The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal is an annual medal that is awarded by

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

. The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal is awarded to those persons who define the 21st century and exemplify the best qualities of the human spirit. The Medal is awarded on each Senior Class Day to persons chosen by Vanderbilt's Chancellor with the advice of the faculty and students. Senior Class Day is the day before Vanderbilt's spring undergraduate commencement. In 2020, Senior Class Day was renamed Graduates Day to be more inclusive to all Vanderbilt students, including graduate, professional and undergraduate students, who will earn a degree the following day. The Medal includes a cash award and is one of the university's highest honors.

History

The tradition of Senior Class Day was started by Chancellor Gordon Gee, and the first Senior Class Day was in 2004. Vanderbilt awarded The Chancellor's Medal to

Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza "Condi" Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist serving since 2020 as the 8th director of Stanford University's Hoover Institution. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served ...

and Shirin Ebadi on Senior Class Day in 2004 and 2005 respectively. The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal replaced The Chancellor's Medal in 2006. The first Nichols-Chancellor's Medal was awarded that year to disaster relief workers around the world and was accepted on their behalf by the first lady of the United States,

Laura Bush Laura Lane Welch Bush (née Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American educator who was the first lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009 as the wife of George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States. Bush was previously the fir ...

. The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal was created and endowed by Edward and Janice Nichols in memory of Ed's parents, Edward Carmack Nichols and Lucile Hamby Nichols. In 2009, a permanent endowment fund known as The Edward and Janice Nichols Endowment Fund was established at Vanderbilt to fund The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal and The Nichols Humanitarian Fund in perpetuity.

Nichols Humanitarian Fund

The Nichols Humanitarian Fund is a companion scholarship fund to The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal. The purpose of fund is to enable Vanderbilt students to volunteer for humanitarian causes. The fund awards scholarships based on merit and need to Vanderbilt students to pay the expenses of their humanitarian activities. It was established by Edward and Janice Nichols in 2006 in honor of Laura Bush's speech on Senior Class Day. The $100,000 cash prize that accompanied The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal that Mrs. Bush accepted was given to Vanderbilt to start the fund. The fund also receives substantial contributions each year from The Edward and Janice Nichols Endowment Fund. The first scholarships were awarded in 2007.

Mission

The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal and Nichols Humanitarian Fund seek to make Vanderbilt students better members of their communities and society in general by supporting their humanitarian activities and bringing speakers to Vanderbilt who embody the best of humanity.

Medalists

* 2006 – Awarded to disaster relief workers around the world and accepted on their behalf by

* 2007 –

Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...

* 2008 –

Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part ...

* 2009 –

Doris Kearns Goodwin Doris Helen Kearns Goodwin (born January 4, 1943) is an American biographer, historian, former sports journalism, sports journalist, and political commentator. She has written biographies of numerous U.S. presidents. Goodwin's book ''No Ordinary ...

* 2010 – Khaled Hosseini * 2011 – Wangari Maathai * 2012 –

Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American author and retired network television journalist. He first served as the co-anchor of Today (American TV program), ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anch ...

* 2013 –

Toni Morrison Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison (born Chloe Ardelia Wofford; February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019), known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist and editor. Her first novel, ''The Bluest Eye'', was published in 1970. The critically accl ...

* 2014 – Regina Benjamin * 2015 –

Walter Isaacson Walter Seff Isaacson (born May 20, 1952) is an American journalist who has written biographies of Henry Kissinger, Benjamin Franklin, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Jennifer Doudna and Elon Musk. As of 2024, Isaacson is a profes ...

* 2016 –

Soledad O'Brien María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien (born September 19, 1966) is an American broadcast journalist and executive producer. Since 2016, O'Brien has been the host for '' Matter of Fact with Soledad O'Brien,'' a nationally syndicated weekly talk sho ...

* 2017 –

Ken Burns Kenneth Lauren Burns (born July 29, 1953) is an American filmmaker known for his documentary films and television series, many of which chronicle American history and culture. His work is often produced in association with WETA-TV or the Nati ...

* 2018 –

Amal Clooney Amal Clooney (; born ) is a British International human rights law, international human rights lawyer. She has represented several high-profile clients, including former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, form ...

* 2019 –

Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American inactive tennis player. She has been ranked as the List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in women's singles by the Women's Tennis Association, WTA for 11 wee ...

* 2020 –

Caroline Kennedy Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (born November 27, 1957) is an American author, diplomat, and attorney who served as the List of ambassadors of the United States to Australia, United States ambassador to Australia from 2022 to 2024. She previously serv ...

* 2021 – Dr. Anthony Fauci * 2022 –

Reid Hoffman Reid Garrett Hoffman (born August 5, 1967) is an American internet entrepreneur, venture capitalist, podcaster, and author. Hoffman is the co-founder and former executive chairman of LinkedIn, a business-oriented social network used primarily ...

* 2023 –

Maria Ressa Maria Angelita Ressa (; born Maria Angelita Delfin Aycardo on October 2, 1963) is a Filipino and American journalist. She is the co-founder and CEO of Rappler. She previously spent nearly two decades working as a lead investigative reporter in ...

* 2024 – David Brooks * 2025 –

Gary Sinise Gary Alan Sinise (; born March 17, 1955) is an American actor, director, producer, musician and humanitarian. Among other awards, he has won a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nichols-Chancellor American humanitarian and service awards Vanderbilt University