Jaisnav Rajesh, an Indian American senior at Princeton University, has won a 2026 Allen Macy Dulles Spirit of Princeton Award celebrating undergraduate students who have made significant, positive contributions to campus life.
Rajesh, a computer science major from Plainfield, Illinois, is one of eight winners of the annual honor selected from more than 200 nominations from across the campus community.
The recognition highlights Rajesh’s extensive involvement across multiple facets of university life. Within his residential community, he serves as a residential college adviser at New College West and is a member of the residential college leadership team.
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He also assists peers with professional development as a peer career adviser at the Center for Career Development and acts as a community ambassador for the Scholars Institute Fellows Program, which supports first-generation and lower-income students.
Reflecting a strong interest in financial education and outreach, Rajesh also works as a project manager for the Princeton Financial Literacy Program.
His additional campus involvements include serving as assistant to the editor for the university’s yearbook production team and holding membership in the Tiger Inn eating club.
The honor follows a prior campus milestone, as he was previously named the university’s Peer Leader of the Year for the 2024-25 academic cycle.
Beyond his immediate campus contributions, Rajesh’s academic and pre-professional work spans international research, technology policy, and finance.
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He has conducted technology policy research through Princeton’s China Lab, a program under the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, which included academic studies at Peking University.
Additionally, his research background includes a role as a lead researcher at Fermilab, where he utilized machine learning techniques to analyze bias in scientific data, later presenting his findings at conferences including the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and the Harvard Science Research Conference.
Rajesh, whose family roots connect to the global Indian diaspora, grew up in Illinois and previously attended Waubonsie Valley High School in Naperville.
His award reflects a continued dedication to community service, which also earned him Princeton’s A. James Fisher, Jr. Memorial Award in late 2025 for his entrepreneurial energy in expanding educational access and financial literacy for lower-income youth.
Sponsored by the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students and awarded annually since 1995, the Spirit of Princeton Award recognizes individuals who demonstrate a strong commitment to the undergraduate experience through student organizations, athletics, community service, religious life, residential life, or the arts.