As we honor the Class of 2026, we are pleased to recognize a group of students whose leadership, innovation, scholarship, and research excellence stand out.
We are pleased to introduce the recipients of the Class of 2026 Student Awards.
Class of 2026 Student Awards
Introducing the recipients of the Class of 2026 Student Awards.
Walker Bargmann
Dean's Prize for Outstanding MPH Thesis
Walker Bargmann is recognized with the Dean's Prize for Outstanding MPH Thesis for his work, Using Oyster Genomics to Understand Human Health. His thesis uses oysters as a model organism to study epigenetics and environmental impact, collecting samples in Long Island Sound.
Yumi Yang
Wilbur G. Downs Outstanding Thesis Prize in International Health
Yumi Yang is recognized with the Wilbur Downs Outstanding Thesis Prize. Her thesis, Assessing Cardiovascular Disease Risk and Healthcare Access Barriers to Identify Prevention Strategies Among Market Vendors in Uganda, examines cardiovascular disease among market vendors in urban Uganda and explores non-communicable diseases in this setting.
Madi Baltagulov
Outstanding MPH Thesis Prize in Health Equity
Madi Baltagulov is recognized with the Outstanding MPH Thesis Prize in Health Equity. Madi’s thesis Predicting Healthcare-Seeking Childhood Diarrhea Across Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Two-Stage Meta-Regression Approach Using World Bank Indicators addresses an important gap in global child health. Drawing on data from 51 countries and using an innovative analytical framework, the work delivers actionable evidence for policymakers and contributes to reducing preventable childhood mortality.
Antigone Antonakakis
Henry J. (Sam) Chauncey Jr. Inspiration Award
Antigone Antonakakis is recognized with the Henry J. Chauncey Jr. Inspiration Award, presented by alumni of the Health Policy & Management Program to a student who exemplifies innovation, integrity, leadership, and community service. She has partnered with Fair Haven Clinic, taken leadership roles, and served as a teaching fellow.
Olivia McCarthy
Lowell Levin Award for Excellence in Global Health
Olivia McCarthy is recognized with the Lowell Levin Award for Excellence in Global Health. She graduated from the SBS with a global health concentration, served as a YIGH Fellow, helped develop student policy and advocacy programs, and was a winning member and organizer of the Global Health Case Competition. Last summer, she interned at Gavi, a global health organization, in Geneva.
Yumi Yang
Lowell Levin Award for Excellence in Global Health
Yumi Yang is recognized with the Lowell Levin Award for Excellence in Global Health. She graduated from CDE, led a research project in Uganda, secured funding, and collected data from over 360 market vendors in a pilot that informed later research programs.
Jaspreet Kandola
Student Award for Outstanding Contributions to Advancing Belonging, Equity, and Justice
Jaspreet Kandola is recognized for her remarkable integration of scholarship, service, and advocacy. She draws on her experience as a first-generation immigrant to tutor refugee youth, provide health screenings and hospice support to underserved people in New Haven, and study links between economic development and mental health.
Sean Becker
Student Award for Outstanding Contributions to Advancing Belonging, Equity, and Justice
Sean Becker is recognized for his commitment to health equity at Yale, delivering care through a community health van, studying barriers to addressing alcohol use during HIV testing, and completing an MPH thesis on digital health interventions in primary care. He is known for his intellectual curiosity, strong work ethic, and effective leadership.
Xinyi Shen
PhD Student Research Prize
Xinyi Shen is recognized for her paper, OncoSexome: the landscape of sex-based differences in oncologic diseases in the journal Nucleic Acids Research. OncoSexome is a multi-dimensional knowledge base that addresses a gap in sex-aware oncology by combining clinical, molecular, environmental, and microbial data from 71 cancer types. This work provides a foundational resource for precision oncology, enabling the discovery of novel mechanisms, improving predictive models, and informing more tailored and equitable cancer prevention and treatment strategies.