Princeton University celebrated the academic accomplishments of its students with the awarding of undergraduate prizes to seven students at Opening Exercises on Sunday, Aug. 30.
“It is true delight to recognize this year’s prize winners,” said Dean of the College Michael D. Gordin. “Princeton students are faced with a dizzying array of opportunities and throw their all into making the most of them. Today is about recognizing academic achievement, where these seven students have really distinguished themselves.
“Each one exemplifies the excitement and delight that comes from really committing yourself to a liberal arts education,” Gordin said. “We congratulate them and look forward to hearing about their bright futures.”
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) Jake Tessnow, Eli Gold, Antonia Comaniciu, Noah Dorn, Divija Durga, Haruka Nabeshima and Isaac Badipe.
Freshman First Honor Prize
This year’s Freshman First Honor Prize is shared by Antonia Comaniciu and Eli Gold. The prize is awarded to members of the sophomore class in recognition of exceptional achievement during their first year.
Comaniciu, of Princeton, New Jersey, attended the Lawrenceville School in Lawrence Township, New Jersey. A member of Whitman College, she is considering majoring in economics and pursuing minors in finance, statistics and machine learning, and French.
This summer, Comaniciu participated in Princeton’s Accelerated Summer Study in France in Aix-en-Provence and interned at Roundview Capital.
On campus, she serves as vice president of Princeton’s Girls into Venture Capital's Due Diligence Team, co-director of outreach for Princeton Women in Economics and Policy and a Community Action leader. Comaniciu is also a volunteer with Ballet and Books.
Gold, of West Simsbury, Connecticut, attended Simsbury High School there. A member of Rockefeller College, he is considering majoring in mathematics and pursuing minors in music performance and Chinese language.
This summer, Gold participated in Princeton in Beijing, an eight-week intensive Chinese language program. He also attended the Inter-University Program for Chinese Language Studies at Tsinghua University in Nanjing, China.
Outside the classroom, he is a percussionist who has performed with the Princeton University Orchestra, Princeton Sinfonia, Princeton University Wind Ensemble, the Princeton Opera Company and more. He also founded two clubs, the Princeton University Percussion Players Ensemble and the Change-Ringers.
The George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize
This year’s George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize is shared by Isaac Badipe and Jake Tessnow. The prize is awarded each year to members of the junior class in recognition of exceptional academic achievement during their sophomore year.
Badipe, of London, attended Reading School in Reading, England. A recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence for the 2024-25 academic year, he is a computer science major who is also pursuing minors in mathematics and linguistics. He is a member of Mathey College.
This summer, Badipe interned at the computer security research firm Interrupt Labs in Basingstoke, England. He has also interned at the blockchain cybersecurity firm OtterSec.
Outside the classroom, Badipe serves as team captain of the OrangeHat Cybersecurity Collective, the University’s undergraduate cybersecurity club, and assistant tech chair at Quadrangle Club. He is also involved with the Plaintext cryptography club.
Tessnow, of Southlake, Texas, attended Carroll Senior High School there. A recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence for the 2024-25 academic year, he is a molecular biology major who is also pursuing a minor in music performance. He is a member of Rockefeller College.
This summer, Tessnow performed with the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps.
He plays French horn in the Princeton University Orchestra, where he also serves as co-president. Tessnow is an Orange Key tour guide, a volunteer with the Arm in Arm food pantry and a researcher in the lab of A.J. te Velthuis, associate professor of molecular biology. He also attended a 2025 PIIRS Global Seminar in Tokyo.
The George B. Wood Legacy Junior Prize
This year’s George B. Wood Legacy Junior Prize is shared by Divija Durga and Haruka Nabeshima. The prize is awarded to members of the senior class in recognition of exceptional academic achievement during their junior year.
Durga, of Noida, India, attended Amity International School there. A two-time recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence, she is an electrical and computer engineering major who is also pursuing minors in robotics and cognitive science. She is a member of Yeh College.
This summer, Durga interned at the AI chip technology company Nvidia. She has also interned at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi.
Her senior thesis, advised by Tom Silver, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, will focus on algorithmic robotics design.
Durga is a member of and serves as hardware technology lead of the Princeton Robotics Club’s PacBot team, where students build robots to navigate a Pac-Man-inspired course. She is a studio associate at the Huo College Ceramics Studio. Durga has also led outreach sessions and workshops through Silver’s lab, the Robotics Club and the Center on Science and Technology’s RadLabs series.
Nabeshima, of Newton, Massachusetts, attended Newton North High School there. A co-winner of the George B. Wood Legacy Sophomore Prize in 2025 and a two-time recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence, she is a psychology major who is also pursuing minors in cognitive science and finance. Nabeshima is a member of Rockefeller College.
Her senior thesis, advised by Tania Lombrozo, the Arthur W. Marks ’19 Professor of Psychology, examines how the way we perceive people's reasons for what they believe impacts our judgments of their validity. Through Princeton’s M.S. Chadha Center for Global India, Nabeshima is also conducting research on how ideas of purpose and function shape understandings of existence, social roles and moral obligations in contemporary India. She received the 2026 Howard Crosby Warren Junior Prize in Psychology.
Nabeshima has also interned at WestBridge Capital in Bengaluru, India, through the Princeton Startup Immersion Program-Bengaluru, and at WOWS Global in Bangkok through the International Internship Program.
She serves as treasurer and senior adviser of Princeton Model Congress and as a research assistant in Lombrozo’s Concepts and Cognition Lab. Nabeshima was previously the executive director of TigerLaunch, president of the Honorary Debate Panel, a Matriculate advising fellow, production manager of BodyHype Dance Company and a community living adviser for Rockefeller College.
Nabeshima worked this summer at Mizuho as an investment banking summer analyst and will serve as a community living adviser for Henry Hall this fall.
Class of 1939 Princeton Scholar Award
Noah Dorn 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.
Dorn, of Munich, Germany, attended Eton College in Windsor, England. A two-time recipient of the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence, he is an economics major who is also pursuing minors in classics, Spanish, and European cultural studies. Dorn is a member of Whitman College.
His senior thesis, advised by Andrea Wilson, senior lecturer in economics, will explore the economic and financial dimensions of opera funding. For his junior paper, he studied the effects of COVID-19 intensity on alcohol consumption, advised by Henry Shim, lecturer in economics. He received the Department of Classics’ Stinnecke Exam Prize in 2025.
Dorn was a research assistant for Rubén Gallo, the Walter S. Carpenter, Jr., Professor in Language, Literature, and Civilization of Spain and professor of Spanish and Portuguese, and Joshua Billings, professor of classics and comparative literature. He is also working on a paper about links between the Roman poet Ovid and the Greek philosopher Plato, advised by Peter Kelly, assistant professor of classics, and Andrew Feldherr, the Giger Professor of Latin and professor of classics.
On campus, Dorn is the founder and president of the Princeton Opera Society. He previously served as treasurer of the Princeton Classics Club and Quiz Bowl. Dorn has also been involved with the “Voces de la Diáspora” oral history project through Princeton’s Program for Community-Engaged Scholarship (ProCES). He attended a 2025 Plato in Paris seminar, a 2025 Salzburg Seminar on Opera, Politics and Cultural Diplomacy, and a 2024 PIIRS Global Seminar in Vienna. Dorn serves on the advisory board of the Metropolitan Opera’s Met Students Ambassador Program.
This summer, he was a financial intern in New York City.
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