Chris Schroeder and Stefan Viola received 2026 Graduate Student Excellence Awards at a ceremony in the Mandela Room.

Schroeder was recognized with two awards: Excellence in Research and Excellence in Teaching. After earning a PhD in physics, he is now pursuing a second PhD in mathematics, producing three papers that bridge mathematics and physics. He also translated a classic 833-page German mathematical text into English.

Viola received the Excellence in Teaching award. One student wrote: “There were multiple times when you explained something in lecture and it changed my math world forever.”

Award citations