News

Awards

Sheng Zhong (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) was been selected as a 2012 Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow. This fellowship is awarded yearly to 118 researchers across the United States and Canada in recognition of distinguished performance and a unique potential to make substantial contributions to their field. (February 2012)

Hyunjoon Kong (Regenerative Biology & Tissue Engineering) was named a new Center for Advanced Study 2012-13 Fellow and Sheng Zhong (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) as a new Center for Advanced Study 2012-13 Associate. (December 2011)

Jian Ma (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) was named one of Genome Technology magazine’s Young Inves­tigators, as nominated by senior principal investiga­tors in their field. (December 2011)

Rashid Bashir (Regenerative Biology & Tissue Engineering) and Wilfred Van Der Donk (Mining Microbial Genomes for Novel Antibiotics) have been elected fellows in the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The Illinois researchers are among 539 new fellows chosen by their peers for their efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished. (November 2011)

K.C. Ting (Energy Biosciences Institute) is the first recipient of the James R. and Karen A. Gilley Academic Leadership Award. This award was established to recognize a member of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) who is currently providing outstanding academic leadership while serving as department head/chair of an ABET-accredited agricultural and biological engineering program in the United States. (November 2011)

Jonathan Sweedler (Mining Microbial Genomes) has been named the next editor-in-chief for Analytical Chemistry, published by the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Publications provides a comprehensive collection of the most-cited, peer-reviewed journals in the chemical and related sciences. (October 2011)

Paul Kenis (Regenerative Biology & Tissue Engineering) and James Slauch (Host-Microbe Systems) have been named as University Scholars, a program created to recognize the university’s most talented teachers, scholars and researchers. (September 2011)

Douglas A. Mitchell (Mining Microbial Genomes) is a recipient of the 2011 National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award. The award recognizes bold ideas from some of the nation’s most promising new scientists. (September 2011)

William Metcalf (Mining Microbial Genomes) has been appointed as an editor of the Journal of Bacteriology, one of the primary research journals published by the American Society for Microbiology. (September 2011)

Andrew Leakey (Genomic Ecology of Global Change) was selected as a Beckman Fellow, Center for Advanced Study. Leakey’s proposal, “Opening the Black Box of Plant Responses to Global Environmental Change with Genomic Tools,” deals with global environmental change in this century and the impact on growing conditions in farmers' fields and crop yields. (August 2011)

Jonathan Sweedler (Mining Microbial Genomes) among 213 distinguished scientists elected fellows of the American Chemical Society, in recognition for outstanding accomplishments in chemistry and for making important contributions to ACS. (August 2011)

James Slauch (Host Microbe Systems) and Wilfred van der Donk (Mining Microbial Genomes for Novel Antibiotics)  have been elected fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology. They are among the 78 microbiologists chosen by their peers for significant contributions to their field. (April 2011)

Taekjip Ha (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) has been awarded the 2011 Ho-Am Prize in Science by the Ho-Am Foundation in Korea. (April 2011)

May Berenbaum (Genomic Ecology of Global Change, Genomics of Neural and Behavioral Plasticity) has won the 2011 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. (March 2011)

Lisa Ainsworth (Genomic Ecology of Global Change) has been selected to receive the President's Medal from the Society for Experimental Biology. (February 2011)

Jian Ma (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) received a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation. (February 2011)

Ryan Bailey (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) has been selected to receive a 2011 Sloan Research Fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. (February 2011)

Harris Lewin (Director) has been named the winner of the 2011 Wolf Prize in Agriculture. (February 2011)

Don Ort (Genomic Ecology of Global Change) has been named  Chair-Elect of the Section on Agriculture, Food, and Renewable Resources for the AAAS. (February 2011)

Bruce Fouke (Biocomplexity) received the 2011 Samuel von Pufendorf Visiting Research Fellowship in the Pufendorf Institute for Advanced Studies at Lund University in Sweden. (October 2010)

Sheng Zhong (Cellular Decision Making in Cancer) received the National Institutes of Health Director's New Innovator Award for 2010.  (October 2010)

Carl Woese (Biocomplexity) was presented the Trustees’ Distinguished Service Medallion at the Sept. 23 UI Board of Trustees meeting in Urbana. The award recognizes individuals whose contribution to the growth and development of the UI, through extraordinary service or benefaction, has been of unusual significance. (September 2010)

Bruce Fouke (Biocomplexity) received the 2010 King Broadrick-Allen Award for Excellence in Honors Teaching. The King Broadrick-Allen Award is given annually to a Campus Honors Program faculty member who makes an extraordinary contribution to the well-being of Chancellor's Scholars and the development and energy of the Campus Honors Program.

Nigel Goldenfeld (Biocomplexity) was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Election to the academy recognizes achievements in original research.