Celebrating Class of 2026
On Saturday, May 9th, we proudly celebrated nine outstanding students from the Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance & Investment Banking as they graduated from the Wisconsin School of Business. During the week leading up to commencement, we gathered at Coopers Tavern for a graduation dinner to recognize this talented group—reflecting on their hard work, growth, and the strong community they’ve helped shape. Our graduating students have accepted offers at R.W. Baird, Harris Williams, RBC Capital Markets, and Bank of Montreal and are ready to embark upon their careers in finance! We are excited to welcome them to the WSB alumni community as they begin their career journey.
Nicholas Center Awards
We were especially proud to honor three exceptional students with Nicholas Center awards:
Albert “Ab” Nicholas Award – Jakob Monroe
Jake has made a significant impact through exceptional leadership, academic excellence, and a strong commitment to supporting his peers. From mentoring classmates to leading across programs and initiatives, he consistently put the success of others first—reflecting the legacy of Ab Nicholas. During his time at WSB, Jake has made a significant impact on the program, his peers and prospective students.
Jake, a career switcher, quickly distinguished himself through exceptional academic achievement while generously supporting peers as a mentor in valuation and financial analysis, including creating resources to help classmates transition into finance. His impact extends well beyond the classroom through collaborative leadership in consulting projects and case competitions, active engagement with the Weinert Center, service as a Student Advisory Group member, and advocacy as an Admissions Ambassador and Enterprise Development Fellowship spokesperson.
Jake consistently puts the success of others and the broader WSB community first, reflecting the values of leadership, service, and lifelong contribution that define Ab Nicholas’s legacy. This year, Jake was also a Poets & Quants Best & Brightest award nominee from the Wisconsin School of Business. Each year, Poets & Quants recognize 100 of the most accomplished full-time MBA students from the graduating class. This award nomination highlights students who have made a significant impact. We’re very proud to have nominated Jakob for this award.
Howard Thompson Award – Andrew Sternaman
Andrew is recognized for his exceptional leadership and commitment to mentoring others.
Andrew is recognized as a trusted leader and generous mentor who consistently invests in the success of others. He has supported peers through investment banking recruiting preparation, technical skill development, and rigorous finance coursework—frequently creating and sharing tutorials and resources to strengthen collective learning. His academic excellence, reflected in having one of the highest GPA’s, is matched by his ability to translate complex concepts into accessible guidance for students across cohorts.
Beyond the classroom, Andrew exemplifies learning through action, contributing meaningfully to case competitions, industry events, career treks, and Nicholas Center programming, including serving as a key contributor to an ACG Case Competition–winning team. Like Howard Thompson, Andrew’s influence extends beyond individual achievement; through steady leadership, intellectual generosity, and a genuine commitment to mentorship, he has left a lasting mark on the student community he serves.
Nicholas Center Stewardship Award – Matthew J. Winkler
Matthew exemplifies true stewardship through his consistent, behind-the-scenes contributions to strengthening the Nicholas Center community. Matthew is someone who cares deeply about the culture and long‑term success of the Nicholas Center—not just his own outcomes. He has been recognized as a steady, behind‑the‑scenes contributor who takes ownership of the community by showing up consistently, creating structure, and ensuring others feel supported.
Matthew’s stewardship also shows through his willingness to invest time and resources into improving the shared student experience. Peers highlighted his tangible contributions to the Nicholas Center itself, including proactively improving the physical space and ensuring others had tools to succeed. He also served as a trusted resource for first‑year students—meeting regularly with first year students to prepare for technical interviews, offering guidance through informal coffee chats, and consistently paying it forward to those pursuing finance paths after him.
Matthew is described as someone who leads through accountability, service, and integrity rather than visibility. His actions reflect a growth mindset, resilience, and an ownership mentality that strengthen the program’s culture daily. In doing so, he exemplifies the core values of stewardship, demonstrating that the success of the Nicholas Center is built not only by standout achievements, but by students who quietly and consistently lift the entire community along the way.
Graduate Awards of Excellence
In the weeks leading up to graduation, several of our students were also recognized at the Graduate Awards of Excellence Ceremony:
Academic Excellence Award – Jakob Monroe (accolades mentioned above)
Leadership Award – Jakob Monroe & Andrew Sternaman (accolades mentioned above)
Experiential Learning Award – Clare Sullivan, for exceptional achievement across multiple applied learning experiences and case competitions. Clare demonstrated exceptional performance in high-impact, applied learning experiences, including winning the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Cup through the Nicholas Center, being a member of the winning team for the Brewers consulting case, and playing an important role on the FIN 420 Investment Banking class pitch competition that won first place, all within her first year of the program. Furthermore, she excelled as a leader within her Applied Corporate Finance consulting practice case where she displayed strong leadership and presentation skills. In these competitive and collaborative settings, Clare consistently showed leadership, attention to detail, and a strong commitment to ensuring all team members contributed and felt heard. Beyond coursework, Clare further invested in her professional development by participating in career treks to New York City and Chicago.
MBA Ambassador of the Year – Clyde Smith, CFA Smith, for his outstanding commitment to supporting prospective students and admissions. Clyde has shown extraordinary commitment to prospective student campus visits, consistently volunteering his time and always saying yes when he’s available. Clyde participated as an Ambassador during his first and second year, remaining engaged with staff, showing genuine care and commitment to the admissions process and helping WSB attract students.
We celebrate all members of this graduating class for their dedication, collaboration, and impact during their time in the program. Congratulations Class of 2026 —we can’t wait to see all that you accomplish next. On, Wisconsin!
