excellence in the field of chemistry. - Penn Boger '27
   
• The Colonel Walter Scott Prize in Algebra II is awarded for excellence in Algebra II. - Hao An Kevin Jiang '29
   
• The Colonel Walter Scott Prize in Precalculus is awarded to those students who have demonstrated superior work in the elective courses. - Uma Guha '27
   
• The Colonel Walter Scott Prize in Advanced Calculus is awarded to those students who have demonstrated superior work in the elective courses. - Zihan Sophie Jin '28
   
• The Columbia University Book Award recognizes an 11th-grader who is an intellectual and social leader striving to make informed choices that will prepare them for the challenges and possibilities of the future. - Junsang Ryu '27
   
• The Dartmouth Club Book Award is given on behalf of the local Dartmouth alumni to an 11th-grader who ranks in the top 10% of their class and has demonstrated intellectual leadership, who has made a positive contribution to the extracurricular life of their school, and who demonstrates a sense of adventure and love of the outdoors. - Clay Steinberg '27
   
• The Douglas A. Jones Award established in 1983 and given by the Class of 1955, honors the memory of the founder of the school's art department. It is awarded for excellence in the two-dimensional arts. - Kiro von Stade '28
   
• The Elliott Computing Prize was given by Mr. Brig Elliott, a graduate of Mount Hermon and parent of one of our first student computer experts, Brig Elliott Jr., Class of 1972. It is awarded to that student who has demonstrated general excellence in advanced computer science. - Jing Yao Joelle Yang '27
   
• The Elizabeth Leyden '22 Music Award is given to students, selected by vote of the music program faculty, who have made outstanding contributions to the choral or instrumental ensembles. - Eben Lewis '27
   
• The Florence Flagg Award in Advanced Biology was established by the Mount Hermon Class of 1896 in memory of their class teacher, Florence Flagg, and is given for excellence in the biological sciences. - Clay Steinberg '27
   
• The Florence Flagg Award in Life Sciences was established by the Mount Hermon Class of 1896 in memory of their class teacher, Florence Flagg, and is given for excellence in the life sciences. - Leying Ysabelle Sun '28
   
• The Good Samaritan Award is presented to an 11th-grader who has demonstrated noteworthy qualities of care, affection, and service to others. The award is provided by alumni and friends to honor the memory of the Rev. Herbert S. Craig and to encourage all good Samaritans. - Arisa Teramoto '27
   
• The Gregory Dean Legon Memorial Scholar Award was established to honor an 11th-grader recognized for outstanding qualities of scholarship and citizenship. - Tianliang Eric Zhao '27
   
• The Harvard Book Prize is presented on behalf of the Harvard-Radcliffe Club of Boston to an 11th-grader who displays excellence and high character in addition to achievement in other fields. - Mills Costello '27
   
• The Henry F. Cutler Scholar Award was established in 1949 by the Mount Hermon Alumni Association in honor of Dr. Henry F. Cutler, head of school from 1890 to 1932. It is awarded annually to an 11th-grader who has maintained a high level of academic achievement, has combined superior ability with corresponding seriousness of purpose and eagerness to learn, has been a positive-minded and contributing citizen, and has indicated a deep social consciousness and interest in human welfare. - Mia Soriano '27
   
• The Henry R. Huntting Literary Prize is awarded for outstanding talent and effort in writing. - Marco Martagon Villamil '27
   
• The Hugh Findlay Prize for Excellence in 10th-Grade English is awarded annually to a 10th-grader who demonstrates excellence in English class. - Charlotte Helgeson '28
   
• The Judson R. Stent Prize in Religious Studies was established in honor of Judson R. Stent, a teacher in the department of religious studies for over 35 years. The prize is awarded to a 9th-grader who has done superior work in introductory religious studies and who has demonstrated an attitude of sensitivity to the religious dimension of human life. - Xinrou Sally Li '29
   
• The Lynne E. Pyeatt Humanities Award was created by the Pyeatt family to honor the memory of their daughter, Lynne '74, and honors outstanding work in 10th-grade humanities. - Paraskevi Katerina Christodoulopoulos '28
   
• The Margaret and Howard Jones Award is given to that international student who has made outstanding contributions to the quality of life at Northfield Mount Hermon. - Katherine Yao '27
   
• The Howard and Margaret Jones Farm Award is given to a student whose work has significantly strengthened the farm program at Northfield Mount Hermon. - Leonardo Perale '27
   
• The Marie Hood Award is presented to a student who has made an outstanding contribution in the field of dramatics. The award was created in 1967 by Mrs. J. Don Volante in memory of her mother, Mrs. Marie Hood Irvine, who was a student here in 1900. It consists of a book for the recipient, and, for the library, a similar book that bears the recipient's name as well as that of Marie Hood. - Zifei Isabella Li '28
   
• The Mary Davis Dining Service Prize is awarded to those students whose work for the Northfield Mount Hermon dining services has been characterized by diligence and efficiency. - Penn Boger '27, Huen Tong Rachael Chan '28, SeoHee Hazel Lee '29
   
• The Mary Ellen Peller Award is awarded to a 9th- to 11th-grade student who has displayed generous spirit and great patience in working with and helping other students and who possesses a sense of optimism and wonder at the field of mathematics that serves as an inspiration to peers. - Tianliang Eric Zhao '27
   
• The McBurney Work Hour Prize was established in 1909 by W. R. Stockwell in memory of Mount Hermon graduates Robert McBurney and R. M. Stockwell. It is awarded for reliability, industry, and thoroughness on the work hour. - Paul Fred Titterton '27, Dahyuck Leo Im '28, William Li '29
   
• The Nancy Angell Rickenbacker Art Prize was established in 1999 in memory of Nancy Angell, a 1956 graduate of Northfield, by family and friends. The prize is given to a student who has shown talent and excellence while studying art at Northfield Mount Hermon. - Arabella Chong '27
   
• The NMH Dance Prize is awarded to a student who demonstrates technical excellence, creativity, and leadership in dance. - Bonnie He '27
   
• The Orchestral Prize recognizes the 9th- to 11th-grade student who has demonstrated leadership and a high level of musical ability and who has contributed to the orchestral program. - David Zhang '27
   
• The Peter Leyden Jr. Memorial Award in Physical Education is awarded to students in the 9th-, 10th-, and 11th-grade classes whose exceptional spirit, attitude, effort, and achievement have contributed greatly to the physical education and athletic programs. - Oliver Newman '27, Zariah Ottley '27, Isabella Cassady '28, Caiden Manning '28, Cohen LaShomb '29, Emerson Soch '29
   
• The Prize in 3-Dimensional Art is awarded for excellence in 3-dimensional art. - Bonnie He '27
   
• The Prize for Excellence in American Literature is awarded annually to an 11th-grader who demonstrates excellence in English class. - Jing Yao Joelle Yang '27
   
• The Prize in Latin is awarded to the student who has shown high academic promise in the study of Latin. - Ineva Lehnerd-Reilly '27
   
• The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Medal is awarded annually to that 11th-grader who has earned the highest combined average in mathematics and science and has demonstrated an interest in pursuing science in higher education. - Tad Coleman '27
   
• The Rodolphe Weber Award in French is awarded to a student in French who has achieved a high degree of overall proficiency in the French language. - Sophie Cao '27
   
• The Smith College Book Prize is given by members of the Franklin County Smith Club. It honors an 11th-grader whose intellectual curiosity, leadership, and concern for others reflect the standards of excellence shared by graduates of Smith. - Zehang Emily Liu '27
   
• The Thomas Donovan Prize for Excellence in 9th-Grade English was endowed by S. Prestley Blake, Class of 1934, who remembered Thomas Donovan as an effective and admired teacher. It is awarded to the 9th-grader who has demonstrated progress, alertness, and perseverance throughout the course. - Wenjia Zhao '29
   
• The Wilbur E. Lynde Prize in Physics was established by the Lynde family and is awarded annually. - Lucas Black '29
   
• The William A. Knipe International Programs Award was established in 1994 in recognition of Mr. Knipe's respect for cultural diversity. It is presented to a participant in an international program who has developed greater global awareness through demonstrated and caring involvement. - Mia Soriano '27

— Max Hunt