Photo collage of diverse smiling headshots on varied outdoor and studio backgrounds

Prestigious Scholarships Recipients

Prestigious scholarships are awarded to some of the highest-achieving students in the nation, including many of our UC Davis scholars. Undergraduate and Prestigious Scholarships was founded in the 2013-14 academic year. Since that time, we have had the distinct pleasure of working with the following candidates who prestigious scholarship foundations have recognized. 

You can visit the Recipient Archives for a complete listing of past awardees.


2025-26 recipients

Three stacked photographs: woman close-up, smiling man in vineyard, person by temple.
Top to bottom: Diba Morady, Keller Kramer, Michael Wanner

 Critical Language Scholarship

  • Diba Morady, Political Science, Russian
  • Alternates:
    • Keller Kramer, International Relations and Agricultural and Environmental Technology, Portuguese 
    • Jane Lee, Nursing Science and Healthcare Leadership, Korean
    • Wayne Liao, Materials Science and Engineering, Japanese
    • Erin Morissette, Biomedical Engineering, Japanese
    • Michael Wanner, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, Japanese

 

 

 

 


 

Portrait photograph of young man with subtle smile, folded arms, light patterned shirt, gray backdrop
Lorenzo Hazen

 

David L. Boren Undergraduate Scholarship

  • Lorenzo Hazen, International Relations, Indonesia
  • Andrew Martin, Mechanical Engineering, Japan

 

 

 

Smiling young woman in white sweater standing in sunlit snowy forest; photograph
Lillie Vehling

Donald A. Strauss Scholarship

  • Lillie Vehling, Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Science and Engineering

 

 

 

Smiling young woman in light green top by a canal with daffodils and a moored boat
Ava Gutierrez

Fulbright U.S. Student Program

English Teaching Assistant Award
  • Alternates:
    • Delana Baker, Psychology, Korea
    • Ava Gutierrez, History and Human Development, Spain
    • Itzelh Hernandez-Arellano, History and Spanish, Brazil
    • Allison Lopez, Human Development, Spain
Three stacked portrait photos: smiling woman, mustached man in sweater, diver smiling at sunset
Top to bottom: Aruna Nannapaneni, Kyle Elshoff, Genece Grisby
Graduate Degree Award
  • Aruna Nannapaneni, Molecular and Medical Microbiology, Australia
  • Mingxin Samuel, Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, Taiwan
  • Finalists:
    • Janae Bonnell, Environmental Toxicology, Canada
    • Alex Coffman, Electrical Engineering, Finland
    • Kyle Elshoff, Evolution, Ecology, and Biodiversity, Canada
    • Genece Grisby, Marine and Coastal Science, Saudi Arabia
    • Connor Spencer, Transportation Technology and Policy and Agricultural and Resource Economics, Netherlands






       
Three smiling photographic headshots stacked vertically: two men, one woman
Top to bottom: Keller Kramer, Brent Valentine, Oluwaatinuke Balogun
Research Program Award
  • Keller Kramer, International Relations and Agricultural and Environmental Technology, Brazil
  • Brent Valentine, Managerial Economics and Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, Brazil
  • Alternate:
    • Arpa Boghozian, Horticulture and Agronomy, Armenia
  • Finalists:
    • Oluwaatinuke Balogun, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, Nigeria
    • Rose Bern, Psychology, Denmark
    • Evan Martinak, Creative Writing, Turkey
    • Charles Sills, History, Jordan
    • Caden Williams, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Iceland








       


 

Headshot of a smiling young woman in a black blazer and pink top, leafy outdoor background
Amrita Julka

Harry S. Truman Scholarship

  • Finalist:
    • Amrita Julka, Political Science and Human Development





       
Portrait photograph of two smiling men—top wearing navy blazer; bottom in black jacket and glasses
Top to bottom: Julian Garcia, Kush Narang

Knight-Hennessy Scholarship

  • Julian Garcia, Political Science - Public Service 
  • Kush Narang, Individual - Biological Sciences

     



 




 

Smiling young woman in white sweater standing in sunlit snowy forest; photograph
Lillie Vehling

Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation, or SMART, Scholarship

  • Lillie Vehling, Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Science and Engineering

 

 

 

 

Latest News