UVA Darden Awards Standout Second Year Students

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business community came together to honor standout Second Year students at the annual fall student awards celebration on 30 August.

The awards, which honor contributions both in and out of the classroom, are an opportunity to celebrate the “extraordinary contributors in our community,” according to Senior Associate Dean of Degree Programs Ron Wilcox.

Award Winners

Samuel Forrest Hyde Memorial Fellowship: The Hyde Fellowship, determined by faculty vote and recognized as the highest honor presented to a Second Year student, was awarded to Michael “Mick” Denner. The fellowship, given to the student who is deemed to have contributed the most to the welfare of the School and shows the greatest promise of achieving a useful career, includes a significant monetary award. Denner, who came to Darden after six years in the U.S. Marine Corp, was described by one supporter as someone whose leadership in the classroom is “inspiring, caring and respectful” and “always comes from a place of concern.” Others said Denner embodied Darden traits of inclusion and teamwork, and one person described Denner as “ridiculously humble.”

The Hyde fellowship was established by the family and friends of First Lieutenant Samuel Forrest Hyde, a graduate of the UVA Class of 1950, who lost his life in the Korean War.

G. Robert Strauss Marketing Award: Professor Tom Steenburgh presented the marketing award to Christine Kasper. The award recognizes a student who shows innovative thinking, the ability to develop unique solutions to real-world problems, flair and charisma in presenting ideas, and compassion for fellow students, among other traits.

The Strauss Award was established in 1989 by members of the Class of 1987 in memory of their classmate, G. Robert Strauss Jr.

C. Stewart Sheppard Distinguished Service Award: The award recognizing exceptional service to the School of a nonacademic nature went to Catherine Aranda, Tatsuya Hasegawa and Shawn Le.

William Michael Shermet Award: The award honoring students who have demonstrated academic excellence in the first year and provided an example of a constructive attitude and responsible competitive spirit went to 15 students. The Shermet Award winners included:

• Samuel Campbell

• Ryan Russell

• Kyle Collins

• Dang Trinh

• Anisa Mechler

• Tyler Kirchoff

• Christine Kasper

• Prasenjit Bhattacharjee

• Jared Colton

• Augusto Torres Bozzi

• Arun Shankar

• Jeffrey Morell

• Ruchi Parikh

• Isaac Tipton

• Thanh Trang Hoang Le