Semenov ’15 named valedictorian, Hannan ’15 named Latin salutatorian

Misha Semenov ’15 was named the valedictorian of the Class of 2015 on Monday, and Neil Hannan ’15 was named the Latin salutatorian.

The valedictorian and salutatorian were announced at the faculty meeting on Monday, when Dean of the College Valerie Smith announced that the Faculty Committee on Examinations and Standing had recommended Semenov and Hannan for the respective honors.

Semenov, a native of San Francisco, is concentrating in architecture with certificates in urban studies and translation and intercultural communication.

For his senior thesis, advised by Dean Stanley Allen of the architecture department and history professor Alison Isenberg, Semenov studied housing projects designed to accommodate residents’ expansion, and examined how more flexible, rule-based architecture can help fulfill larger social goals.

“Professor Isenberg describes him as the most talented undergraduate she has encountered in 20 years of teaching,” Smith said.

Hannan is a classics major pursuing a certificate in finance. For his senior thesis, advised by classics professor Dennis Feeney, Hannan studied a number of disabled or constrained literary characters in the early Roman Empire who held positions of authority.

“Professor Feeney describes this work as one of the best theses he has seen in 15 years,” Smith said.

Smith read a statement by Professor Feeney saying Hannan has a sophisticated and nuanced conception of how power networks operate and is a highly gifted literary critic.

After Smith finished reporting the recommendations, the faculty voted and unanimously accepted the nominations.

“Outstanding students," University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 said. "It’s a pleasure to be able to recognize them.”

After graduating, Semenov will spend two weeks sketching architecture in Europe using an award from the William Feay Shellman Travel Fund at the School of Architecture,Semenov said, adding that he will then begin a dual master's program in architecture and environmental management at the Yale School of Architecture and the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Semenov is a member of the Chapel Choir and has been involved with Theatre Intime, the Princeton Opera Company, the Nassau Literary Review and the Princeton Birding Club.

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He is a member of the Edwards Collective, a group of students interested in the creative arts and humanities who live together in Edwards Hall in Mathey College.

Throughout his undergraduate career, Semenov has also engaged with campus sustainability initiatives, serving as co-president of Greening Princeton, chair of the Greening Dining Committee and member of the GreenLeaders forum. He also helped to implement the University's new mixed recycling system.

“I am interested in tackling larger scale urban issues," Semenov said. "I’ve always been fascinated by production of green cities and ways that we can be more efficient. I certainly believe that cities are part of the solution to the environmental crises we face.”

Semenov said that, when he first arrived at Princeton, he never thought he would be valedictorian.

“I came from an academic high school, but I definitely didn’t think that I could ever academically compete with the top students at Princeton," Semenov said. "There are lots of people here who are much smarter than I am. Sure, I’m intelligent, but I think I’ve just put in a lot of work, really, without expecting to get where I did, but just because I’ve loved what I’ve been doing and I wanted to do well at it.”

Hannan shared the George B. Wood Legacy Junior Prize with Allison Kruk ’15, an award given to a member of the senior class in recognition of exceptional academic achievement during junior year. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and has twice received the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence. During the summer of 2013, he participated in the Princeton-sponsored Apulum Archaeological Excavation in Alba Iulia, Romania.

Hannan has also served as a research assistant to politics professor Melissa Lane. He is a peer academic adviser in Forbes College and has served as a tutor in introductory economics and statistics at the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning. He was a portfolio manager on the Business Today investment team and the community service chair of Charter Club. He is an undergraduate fellow for the Behrman Society of Undergraduate Fellows and the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions.

Hannan said it is difficult to pick just one class when asked to choose his favorite class he’s taken at the University. He explained that the class that really made him consider classics as a major was a Latin course he took his freshman year with professor Andrew Feldherr about Ovid and his poetry and interacting with monuments in ancient Rome.

“The biggest single lesson that I’ve learned is realizing the value of academic discourse, broadly speaking, and the value of having conversations with other people about different issues," Hannan said. "Even beyond whatever conclusion you get to, going into the discussion really helps your understanding of the issue, your ability to understand similar issues, and that sort of line of argument.”

After graduation,Hannan said he will work for Bridgewater, a hedge fund in Connecticut where he interned last summer.

“My long-term interest is to look at the drivers of economic behavior and economic relationships and what goals and what mindsets lead people to behave in certain ways in an economic sense,” Hannan said. “I’m very grateful for the experience of these last four years and having the community of the rest of my class and so far as I can use this opportunity to express that gratitude, I’m looking forward to it."

Staff writer Kristin Qian contributed reporting.