Rice Economics Spring 2021 RISE Awards Day | Page 3

BP Prize for Best Research Paper on Energy Economics
The BP Prize for Best Research Paper on Energy Economics is funded by the British Petroleum Company and recognizes an outstanding research paper written on any topic related to energy economics . The 2021 winner is Sree Yeluri .
Sree Yeluri
Sree Yeluri majored in Economics and German Studies , with a minor in Politics , Law , and Social Thought ( PLST ). She has an interest in economic development and energy , which led to her honors thesis on copper mining productivity in Chile . Currently , she is a student researcher for Dr . Michot Foss at the Baker Institute for Public Policy , where she has been learning more about global mineral production and regulations . After two gap years , she is heading to Columbia Law School , where she hopes to specialize in energy and environmental law . During these gap years , she is planning on working in a research-based role and learning more about sustainability in the energy industry .
Peter Mieszkowski Prize for Honors Program Research
The Peter Mieszkowski Prize for Honors Program Research is named after Professor Emeritus Peter Mieszkowski , one of the most prolific scholars to have served in our department , and the winner of the National Tax Association ’ s Holland Medal for lifetime contributions to the theory and practice of public finance . The prize goes to the best research paper written by a graduating senior in our honors program . The 2021 winners are Cade Ballew and Vicente Iglesias .
Cade Ballew is a graduating senior double majoring in Mathematical Economic Analysis and Computational and Applied Mathematics . He has enjoyed his time as an MTEC major , especially in the honors program . After graduation , he plans to join the Department of Applied Mathematics at the University of Washington as a doctoral student .
Cade Ballew
Vicente Iglesias is originally from Towson , Maryland and is majoring in Mathematical Economic Analysis as well as Statistics , with a minor in Financial Computation and Modeling . After graduation , he will be working for Susquehanna International as a Quantitative Trader . Outside of school , he is interested in running , baseball analytics , and playing the trumpet .
The Gaston Rimlinger Prize
Vicente Iglesias
The Gaston Rimlinger Prize is named after one of the founding members of our department , a renowned scholar and popular teacher who served as department chair for many of the department ’ s formative years . It is our most prestigious undergraduate student award and recognizes the best research paper written in any Economics course . The 2021 winner is Nathan Kaplan .
Nathan Kaplan is majoring in mathematical economic analysis and will be working as a senior research analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York after graduating . Academically , he is primarily interested in issues related to banking , financial intermediation , and small business financing . He likes to spend his free time watching sports with friends , working out , and going on hikes .
Nathan Kaplan
Rice University 2021 Commencement 3