The Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the 130 finalists for the 21st annual 2026 Best & Brightest Awards. These outstanding high school seniors—representing public, private and homeschool programs across Leon County—have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement along with a strong commitment to leadership and community service. Finalists were selected through a competitive process and interviewed by a panel of judges.
All will be honored at the Best & Brightest Awards Ceremony on May 13, where category winners will be announced.
2026 Finalists
Art Category: Laila Alexander (Chiles) Nicholas Echnevarry (Florida State University Schools) Tonie Palmer (Godby) Camden Philley (Homeschool) EmmaLin Starnes (Leon) Karsen White (Lincoln) Ella Tobe (Maclay) Hawa-Larai Harruna (Rickards) Tabitha Howard (SAIL) Zoe Ford (Tallahassee Collegiate Academy)
Athletics Category: Dahee Seo (Chiles) Danielle White (Florida State University Schools) Logan Corneluis (Godby) Peyton Waller (Homeschool) Xavier Uchino (Leon) Emma Punausuia (Lincoln) Justin Murphy (Maclay) Tanvee Doddi (Rickards)
Business & Entrepreneurship Category: Kaitlyn Grauer (Chiles) Peter Boulware (Community Leadership Academy) Jordyn Adams (Florida State University Schools) Jadin Rolle (Godby) Rylee Fessler (Homeschool) Jalil Smith (Leon) Kennedy Davis (Lincoln) Manny Arisso (Maclay) Breyana Davis (North Florida Christian) Srikar Marthi (Rickards)
Career & Technical Category: Madison Bates (Chiles) Anshu Patel (Florida State University Schools) Taryah Brown (Godby) Emily McConnaughhay (Leon) Blaze Norman (Lincoln) Alex Wang (Maclay) Dylan Ryan-Zilavy (Rickards) Jeriel Garcia (SAIL) Averett Baldwin (Tallahassee Collegiate Academy)
Drama & Performing Arts Category: Charlotte Simone (Chiles) Nayeli Street (Community Christian School) Helen Piris (Florida State University Schools) Tallist Jean (Godby) Ava Hardy (Homeschool) Isabella Hanselman (Leon) Karsyn Simmons (Lincoln) Crew Carlile (Maclay) Kayden Hall (Rickards)
English & Language Arts Category: Anna Piotrowski (Chiles) Alyssa Bowman (Florida State University Schools) Dylan Lawson (Leon) Sophia Ferguson (Lincoln) Sophie Lombard (Maclay) Rithvika Veerapureddy (Rickards)
Journalism & Media Production Category: Meghann Metarko (Chiles) Vy Nguyen (Florida State University Schools) Camila Jalomo (Godby) Eden Hatfield (Leon) Chloe Williamson (Lincoln) Kate Bascom (Maclay) Nitya Konidala (Rickards) Harper Henning (SAIL)
Leadership Category: Sanhvi Kalathil (Chiles) Sydnei Feldman (Community Leadership Academy) Ireland O’Dell (Florida State University Schools) Omega Forbes (Godby) Isiah Hylton (Leon) Bryn Miller (Lincoln) Caroline Couch (Maclay) Aster Frances-Templin (Rickards) Winter Brookshire (SAIL) Carmen Diaz (Tallahassee Collegiate Academy)
Mathematics Category: William Wu (Chiles) Adit More (Florida State University Schools) Patrick Garland (Godby) Zoe Shoplock (Leon) Robert Strauss (Lincoln) Anna Chuku (Maclay) Himank Chhaya (Rickards)
Music Category: Mason Adams (Chiles) Aaryn Watson (Florida State University Schools) Mars Humphreys (Godby) Petra Croom (Homeschool) Colton Campbell (Leon) Dannielle Cromwell (Lincoln) Isla Welge (Maclay) Anjani Vemuri (Rickards) Emerson Lalla (SAIL) Sarah Methellus (Tallahassee Collegiate Academy)
Public Speaking Category: Wynn Whitfield (Chiles) Libby Shalley (Florida State University Schools) Ella Van Lueven (Leon) Siri Davidi (Lincoln) Nishi Bhanderi (Maclay) Jasper Opel (Rickards) Kelsey Drinks (SAIL)
Science & Health Category: Brandon Paek (Chiles) La’Zaria Thurman (FAMU DRS) Rishil Kodela (Florida State University Schools) Sara Aboulkassi (Godby) Logan Martin (JP II) Osaima Alhalabi (Leon) Nihal Kalathil (Lincoln) Suhani Gawde (Maclay) Jonathan George (Rickards) Marsh Wraithmell (SAIL)
Social Studies Category: Anitra Krishnan (Chiles) Mya Williamson (Florida State University Schools) Grace Glenn (Homeschool) Savannah Mejia (Leon) Nadia Canfield (Lincoln) Molly McDonald (Maclay) Saarah Khan (Rickards) Alejandro Del Castillo Bartlett (SAIL)
Technology Category: Mikhail Abraimov (Chiles) Tyson Terry (Florida State University Schools) Christopher Martinez Barbosa (Godby) Sophia Liu (Leon) Shlok Shah (Lincoln) Sofia Evers (Maclay) Amogh Acharya (Rickards) Joshua French (SAIL)
World Languages Category: Vishal Pamulapati (Chiles) Yailene Silva (Florida State University Schools) Aalysha Bryant (Godby) Javier Santana Fiallo (JP II) Maggie Haber (Leon) Aditi Lalitha Jyotsna Eyunni (Lincoln) Reid Roberts (Maclay) Connor Eller Vaughn (Rickards) Mariela Galaviz (SAIL)
