2026 Upper School Awards

The awards below were presented at the Upper School Closing Ceremony on Thursday, May 28. Congratulations to these award recipients!

The Lenwood Edwards Award is given to two Greensboro Day School upper school students of diverse backgrounds whose personal achievements and values exemplify the school motto of Friendship, Scholarship, and Sportsmanship. The award is made in honor of Lenwood Edwards, the school’s first director of athletics. This year’s recipients are Landon Clark and Zion Zigbuo.

The Kimberly Susan Bates ’84 Memorial Award is presented to a Greensboro Day School junior who strives for excellence in academics and has a positive impact throughout the school through their involvement in extracurricular activities. This year’s recipient is Abby Crihfield.

The John F. Johnson Scholar-Athlete Award is given to a rising senior who exemplifies the dual qualities of outstanding sports participation and studious academic preparation. This year’s recipient is Amy Whisler.

The Mekia S. Valentine ’06 Award recognizes a female student of color in the Upper School who makes outstanding efforts in several of the following areas: academics, extracurricular activities, leadership, and community involvement. This year’s recipient is Isabella Snipes.

The Meg Chambers Steedle Scholar-Artist Award is given to a rising senior who exhibits outstanding achievement in academics and the arts. The award is made by GDS alumna Meg Chambers Steedle, who sought to recognize the impact of the arts in her own educational growth at Greensboro Day School. This year’s recipient is Ella Erickson.

The Citizenship Award is given to those students whose daily action best reflects the Greensboro Day School motto of Friendship, Scholarship, Sportsmanship. This year’s recipients are

• Ninth Grade: Annie Murphy and Meredith Newton
• Tenth Grade: Ashni Arora and Devin Cooper
• Eleventh Grade: Ethan Lloyd and Riho Natsume
• Twelfth Grade: Courtney Jacobs and Aio Rosario

The Community Cornerstone Awards are given annually to the upper school student in each grade who best exemplifies the qualities of Respect, Kindness, Integrity, and Responsibility. This year’s recipients are

• Ninth Grade: Nathan Bowden
• Tenth Grade: Hayden Abitz
• Eleventh Grade: Izzy Drexel
• Twelfth Grade: Jalen Leak

The Matthew Kusiak ’10 Memorial Award is presented each year at the Sloany Awards. Established in 2017 in Matthew’s memory by his parents, the award recognizes a student who has a passion and a love for the performing arts and is in good academic standing. This year’s recipient is Yamil Alvarado-Andino.

Academic Department Awards

English Department Awards

• Ninth Grade English: Sora Vermeesch
• Tenth Grade English: Auden Rich-Minardo
• Eleventh Grade English: Ella Erickson
• Twelfth Grade English: Courtney Jacobs

Fine Arts Department Awards

Band

• Ninth Grade Band: Miles Jennings
• Tenth Grade Band: Iris Holdren
• Eleventh Grade Band: Ethan Lloyd
• Twelfth Grade Band: Saihaj Kohli

Chorus

• Ninth Grade Chorus: Emma Zhu
• Tenth Grade Chorus: Andrew Szott
• Eleventh Grade Chorus: Kayden Feinstein
• Twelfth Grade Chorus: Audrey Fang

Drama

• Ninth Grade Drama: Iciar Cruz
• Tenth Grade Drama: Thais Codron
• Eleventh Grade Drama: Kayla Alvarez
• Twelfth Grade Drama: James Johnson

Strings

• Ninth Grade Strings: Sadiya Crawford
• Tenth Grade Strings: CheChe Zhang
• Eleventh Grade Strings: Ella Rose Piazza

Visual Art

• Ninth Grade Visual Art: Alexandra Tuma
• Tenth Grade Visual Art: Samiya Patel
• Eleventh Grade Visual Art: Emerson Bayle
• Twelfth Grade Visual Art: Emery Otterberg (2D) and Zach Prescott (3D)

History & Social Sciences Department Awards

• Scott William Patterson Award (Ninth Grade): Emily Vary
• Tenth Grade: Hank Phillips
• Sturm Award (Eleventh Grade): Katie Gunther
• Twelfth Grade: Allen Zhang

Math Department Awards

• Ninth Grade: Jackson Taylor
• Tenth Grade: Caroline Good
• Eleventh Grade: Katie Gunther
• Twelfth Grade: Zach Prescott

Science Department Awards

• Ninth Grade: Jackson Taylor
• Tenth Grade: Ashni Arora
• Eleventh Grade: Riho Natsume
• Twelfth Grade: Saihaj Kohli

World Languages Department Awards

Chinese

• Ninth Grade Chinese: Parker Berry
• Tenth Grade Chinese: Kethan Penumalli
• Eleventh Grade Chinese: Emery Coffield
• Twelfth Grade Chinese: Paolo Criscuolo

Latin

• Ninth Grade Latin: Eloise White
• Tenth Grade Latin: Auden Rich-Minardo
• Eleventh Grade Latin: Amy Whisler
• Twelfth Grade Latin: Abigail Aron

Spanish

• Ninth Grade Spanish: Sora Vermeesch
• Tenth Grade Spanish: V Byerly
• Eleventh Grade Spanish: Julia Soutto Mayor Guimaraes
• Twelfth Grade Spanish: Grace Whittaker