We’re excited to announce winners of this year’s HONORS PROGRAM SCHOLARSHIPS*—available to students only after they are active in the UW Honors community. These scholarships were established by friends of the University as a form of recognition and support for students pursuing their degrees with Honors. Awardees applied in March for these competitive scholarships that will be applied to this newly-started academic year.

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Maya Assefa

Friedman-Hechter Scholarship

Sophie Biernacki (she/her)

Randolph Preston Pillow Scholarship

“I am deeply grateful to have been awarded the Randolph Preston Pillow Honors Scholarship, which will enable me to pursue a range of academic, research, and experiential opportunities at UW while also providing me with the flexibility to continue my passion for volunteer work in education. Through the Honors program, I plan to pursue a uniquely broad liberal arts education, focusing not only on my areas of greatest academic interest, but also on those of high relevance to national and international development. In the coming academic year, I am most excited to build on the language and cultural learning experiences I gained over the summer during two UW faculty-led study abroad programs in Italy and France, which were truly transformative in my growth as a global citizen.”

Sophie is studying in the French & Italian Studies Department, pursuing a B.A. in French Studies with Minors in Italian Language & Culture and Textual Studies & Digital Humanities.

Nia Brice

Hennes Scholarship

Marysol Coria-Hernandez

Randolph Preston Pillow Scholarship

Alexandra Crooks-Moreno (she/her)

Hennes Scholarship

“This upcoming school year, I’m most excited to continue my role as a Law Data Intern at the Seattle City Attorney’s Office and to begin preparing my law school applications for the 2025–2026 cycle. Because my internship is unpaid, the Honors Scholarship will help ease financial strain—especially by covering application-related expenses—and allow me to focus more fully on my academic and professional goals. I’m truly grateful to the Honors Scholarships committee, as this support brings me one step closer to becoming the first attorney in my immediate family.”

Alexandra is pursuing a B.A. in Public Health – Global Health and a minor in Law, Societies, and Justice.

Rona Eslamy (he/she)

Greene Scholarship

“In my final school year at UW I’m excited to continue my honors studies and complete my Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies degree with the experience necessary to begin a career working with youth in education. In drawing from rich lineages of liberatory educational practice, I seek to cultivate modalities of learning that experiment with new ways of being and relating that depart from the systems of violence conditioned in our education systems. I am grateful for the Greene scholarship’s support in my final year as I pursue this research and write my thesis statement on these topics of interest. This scholarship will also allow me the time to continue volunteering in Seattle Public Schools to learn from our experienced educators and alongside students.”

Rona is pursuing a B.A. in Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies and a minor in Education, Learning & Society

Hirsh Garhwal (he/him)

Mary Gates Achievement Scholarship

“When I started college, I wanted to define my educational experience. I feel fortunate to be at the University of Washington and part of the Interdisciplinary Honors Program, which offers me the flexibility to shape my academic path and merge it with research that has immediate practical applications. Two years ago, I never imagined I would help develop an innovative lead shield with my physics professor, Dr. al-Binni, or present at the undergraduate research symposium, while also conducting linguistics research with Professor Ogihara. This coming year, I plan to craft a major that combines biology, linguistics, and computer science to explore how linguistics can support healthcare and communication. For students like me, finances directly affect how much time we can devote to our studies. This scholarship will allow me to fully focus on academics and research, support a research project, and potentially study abroad for a quarter.”

Hirsh is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts/Science, majoring in linguistics, but working towards merging it with biology and computer science.

Alden Gu

Wang Scholarship

Tanvi Kale (she/her)

Dillman Scholarship

“I’m excited to use the Dillman Scholarship to start a double major that allows me to explore the social dimensions of healthcare, such as LSJ, CHID, sociology, etc. I hope to take classes like Honors 230B, which was a presentation and discussion-based class about the importance of safety-net hospitals for underprivileged and underserved minorities. I will also be continuing my research on the intersection of IBD and menopause, where I hope to propose my own independent project.”

Tanvi is pursuing a B.S. in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, with a minor in Bioethics.

Alexis Martin (she/her)

Randolph Preston Pillow Scholarship

“This scholarship will allow me to engage more deeply with my studies and continue my involvement with the Sisterhood Initiative, a women-of-color-focused academic support program, where I will be mentoring First-year women of color as a peer mentor. 

I can also pursue Mandarin at a higher level and maintain my role as a Community Advisory Board Member for the Black Adult Resilience Study of UW Psychology. Additionally, this support enables me to stay active in clubs such as AVELA (A Vision for Electronic Literacy and Access), Black in Informatics, and the Black Student Journal, so I can continue growing as a student and leader and make the most of my experience in the Honors program.”

Alexis is pursuing a B.S. in Informatics and a minor in Mandarin.

Lorenzo Roel Flores McCleese (he/him)

Dillman Scholarship

“This upcoming academic year, I’m most excited to continue my research with NOAA, where I study climate change through quantitative and spatial analyses of oral histories. I’m also looking forward to increasing my involvement in extracurriculars, particularly through leading the UW Brotherhood Initiative’s Brothers in Research group, where I’ll support students of color in finding, maintaining, and leveraging undergraduate research opportunities. The UW Honors Program’s Dillman Scholarship will allow me to focus on these responsibilities outside of the classroom, which is critical to me as a self-funded student.”

Lorenzo is pursuing a B.S. in Environmental Science and Informatics: Data Science with Departmental Honors, minoring in Diversity. He is also one of this year’s 55 national recipients of the prestigious Udall Scholarship.

Anika Desai Mehta (she/her)

Gerberding Scholarship

“I’m so incredibly grateful for this award and the opportunity to pursue my academic passions! This upcoming year, I’m excited to continue engaging with and supporting the wonderful Honors community through my work as an Undergraduate Student Assistant, and to continue my work as a student researcher at the UW Center for Human Rights. I’m also excited to embark upon my CHID senior project focused on Gujarati language studies and to be a part of the year-long LSJ “Storytelling for Migrant Justice” course where we learn from people who are detained to uplift their stories of strength, hope, and resilience in the face of the cruelty of the immigration system.”

Anika is pursuing a B.A. in Law, Societies & Justice (LSJ) and the Comparative History of Ideas (CHID).

Yoonseo Nam (she/her)

Wang Scholarship

“Receiving the Wang Scholarship has given me a deep sense of encouragement as I head into the new school year, and I am so grateful for this award and opportunity! As a Psychology major planning to double minor in Data Science and either Informatics or Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies, I’m especially excited to explore how technology and social systems influence mental health and identity. This scholarship eases some of the financial pressure I face as a low-income student, allowing me to focus more fully on my academic goals, research, and volunteering like organizing musical performances for marginalized communities (shoutout to my RSO Music For A Cause ) and applying to graduate school. I’m also excited to welcome my younger brother this Autumn 2025 to campus as he will be an incoming freshman Husky!” 

Yoonseo is pursuing a B.S. in Psychology with minors in Data Science and Informatics and Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies.

Jessica Phan (she/her)

Randolph Preston Pillow Scholarship

 “I am so grateful to have been awarded this scholarship as it demonstrates a belief in my abilities as a growing and enthusiastic student, it encourages me to do more within the UW community and pushes me to put my best foot forward. I am most excited to begin my second-year at UW and hopefully pursue research within the social sciences field and begin my term on the ASUW Board of Directors as Director of Community Relations. I hope to make the most out of that position and put myself in a position where I can serve students to the best of my abilities. I’m genuinely looking forward to making a bigger impact on campus in the future and this scholarship allows me to have the freedom to pursue my passions.”

Jessica is pursuing a B.A. in Political Science and Bachelors of Arts in Business Administration with a focus in Marketing.

Sage Welch (they/them)

Randolph Preston Pillow Scholarship

“This upcoming school year, I am most excited to engage more with the on-campus community. In my first year at UW, I greatly enjoyed all of the events and experiences I had, whether it be making friends at RSO meetings, attending theater productions, exploring the campus, and more. Moving into my second year, I am excited to further integrate myself into this thriving community by holding leadership positions in RSOs and discovering more exciting events that UW has to offer. Thanks to this scholarship, I will be able to worry less about work and money and instead say yes to more of the opportunities available at UW. There is so much fun stuff to do on campus, and with this scholarship I hope to make the most of my time here and help contribute to UW’s amazing community.”

Sage is pursuing a B.A. with double majors in Marketing and Human Resource Management at the Foster School of Business.

Mia Williamson (she/her)

Pillow Scholarship

As an incoming sophomore, I’m excited to dive into more major-relevant coursework this upcoming school year. The University of Washington has amazing programs in marine biology and oceanography, and being able to explore a variety of disciplines within my chosen fields gives me a wider breadth of knowledge to bring into future endeavors, like a graduate program. Attending grad school is something essential to me, and this scholarship allows me to focus on research and internship opportunities that will help me get there. Being able to focus on a variety of topics at once is also something I’ve gained from the Honors program, and I’m grateful for the support the program receives from the Dr. Randolph Preston Pillow Fund to support Honors students in serving their community while benefiting from the interdisciplinary nature of the Honors program.

Mia is pursuing a B.S., double majoring in Marine Biology and Oceanography

Christina Zhuo (she/her)

Bordeaux Scholarship

“I am most excited to deepen my engagement in the research projects I am currently involved in and to contribute more to community-based initiatives that align with my academic and professional goals. This upcoming school year, I plan to take on more projects in my research lab and continue working closely with underserved communities, particularly in areas related to social justice in the secondary education system and early childhood development. This scholarship truly motivates me to dedicate more time to my studies, research, and service initiatives. Most importantly, it affirms that the work I am doing matters, which encourages me to continue striving for meaningful impact both in and outside of academics.”

Christina is pursuing a B.A. double majoring in Early Childhood and Family Studies and Psychology, with a minor in Leadership.

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*Note: Honors Named Scholarships would not be possible without the support of alumni, parents and other Honors Champions who give to our scholarship funds. This list does not include winners of incoming student scholarships, University-level awards, nor UW tuition waivers.