Student Prizes & Awards
The faculty of the Department of Physics celebrates its most deserving students every year by awarding prizes to those who excel in research, coursework, service, and/or teaching.
Gus W. Weiss Prize for Outstanding Student in Physics
This prize is awarded to an undergraduate student and a graduate student who have shown excellence in research and in service to the department or physics community.
- Previous prize recipients
2025: Hallie Fausey & Quinn Stefan
2024: Julia Peters & Lucia Illari
2023: Logan Earnest & Mike Moss
2022: Gabe Grauvogel & Grant Mitchell
2021: Caden Gobat & Giovanni Angelini
2020: Jason Starita
2019: Jack Hirschman & Giovanni Angelini
2018: Kara Zielinski
2017: Obinna Ome Irondi & Jeremy Hare
2003: Alaa Ibrahim
2002: Silvia Niccolai & Pirouz Shamszad
2001: Stanislav Miltchev Mintchev
2000: Xinyu Liu
1999: Khaliq Rauf
1998: Staphanie Helene Leitner & Jennifer Nicole Hyatt
1997: Caiyi Lang
1996: Evan Scott Lavidor
1995: Rodney Omron
1994: Juan Carlos Sanabria
1993: Steven Dean Adrian
Berman Prize for Excellence in Experimental Physics including Observational Astronomy
This prize is awarded to an undergraduate student and a graduate student who have shown research excellence in experimental physics including observational astrophysics.
- Previous prize recipients
2025: Andy Sargent ; Cole Christensen & Olivia Nippe-Jeakins
2024: Quinn Stefan & Erin Seroka
2023: Grabe Grauvogel & Sarah Chastain
2022: Caden Gobat & Izzy Illari
2021: Ruby Duncan & Brendan O'Connor
2020: Miya Bernal & Alyson Barker Joens
2019: Sarah Schrup & Levgen Lavrukhin
2018: Jack Hirschman
2017: Noel Klingler & Joseph Revier
2016: Srividya Murthy
2013: Derek Brehm
2012: Nicholas Zachariou
2010: Edwin Munevar
2009: Chongzhi Zang
2008: Sarah Han-oh
Parke Prize for Excellence in Theoretical Physics
This prize is awarded to a graduate student who has shown research excellence in theoretical physics.
- Previous prize recipients
2024: Frank Huo
2023: Edison Murairi
2022: Lucia Illari
2021: Xiang Li
2020: Chris Culver
2019: Maria Solyanik-Gorgone
2018: Daniel Sadasivan
2016: Dehua Guo & Bin Hu
2013: Mike Lujan
2012: Craig Pelissier & Sam Lipschutz
2010: Lai Wang
2009: Tilan Ukwatta
2008: Johannes Kirscher
Francisco Prats Memorial Prize for Outstanding Student in Theoretical Physics
This prize is awarded to an undergraduate student who has shown excellence in theoretical physics research and coursework.
- Previous prize recipients
2024: Andrew Kille
2023: Phoenix Price
2022: Marisa Lazarus
2021: Christian Longton
2020: Elias Alstead
2017: Justin Landay
1999: Agung Waluyo
1998: Charles Matthew Palmer
Bennhold Family Award for Best Teaching on the Part of a Graduate Student
This prize is awarded to a graduate student who has shown teaching excellence in supporting an undergraduate physics course.
- Previous award recipients
2025: Jinzi Wu & Volodymyr Tereshchuk
2023: Lucas Chandler
2022: Frank Huo
2021: Alexander Lange
2020: Michael Moss
2019: Grant Mitchell
2018: Michael Moss
2017: Giovanni Angelini
Chair's Prize for Best Poster Presentation
This prize is awarded to a graduate student who has given the best poster presentation at the GW or CCAS Research Showcase.
- Previous prize recipients
2025: Rachel Ratvasky
2024: Seth Gagnon
2023: Erin Seroka
2022: Pi Nuessle
2019: Hannah Seymour
2018: Ben Kopchick
2017: Noel Klinger
2010: Deepa Raghu & Johannes Kirscher
2009: Craig Pelissier
Peverley Prize for Best Poster Presentation
This prize is awarded to an undergraduate student who has given the best poster presentation at the GW or CCAS Research Showcase.
- Previous prize recipients
2025: Maxine Alexandre-Strong
2024: Phoenix Price
2023: Emily Sullivan
2022: Annika Schmid
2021: Michael Chevalier
2019: Jacquelyn Veatch
2018: Sophia Donovan
2017: Kara Zielinski
2016: Brian Alden
2011: Samuel Lipschutz
2010: Zoe Marinides
2009: Benjamin Gamari
2008: Jordan David
2007: Daniel Mittelberger
James MacBride Sterrett Jr. Prize
This prize is awarded to an undergraduate student with the best grades in the algebra-based introductory physics courses, General Physics I & II (PHYS 1011 and 1012).
- Previous prize recipients
2025: Christy Elliott
2024: Jacob Rashap
2023: Yair Ben-Dor
2022: Sonia Goyal
2021: Maria Stefanova
2019: Zephyrus Jenkins
2017: Will Raderman
2013: Maximillian Hoffman
2012: Menyun Miao