DeSimone Receives National Medal in White House Ceremony

At a Thursday, May 19 White House ceremony, Joseph DeSimone, William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NC State and Chancellor’s Eminent Professor of Chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Barack Obama.

DeSimone won the award for “pioneering innovations in material science that led to the development of technologies in diverse fields from manufacturing to medicine; and for innovative and inclusive leadership in higher education and entrepreneurship.”

Seventeen of the nation’s top scientists and innovators received either the National Medal of Science or the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.

The National Medal of Science was created by statute in 1959 and is administered for the White House by the National Science Foundation. Awarded annually, the Medal recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to science and engineering. The President receives nominations from a committee of Presidential appointees based on their extraordinary knowledge in and contributions to chemistry, engineering, computing, mathematics, and the biological, behavioral/social, and physical sciences.

The National Medal of Technology and Innovation was created by statute in 1980 and is administered for the White House by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Patent and Trademark Office. The award recognizes those who have made lasting contributions to America’s competitiveness and quality of life and helped strengthen the Nation’s technological workforce. A distinguished independent committee representing the private and public sectors submits recommendations to the President.

The recipients included:

National Medal of Science

• Armand Paul Alivisatos, University of California and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
• Michael Artin, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Albert Bandura, Stanford University
• Stanley Falkow, Stanford University School of Medicine
• Shirley Ann Jackson, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• Rakesh K. Jain, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital
• Mary-Claire King, University of Washington
• Simon Levin, Princeton University
• Geraldine Richmond, University of Oregon

National Medal of Technology and Innovation

• Joseph DeSimone, North Carolina State University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Carbon3D
• Robert Fischell, University of Maryland at College Park
• Arthur Gossard, University of California, Santa Barbara
• Nancy Ho, Green Tech America, Inc. and Purdue University
• Chenming Hu, University of California, Berkeley
• Mark Humayun, University of Southern California
• Cato T. Laurencin, University of Connecticut
• Jonathan Rothberg, 4catalyzer Corporation and Yale School of Medicine