TAMEST Member News Roundup – February 2025
TAMEST In The News
Texas Tribune: Texas Now Has More Top-Tier Research Universities Than Any Other State, Report Finds, Baylor College of Medicine, Southern Methodist University, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and UT Southwestern Medical Center
Space News: Texas Awards Grants to Five Space Companies, The Texas Space Commission
Innovation Map: Houston Nobel Prize Nominee Earns Latest Award for Public Health Research, 2025 Hill Prize in Public Health Recipient and TAMEST Member Peter J. Hotez, M.D., Ph.D. (NAM), Baylor College of Medicine
Preston Hollow Advocate: Nicole Small to be Awarded Virginia Chandler Dykes Leadership Award, Nicole Small, CEO, Lyda Hill Philanthropies
San Antonio Report: UTSA President Taylor Eighmy Named Acting Head of UT Health San Antonio, Chancellor of The University of Texas System James B. Milliken, President of the University of Texas at San Antonio Taylor Eighmy, Ph.D., TAMEST Member Francisco G. Cigarroa, M.D. (NAM), UT Health San Antonio
HHMI: HHMI Names the 2024 Hanna Gray Fellows, TAMEST Member Anil K. Sood, M.D. (NAM), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Dallas Innovates: UT Arlington and Texas A&M to Launch Biomanufacturing Hub at Dallas’ Pegasus Park, The University of Texas at Arlington
Innovation Map: TMC names 2025 Cohort of Cancer Treatment Innovators, 2024 Hill Prize in Medicine Recipient and TAMEST Member Martin M. Matzuk, M.D., Ph.D. (NAS), Baylor College of Medicine
Houston Public Media: Texas A&M Partners with Four Companies on Nuclear Reactor Project Near Campus, Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp
Innovation Map: New AI-focused Innovation Hub, Rice Nexus, Debuts at The Ion Houston, Rice University President and TAMEST Member Reginald DesRoches, Ph.D. (NAE)
Member Briefs
State Cancer Agency Awards $68 Million in Research Grants to Texas Institutions
The governing body of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) has approved 53 grants totaling more than $67 million to state research institutions to advance the state’s fight against cancer. The grants provide funding for a wide array of cancer projects, including CPRIT Scholar recruitment awards, funding for collaborative core facilities and support for cancer clinical trials. Included among the grantees are TAMEST Member Maura L. Gillison, M.D., Ph.D. (NAM), MD Anderson Cancer Center for her work on neoadjuvant combination anti-PD-L1 and anti-TIGIT immune checkpoint blockade in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma and TAMEST 2024 O’Donnell Award in Medicine Recipient Benjamin Deneen, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine for his work decoding how neuronal activity remodels the epigenome in ependymoma. Read More
Four Longhorns Recognized with UT’s Presidential Citation Award
Four members of The University of Texas at Austin community including Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, TAMEST Honorary Chair, Former United States Senator, Former United States Ambassador to NATO and Sam Susser, Chairman and CEO of Susser Bank who also serves as president of Susser Holdings II, L.P., have been recognized with the Presidential Citation Award — the highest honor bestowed by UT — for their dedication and support of the University. Read More
Naomi Halas Awarded Benjamin Franklin Medal in Chemistry
TAMEST Member and TAMEST 2025 Annual Conference Speaker Naomi J. Halas, Ph.D., D.Sc. (NAE, NAS), Rice University, is the recipient of the 2025 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Chemistry, awarded “for the creation and development of nanoshells — metal-coated nanoscale particles that can capture light energy — for use in many biomedical and chemical applications.” Read More
Semiconductor Innovator Named National Academy of Inventors Fellow
During his career at Texas Instruments (TI), 2012 O’Donnell Award in Technology Innovation Recipient Ted S. Moise, Ph.D. and his team pioneered the development of a memory technology that made it possible for electronic devices to store data 100 times faster while using less power than conventional approaches. Dr. Moise, who now directs the North Texas Semiconductor Institute (NTxSI) at The University of Texas at Dallas, has been honored for his groundbreaking work at TI by being named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). Read More
UT Chemical Engineers Win Hill Prizes for Research with Real-World Impact
Two chemical engineers from The University of Texas at Austin have received Hill Prizes and seed funding of $500,000 for their high-risk, high-reward research ideas that have significant potential for real-world results. Both faculty members are within the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at the Cockrell School of Engineering. TAMEST Members Joan Brennecke, Ph.D. (NAE) and Benny Freeman, Ph.D. (NAE) won the Hill Prize in Engineering for work on a membrane important to certain liquid fuels. Professor James Chelikowsky, Ph.D. was awarded the Hill Prize in Physical Sciences for his ongoing research in batteries. Read More
One Giant Step for Aggie Space Research
The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents has approved Texas A&M University to enter into a contract with Aegis Aerospace for the Texas A&M / Aegis Aerospace Multi-Use Space Platform Integrating Research & Innovative Technology (TAMU-SPIRIT) facility, an external research facility on the International Space Station (ISS) that will exclusively house experiments from Texas A&M researchers. Read More
Taylor Eighmy Appoints Senior Executive Vice President for Health Affairs & Health System
The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) President and Acting President of UT Health San Antonio, Taylor Eighmy, Ph.D., has appointed TAMEST Member Francisco G. Cigarroa, M.D. (NAM), as the Senior Executive Vice President for Health Affairs & Health System at UT Health San Antonio, a newly established role effective March 1, 2025. Read More
Webinar: The Thing That Could Save Your Life
UT Health San Antonio’s webinar, “The Thing That Could Save Your Life,” will take place at 1 p.m. Central on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. The webinar will feature experts from the Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio including TAMEST Member Amelie Ramirez, Dr.P.H. (NAM), experts from Genentech and a Latina cancer survivor, who will explore available cancer screenings and how to access them in South Texas and beyond. Read More
UTA Research Drives Widespread Economic Impact
The University of Texas at Arlington research projects contributed $59 million to the national economy in 2024—an increase of 39% from 2023, according to a new report from the Institute for Research on Innovation and Science (IRIS). Read More
AI and Big Tech to Take Center Stage at Global Health Symposium
Texas Biomedical Research Institute, one of the world’s foremost independent biomedical research institutions dedicated to eradicating infection and advancing health, will host its fourth Global Health Symposium in San Antonio, Texas, from March 27-28, 2025. Read More
