Vanderbilt University recognized the 2026 Founder's Medalists for their remarkable scholarly dedication and outstanding achievements during the Graduates Day event on May 7 as part of the Commencement celebration.
Since 1877, the university has awarded a medal to the student graduating with top honors from each of the university's schools and colleges. The award pays tribute to the university's founder, Cornelius Vanderbilt, who endowed the award in its first year.
Zhihe Zhang
College of Arts and Science
Classical and Mediterranean studies major
Zhihe Zhang, from Shanghai, China, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the College of Arts and Science, majoring in classical and Mediterranean studies.
Zhang, who received a Crescere Aude Scholarship, was also honored with the Mary Eleanor Steele Scholarship for outstanding female students in her major and the Hans-Joachim Schulz Award for undergraduate research in Germany. Her thesis examines Thucydides' Sicilian Expedition from a tragic perspective.
Her academic path has been shaped by international archaeological digs under the guidance of Associate Professor Joseph Rife and other faculty. During a Maymester in the ruins of Caesarea, an ancient port city on the north coast of Israel, she excavated a medieval wall structure.
In Corinth, Greece, she digitally illustrated and catalogued more than a hundred bronze artifacts for open-access dissemination through the Kenchreai Archaeological Archive. In Cosa, Italy, she excavated a Roman bath complex. On campus, she participated in a dig on the grounds of the 1870s home of William J. Vaughn.
Zhang was a Buchanan Library Fellow, helping research and curate the exhibit Book as Art: Preserving Cultural Heritage and Knowledge.
She is grateful to Rife, Daniel Solomon, Chiara Sulprizio, James Zainaldin and other dedicated faculty members. Zhang plans to pursue a doctorate in classical studies at the University of California, Berkeley. She aspires to conduct comparative studies of classical East Asia and the Mediterranean world.
Catherine Louise Brenmark
Blair School of Music
Bassoon performance major
Catherine Louise "Catie" Brenmark, from Plainfield, Illinois, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the Blair School of Music. A Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholar, Brenmark majored in bassoon performance.
She was a recipient of the Elliot and Ailsa Newman Prize for excellence in woodwind performance and a finalist in the Meg Quigley Vivaldi Competition for students across the Americas. She was awarded Blair's Dave Darlington Award for Outstanding Creative Work in Music Technology.
Brenmark's academic experiences have shaped her artistic identity and goals, especially her love for musical collaborations with her peers and others across Vanderbilt. She is grateful to Professor Peter Kolkay for his profound impact on her development as a musician and person.
Her activities included organizing orientation activities for first-year students and serving as head orchestra librarian for the Vanderbilt University Orchestra. At Vanderbilt MusicTech Camp, Brenmark saw the power of mentorship while guiding middle and high school students through creative and technical challenges to compose original video game soundtracks.
Brenmark is also a Nashville session musician, recording music for television, film and video game soundtracks.
She plans to pursue a master of music at the Yale School of Music and build a career that includes chamber music, orchestral performance, teaching and collaboration across a range of musical settings.
Yiming Chen
School of Engineering
Majors in chemical engineering and chemistry
Yiming Chen, from Nanjing, China, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the School of Engineering, majoring in chemical engineering and chemistry.
Chen, who received a Crescere Aude Scholarship, earned highest honors in chemistry and honors in chemical engineering. He was honored with the Karl B. Schnelle Jr. Award for Outstanding Performance in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, selected for Tau Beta Pi his junior year, and made the Dean's List every semester.
Chen's research experiences have shaped his interest in using theory and experiment to explore nanomaterials and their applications in catalysis and energy. His sophomore year, he joined Professor De-en Jiang's lab and was introduced to computational chemistry and atomic-scale insight into catalytic processes. He conducted research related to phase control of colloidal nanomaterials under the supervision of Professor Janet Macdonald.
While participating in the VUSE Summer Research Program and the Vanderbilt Undergraduate Summer Research Program, Chen conducted independent research and collaborated with scientists from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Yale University and the University of California, Riverside. His research accomplishments include one first-author publication, three collaborative publications and one invention disclosure.
Outside of his studies, Chen played on the Vanderbilt Table Tennis Club travel team.
He will pursue doctoral study at the University of California, Berkeley, while continuing to work at the intersection of nanomaterials, energy and catalysis.
Emma Catherine Mann
Peabody College of education and human development
Major in human and organizational development
Emma Catherine Mann, from New Palestine, Indiana, is this year's Founder's Medalist for Peabody College. The daughter of an educator, Mann majored in human and organizational development.
Her career path has been shaped by her passion to ensure that every youngster can experience the fullness of joy in childhood. A serious heart condition that forced her to give up running and discover new interests ultimately led to her transfer to Vanderbilt in 2023. Mann refuses to be defined by her diagnosis or two heart procedures.
Instead, she has developed a deeper understanding of resilience-one that shapes her efforts to expand mental health support and resources for children and families, including through her work at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt and The Covenant School.
Her honors include the Cameron Impact and Joel Gordon scholarships. With the encouragement of Principal Senior Lecturer Jeremy Payne, she applied for the HOD Honors Program and developed foundational research skills. She is grateful for the mentorship of Professor and Vice Dean Nicole Allen.
Through the Vanderbilt Undergraduate Summer Research Program, Mann worked with Shari Neul at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in pre- and post-stem cell transplant psychosocial functioning. Assistant Provost Jill Stratton and Leigh Gilchrist, associate professor of the practice of human and organizational development, also helped guide Mann's journey. Most important, she thanks God and her family.
Mann will pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Kentucky.
Isabel Billings Draper
Divinity School
Master of divinity
Isabel Billings Draper, of Atlanta, Georgia, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the Divinity School. They are graduating with a master of divinity.
Draper earned a bachelor of arts from Barnard College, majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing. At Vanderbilt, their focus has been ministry and theological thought in the field of prison and carceral studies.
A course at the Tennessee Prison for Women on theodicy-the question of how God can exist when there is evil in the world-helped shape Draper's career path.
Their field education was at Dismas House in Nashville, a nonprofit that helps men coming out of prison reintegrate into society. Draper provided spiritual care to a resident who had been incarcerated since he was 15 years old. Helping him navigate the faith challenges of entering society for the first time as an adult man in his 40s shaped the way Draper thinks theologically about sin, harm, rehabilitation and the forgiveness and grace of God.
Draper loved serving in pastoral ministries at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville-including the healing prayer ministry and the distribution of the Eucharist-and will pursue ordination in the Episcopal Church. They hope to work in congregational ministry with a focus on pastoral care.
Ryan Anthony Kowalski
Graduate School
Doctor of philosophy in interdisciplinary materials science
Ryan Anthony Kowalski, from Taunton, Massachusetts, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the Graduate School. He is graduating with a doctor of philosophy in interdisciplinary materials science.
Kowalski's research has advanced our understanding of light-matter interactions in the far-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum, while opening new pathways for quantum and nanophotonic technologies. His work illustrates how interdisciplinary training can empower students to bridge fields and create entirely new directions in research.
As a member of the Caldwell Lab, Kowalski led two ambitious and technically challenging research areas. First, he investigated the vibrational properties of defects in single-photon emitters-crucial for quantum technologies-through his development and application of nano-optic probe techniques. Second, he extended these approaches to the far-infrared spectral region, enabling direct measurement of optical confinement at unprecedented length scales.
Kowalski also received a NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunities award.
In addition to his research, Kowalski was president of the Engineering Ambassadors Network for five years. He taught six engineering disciplines to more than a hundred seventh graders. He also mentored prospective students and did outreach to underserved communities.
After completing his doctorate in fall 2025, Kowalski accepted a postdoctoral position at the University of Maryland Laboratory for Physical Sciences. He continues to develop quantum light sources for applications in computer and secure communications-extending the impact of his Vanderbilt training.
Nicholas Wallenburg
Law School
Doctor of jurisprudence
Nicholas Wallenburg, from Lenexa, Kansas, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the Law School. He is graduating with a doctor of jurisprudence.
Wallenburg, who earned a bachelor of science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will be the first attorney in his family. He won the Archie B. Martin Memorial Prize for Scholarship and scholastic excellence awards for highest grade in Torts, Contracts, Regulatory State, Evidence I, Evidence II, Administrative Law, Constitutional Law II, Federal Indian Law and Corporations.
His career path was profoundly shaped by the Vanderbilt Legal Academy Scholars Program. After many years of competitive debate, he initially planned to become a litigator. However, through the Legal Academy Scholars Program, he was a research and teaching assistant for law professors who provided strong mentorship. This experience inspired him to consider an academic career.
Wallenburg was editor-in-chief of Vanderbilt Law Review and an articles editor of Environmental Law and Policy Annual Review. He was a co-winner of the law school's intramural moot court competition, receiving the best brief award. Later he volunteered as a competition judge.
After graduation, Wallenburg will clerk first for Senior Judge Daniel D. Crabtree on the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, then Judge W. Duane Benton on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit. He hopes to reenter the academy and educate the next generation of law students.
Caroline Hope Castleman
School of Medicine
Doctor of medicine
Caroline Hope Castleman, from Devon, Pennsylvania, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the School of Medicine, graduating with a doctor of medicine.
Castleman earned a bachelor of arts in history from Princeton University. At Vanderbilt, she developed a strong interest in addressing the psychiatric needs of children and families. She served as co-student director of the Shade Tree Clinic's adolescent psychiatry and pediatrics clinics and was inspired by the patients' resilience.
Her academic experience in inpatient psychiatry was meaningful, and Castleman is grateful for the trust and support of Drs. Callie McCool and Abhinav Mishra. She took responsibility for one-on-one psychotherapy exercises with each patient, using activities such as drawing and journaling. Castleman discovered how much she values connecting with young people who are experiencing mental health crises and the opportunity to understand how they see the world.
Castleman was awarded the R. Daniel Beauchamp Award from the Department of Psychiatry. She served as co-president of the Gold Humanism Honor Society, co-president and co-founder of the Society for the History of Medicine, and co-chair of education and research for Pride in Medicine.
In July, Castleman will enter psychiatry residency training at Yale School of Medicine and pursue a fellowship in child psychiatry.
Robert J. Midkiff
School of Nursing
Master of science in nursing
Robert J. Midkiff, from Jacksonville, Florida, is this year's Founder's Medalist for the School of Nursing. He is graduating with a master of science in nursing.
Midkiff earned bachelor's degrees in nursing and psychology from Marshall University. The loss of his father, who died after living with heart failure and undergoing open-heart surgery, inspired his path in nursing. His father's experience unfolded in rural West Virginia, where access to advanced cardiac care and specialized technology was limited.
Graduate training, including a specialization in nursing informatics, has shaped Midkiff's career path as a nurse scientist and systems leader. He credits Vanderbilt's emphasis on evidence-based practice and innovation with helping him develop ShieldFlow, an AI-enabled life-support machine featuring a monitoring and decision-support platform. The system aims to standardize care and reduce complications for patients needing high-level life support.
Midkiff's professional goal is to help bridge the gap between advanced critical care and underserved or rural communities through scalable, data-driven, ethically integrated solutions.
One of his meaningful academic experiences involved caring for a patient who remained on life support for more than 175 days. Midkiff will never forget that behind every data point and setting adjustment is a person, a family and a story that deserves care grounded in excellence and empathy.
After finishing his master's last August, Midkiff enrolled in Vanderbilt's doctor of nursing practice program, focusing on advanced systems leadership and innovation. He also continues his clinical practice at the Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Brian Henry Kube
Owen Graduate School of Management
Master of business administration
Brian Henry Kube, from Randolph, New Jersey, is this year's Founder's Medalist for Owen Graduate School of Management. He is graduating with a master of business administration.
Kube earned a bachelor of arts in economics from Vassar College. At Vanderbilt, he was a Bruce D. Henderson Scholar. His MBA concentrations were strategy, marketing and brand management.
His influential classes included Corporate Strategy, taught by Brian McCann, and Supply Chain Management, taught by Yasin Alan. Kube is grateful for "world-class marketing education" provided by Steve Posavac, Eric VanEpps and Steve Hoeffler.
He traces his long-standing interest in consumer goods and brand marketing to his childhood, when his grandfather worked for Pepperidge Farm. Kube grew up eating Goldfish, Chessmen and Milanos that had been pulled from shelves due to minor manufacturing defects. He discovered how much joy technically "flawed" products can bring to consumers. Kube pursued an MBA to build brands that can bring joy in good and bad times.
He was a teaching assistant for Management Communications and Marketing Strategy and vice president of alumni relations for the Owen Marketing Association. A memorable service experience was helping the Vanderbilt Next Steps program conduct mock job interviews with their neurodiverse students, whose dedication, passion and enthusiasm for life he admires.
Kube is grateful to career coach Zeke Arteaga and his girlfriend, Brooke, for their encouragement; and expresses gratitude to his parents, Marc and Barbara; his twin brother, Eric; his friends and his professors for their support. After graduation, Kube plans to work in brand management and parlay that experience into his own better-for-you consumer packaged goods company.
