Valedictorian Matt Gunn ’24, an engineering and mathematics double-major from Mechanicsville, Va., was recently honored as the winner of the H.W. Murray Medal for Scholarship.

RMC’s highest academic honor, the H. W. Murray Medal for Scholarship was established in 1889 by legacy of Mrs. W. T. Goodwin of Louisa County, Va., in memory of her father. It is awarded to the member of the graduating class who holds the highest cumulative grade point average.

“I’d like to thank all the people that helped me throughout college, especially the faculty and staff, friends and family,” Gunn said. “They were all super helpful to my success in college.”

Gunn, a member of the Honors and Leadership Fellows programs, was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s most prestigious academic honor society. At the PBK induction ceremony, he received the John B. and Anita S. Werner Award, given annually to no more than two graduating seniors who have been elected to PBK and made outstanding contributions to the College and community. Gunn was also inducted into the honor societies for physics, mathematics, and Greek life.

During his time at RMC, Gunn—who also graduated with minors in physics and computer science—dove into the opportunity to conduct undergraduate research and present his findings at professional conferences. Notably, he earned the Mathematical Association of America’s First Prize for Best Undergraduate Presentation at the MD-DC-VA section for exploring probabilities in bingo. He was also honored at the Physics Congress for his poster presentation on a 3D-printed prototype device that would simplify bladder irrigation.

“The conferences were a great way to meet other people that were either in similar fields or in a totally different field, and it was a great way to get feedback on your own research and learn about a lot of their new ideas as well,” Gunn said. “I was very honored to receive a few awards in those conferences, and that was great motivation to continue doing research and go to grad school.”

Gunn will continue his education in the fall, pursuing a Ph.D. in systems engineering at the University of Virginia. Gunn’s sister, Megan ’23, was also a Murray Medal honoree in 2023.