Upper School students honored at 2025 Class Day ceremony

The Class Day awards are listed below:

The Ben Tallmadge Jennings Award celebrates and recognizes a senior who is a well-rounded individual and who, through their own individual achievement and contributions to Kentucky Country Day School, has demonstrated integrity, honor, humor, and above all, a concern for their fellow classmates. This year’s recipient is Mary-Louise Crain.

The Dabney Family Scholarship recognizes a senior who has demonstrated leadership, academic potential, and a high level of involvement in extracurricular and community service activities. This year’s recipient is Helen Easley.

The Jamie Parsley Memorial Scholarship supports students in their pursuit of academic excellence outside of KCD’s regular academic program. Grants may be applied to offset costs for any academic enrichment course of study. This year’s recipients are Pierce Bahm, Grace Shen, and Steven Wang.

The Frank Houston Miles Science Award recognizes both ability in and devotion to the field of science. This was created by Mr. Miles, in memory of his son and former KCD student, Frank Houston Miles. This year’s recipient is Audrey Schonwetter.

The Kenneth Wall Memorial Award goes to the senior judged by the faculty of the social studies department as its most outstanding student. The winner also receives a cash award to assist them with their first year’s college tuition. This year’s recipient is Alice Robertson.

The Nancy Bowling Prize in Expository Writing is chosen by the English department and is given to the senior who shows the most talent and interest in this form of prose. This year’s recipient is Ava Roemer.

The Phi Beta Kappa Award is given to a senior who has demonstrated outstanding academic achievement. This year’s recipient is Searcy Lotz.

The Dorothy O’Brien Memorial Award is given to the senior who best represents the qualities that Dorothy Caukin O’Brien fostered in her students by her own example: dedication to Kentucky Country Day School, honesty, respect for others, appreciation for work well done, and humor that restores. This year’s recipient is Milan Mack.

The Susan McElwain Memorial Award is given to the senior who is outstanding in character, scholarship, sportsmanship, and athletics. This year’s recipient is Leighton Spears.

The James Pitman Sams, Jr. Award is given to the senior who has demonstrated in every capacity the high ideals of academics, sportsmanship, and citizenship and the outstanding qualities of character, leadership, and personality exemplified by this beloved alumnus. This year’s recipient is Derock Xie.

The Senior Science and Math Award is chosen by the science and math departments and is given to one or more seniors in recognition of outstanding academic achievement, good character, and superior intellectual promise in the fields of science and math. This year’s recipient is Bright Zheng.

The Julie and Lorraine Short Memorial Award is chosen by the English and Fine Arts Departments and is given to two outstanding juniors or seniors in the areas of creative writing and creative art. This year’s recipients are Audrey Block and Emily Lynch.

The Rensselaer Award, chosen by the Math and Science Departments, is presented to the outstanding junior “who is ranked in the top 10% of the class; who excels in advanced math and science courses; who demonstrates potential for success in a challenging academic setting; and who exhibits significant involvement in extracurricular activities. This year’s recipient is Grace Shen.

The Harvard Award is presented to the member of the junior class “who displays excellence in scholarship and high character, combined with achievements in other fields.” This year’s recipient is Grace Shen.

The Notre Dame Award is presented to a junior in the top 10% of the class who has demonstrated social and intellectual leadership qualities and made a positive contribution to the extracurricular life of the school. This year’s recipient is Abdul Draw.

The University of Louisville Award is presented to a junior in the “top 20% of the junior class, and who shows academic promise as determined by the junior faculty. This should not be limited to GPA, but also include factors such as intellectual curiosity and contributions to school and community.” This year’s recipient is Kennedy Doss.

The University of Pennsylvania Book Award “recognizes outstanding students whose individual accomplishments embody the University’s highest ideals of scholarship, service, future professional development, and civic contribution.” This year’s recipient is Peter Zhang.

The University of Virginia Jefferson Book Award is presented to the junior “who embraces creativity and innovation and embodies the spirit of discovery. The student is a demonstrated leader who works to improve his or her community locally or globally.” This year’s recipient is Lainey Reeves.

The University of Michigan Award is presented to an “outstanding member of the junior class from the standpoint of character, scholarship, leadership and involvement.” This year’s recipient is Emily Barnes.

The Smith College Book Award is awarded by the English Department to an outstanding junior girl who exemplifies the academic achievement, leadership qualities, and concern for others that characterizes the thousands of women who have graduated from Smith College. This year’s recipient is Paige Davis.

The Brown University Book Award is chosen by the English department to honor the juniors who best combine academic excellence with clarity in written and spoken expression. This year’s recipients are Caden Wang and Eleanor Orrillo.

The Yale University Award is presented to a junior who exhibits “outstanding personal character and intellectual promise.” This year’s recipient is Ann Zhao.

The Wade H. Brown, Jr. Award is presented to sophomores who embody the qualities of this esteemed educator: high academic scores, devotion to KCD through a wide variety of school involvement, and an innate integrity and irrepressible wit. This year’s recipients are Octane Hinojosa and Claire Morris.

The Charles Hunter Dishman Award is given to that boy in the freshman class who is outstanding in achievement and in assuming responsibility in the various activities of the school. This year’s recipient is Patrick Southworth.

The Faculty Award is given to that girl in the freshman class who is outstanding in achievement and in assuming responsibility in the various activities of the school. This year’s recipient is Ava Cohen.

The Amelia Moody Music Award is presented to the junior or senior who has been deemed an outstanding contributor to the Upper School Chorus. This year’s recipient is Maria Salcedo.

Each year, members of the KCD Fine Arts Department recognize the outstanding students within the performing arts with selected awards. 

In 2003, the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation founded the President’s Volunteer Service Award to recognize the important role of volunteers in America’s strength and national identity. The PVSA has continued under each administration, honoring the volunteers who are using their time and talents to solve some of the toughest challenges facing our nation. This is the first year KCD is able to honor those students who exemplify the ideals of stewardship outlined in our school motto. Each student receives a signed letter from the President of the United States and a Medal corresponding to their accomplished tier. The age category is determined by the age the student was for at least 7 months within the 12-month calendar year of their service. Please hold your applause until all the names are read in each category:

In the Teen category, this year’s recipients are: Aleena Ahmed, Raya Attallah, Logan Callahan, Gopal Chandran, Jilly Chesnut, Ava Cohen, Janie Jennings, Claire Morris, Visha Patel, Harper Purcell, Lulu Robertson, Omar Sayied, and Kevin Zhao.

In the Young Adult category, this year’s recipients are: Aysha Aljijakli, Shaan Bains, Adam Dockstader, Helen Easley, Henry Enck, Daniyal Khan, Searcy Lotz, Asad Nasir, Priyal Patel, Grace Shen, Caden Wang, and Ann Zhao. 

The Global Seal of Biliteracy is an award given to high school graduates who have demonstrated proficiency in two or more languages. It recognizes and celebrates students’ linguistic abilities, encouraging them to pursue biliteracy and highlighting the global skills they possess.  

The following senior French students have received the Global Seal of Biliteracy in French: William Bache, Helen Easley, Julia Goldstein, Olivia Thurman

The following senior Spanish students have received the Global Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish: Bella Baker, Jenna Figa, Naya Singal, Clara Williams, Mae Woodward

 

The Caementum Award is presented annually to the students whose actions and attitudes have enhanced the cohesiveness of their classes thereby earning the respect and affection of their teachers and classmates. The recipients this year as nominated by their classes and chosen by the faculty are:

The Marguerite McLaughlin Certificate is given for outstanding service in scholastic yearbook production, good citizenship, and high scholarship. This year’s recipients are Chance Sheridan and Emily Barnes.

KCD is proud to recognize these outstanding students who have earned the prestigious STEAM Certificate, highlighting their exceptional achievements and dedication in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics and the engineering design process. This certificate is earned through the completion of various rigorous courses, culminating in a project aimed at bettering the community at large. This year’s STEAM Certificate recipients are: Shaan Bains, Anna Pinkston, Daniel Pinkston, Derock Xie, and Bright Zheng

The Course Awards are given to students for outstanding performance in each department. The winners are listed below. 

Computer Science

English

Fine Arts

Math

Science

Social Studies

World Language

The Bill Beam Jr. ’76 Senior Athlete of the Year Award recognizes outstanding contributions in the area of athletics. This year’s recipients are Leighton Spears and Ryan Shaps.

This year’s recipient of the Coach of the Year Award is Patrick McAnulty.