Each year, the UW Engineering dean recognizes two exceptional students. Students must meet specific eligibility requirements and are selected from among those nominated by department chairs and reviewed by a selection committee.
2026 Dean's Medal Nominees
Academic Excellence
Selection criteria for the Academic Excellence award include grades, rigor and distribution of courses, and excellence in research.
- Anthony Zhang, Aeronautics & Astronautics
- Sagnik Sinha, Bioengineering
- Kae Ransom, Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Tong Lin, Computer Science & Engineering
- Edward Duong, Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Yuchen Feng, Human Centered Design & Engineering
- Kota Murakami, Industrial & Systems Engineering
- John McQuaid, Materials Science & Engineering
Leadership and Engagement
Selection criteria for the Leadership and Engagement award include extracurricular leadership, impact to the community, and commitment to engineering for the public good.
- Geenadie Rathnayake, Aeronautics & Astronautics
- Sahana Subramanian, Bioengineering
- Lauren Ellis, Chemical Engineering
- Minda Chen, Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Henok Assalif, Computer Science & Engineering
- Vibha Sathish Kumar, Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Rachel Hsu, Industrial & Systems Engineering
- Matilda Gauss, Materials Science & Engineering
2026 Dean's Medalists
Sofia Dahlgren
Chemical Engineering
Academic Excellence
Throughout her time at the University of Washington, Sofia Dahlgren has pursued interdisciplinary research spanning chemical engineering, nanoscience and molecular engineering, while also expanding access to STEM education through mentorship and community engagement.
In the Department of Chemical Engineering, Sofia works with Professor Elizabeth Nance developing nanoparticle-based therapies for brain diseases. With support from the Levinson Emerging Scholars Award, she created a nanoparticle formulation for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and is now collaborating with biomedical scientists at the University of Queensland to evaluate the platform in vivo. Her research has been recognized nationally by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, and she recently earned first place for her presentation at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers Regional Conference.
Beyond the lab, Sofia is committed to making STEM education and research more accessible. As an Undergraduate Research Leader, she helped develop the Undergraduate Research Individual Development Plan to better support student researchers. Through the Riverways Education Partnership’s Culture and Science Exchange program, she mentored Yakama middle school students who went on to earn Top Overall Middle School Team in the 2024–2025 Artemis ROADS III competition. She also continues outreach work across Washington as a UW Engineering Ambassador, helping students see pathways into engineering and science.
After graduation, Sofia will begin a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at Duke University, where she will join Professor Daniel Reker’s active machine learning and molecular medicine laboratory as an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship recipient and James B. Duke Fellow. Building on her background in nanomedicine, data science, and biological systems, she hopes to develop computational strategies that improve drug delivery and streamline downstream development processes.
Athena Ortega
Human Centered Design & Engineering
Leadership and Engagement
Athena Ortega is a human-centered design engineer who grounds her work in community, creativity and empathy. These values shape her commitment to advancing engineering and design for the public good. At the University of Washington, she has pursued this mission through her leadership, mentoring others, and health-focused research.
A central part of Athena’s UW experience has been her work as an Engineering Peer Educator in the Emerging Leaders in Engineering program, where she mentored and taught more than 75 first-year engineering students over three years. In this role, she helped students navigate the transition to college, connect with campus resources, and explore pathways within engineering. Athena also founded and served as president of UX Health, an interdisciplinary student organization focused on the intersection of health, design and user experience. In the HCDE department, she served as co-president of the Human-Centered Design & Engineering Student Association and supports prospective students as a B.S. Peer Adviser.
In addition to her leadership work, Athena conducts research at Seattle Children’s Hospital, applying human-centered design methods to improve collaborative decision-making between pediatric patients, caregivers and clinicians. Working in the Health Information and Visualization Experience Lab, she collaborates with physicians, researchers and designers to develop more accessible and patient-centered digital health experiences. Her interdisciplinary perspective has also been shaped by her involvement in the UW Honors Program, where she further explored the relationship between storytelling, design, and equity-driven innovation.
After graduation, Athena plans to pursue medical school while continuing her work to bridge clinical care, research, and design. She hopes to integrate medicine and human-centered engineering through approaches that advance equitable, compassionate, and collaborative care, while continuing to use creativity as a foundation for healing and community impact.
View past dean's medalists