Distinguished Professor Jean Chmielewski named 2025 winner of Morrill Award, Purdue’s highest honor
2025-05-28
Jean Chmielewski, an organic chemist and the Alice Watson Kramer Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, has been named Purdue’s Morrill Award winner for 2025. Chmielewski was recognized on May 5th with other 2025 award winners at Purdue’s annual Faculty Honors Ceremony and Reception.
The Morrill Award is the highest honor that Purdue confers on a faculty member and recognizes faculty who best exhibit excellence in teaching, research and engagement. It was initiated in 2012 to honor the Morrill Act of 1862, which allowed for the establishment of land-grant colleges and universities, and it comes with a $30,000 prize.
Chmielewski was selected for the award based on her uniquely interdisciplinary program that addresses fundamentally important problems at the interface of chemistry, biology and medicine. One of Chmielewski’s nominators described how her “highly creative scholarly contributions place her among the top Chemical Biology researchers worldwide,” indicating that “she does not shy away from difficult problems in science, but boldly tackles some of the more challenging topics in her field.”
Chmielewski, who came to Purdue in 1990, is best known for her pioneering research in blocking protein-protein interactions in HIV, developing agents that kill pathogenic intracellular bacteria, and designing peptide materials for regenerative medicine. As a result, she has been elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement in Sciences, and has received the Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award from the American Chemical Society, the Vincent du Vigneaud Award from the American Peptide Society, the Goodman Scientific Excellence and Mentorship Award from the American Peptide Society, the Agnes Fay Morgan Research Award from Iota Sigma Pi, a Bill and Melinda Gates Grand Challenges Explorations Award, and the Herbert McCoy Award - the highest natural sciences research award at Purdue.
In addition to Chmielewski’s remarkable research accomplishments, she is also an award-winning instructor at Purdue, having taught over 6000 students organic chemistry. She has been honored with the Edward Leete Award in Organic Chemistry from the American Chemical Society for recognition of outstanding contributions to teaching and research in Organic Chemistry, and the Charles B. Murphy Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching – Purdue’s highest teaching award. Chmielewski is also a member of Purdue’s Teaching Academy and is in the Book of Great Teachers at Purdue.
Additionally, Chmielewski has an impressive track record of fostering inclusivity in the chemistry community, with exemplary mentorship of women and underserved populations. She has been recognized nationally for these efforts with the Stanley C. Israel Award for Advancing Diversity in the Chemical Sciences from the American Chemical Society and the Francis P. Garvan - John M. Olin Medal from the American Chemical Society “for outstanding scholarly accomplishments and exceptional service in fostering a culture of inclusivity in research excellence for women and marginalized groups in chemistry”. She also received the Provost’s Award for Outstanding Graduate Mentor at Purdue, and was the recipient of Purdue’s Dreamer Award “in recognition and appreciation of her contributions to Purdue University that embody Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s vision of service to others”.
“I have been deeply grateful to the Purdue community”, said Chmielewski, “the researchers here are inspirational and I have been able to collaborate with so many amazing faculty and students.”
Chmielewski received a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from St. Joseph’s University and a PhD in organic chemistry from Columbia University.
About Purdue Chemistry
The Tarpo Department of Chemistry is internationally acclaimed for its excellence in chemical education and innovation, boasting two Nobel laureates in organic chemistry, the #1 ranked analytical chemistry program, and a highly successful drug discovery initiative that has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties.
About Purdue University
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Media contact: Steve Scherer, College of Science Communications, scherer@purdue.edu