Class of 2020 UVA Darden Standout Students Earn Awards for Outstanding Contributions

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business celebrated what Senior Associate Dean of the Full-Time MBA Program Tom Steenburgh called one of his favorite days of the year on 28 August, as the School gathered in Flagler Court to honor more than 20 standout Second Year students.

The awards ceremony, which recognizes students for outstanding performance both in the classroom and community, culminated in the awarding of the Samuel Forrest Hyde Memorial Fellowship, Darden’s highest honor.

The fellowship, which is determined by faculty vote and awarded to a student who offered immense contributions to the School and shows great career promise, was awarded to Alexandra Medack.

Medack, who worked in both international diplomacy and on autonomous vehicles at General Motors before Darden, was recognized as someone “devoted to excellence in all things” who “brings out the best in her classmates” and is “committed to leaving Darden a better place than when she arrived.”

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

Marketing Professor Kimberly Whitler presented the G. Robert Strauss Marketing Award to Emily Hecker. The award recognizes a student who shows innovative thinking, the ability to develop unique solutions to real-world problems and demonstrates compassion for other 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.

The C. Stewart Sheppard Distinguished Service Award, which recognizes exceptional service to the School of a nonacademic nature, was awarded to Adam Miller, Rachel Wood Southall and Vita Fay Wu.

The William Michael Shermet Award, which honors students who have demonstrated excellence in the First Year, went to 15 students. Shermet Award winners included:

• Ann-Catherine Begley

• Carson Brooks

• Kelly Connors

• Dylan Eldridge

• Luke Elias

• Michael Hovick

• Bryce Istvan

• Waleed Jehandad

• Max Linden

• Vineet Paruchuri

• Aly Perez

• Ravi Kesav Srinivas Pidikiti

• Taylor Shepard

• Natalie Stoll

• Logan White