Frontier Awardees
2025 Awardees
Area of Scholarship
Novel ways to integrate materials in order to solve energy and environmental problems.
Highlights
- More than $5 million in total funding awarded
- 21 patents or patent applications
- 94 publications as either author or corresponding author
- Research featured in more than 100 media
outlets across the world
In the Nominator’s Words
“It is hard to oversell the impact of this work, which was published in "Science" and featured in more than 100 media outlets across the world…This type of publicity for Virginia Tech helps demonstrate to students throughout across the world the impact of our work and highlights the critical role that academic research efforts play in advancing science and improving sustainability all while providing economic benefits….My view is that Greg is a transformative scientist, a brilliant and hyper-creative materials chemist and a visionary in our field.”– Amanda Morris, professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry
Area of Scholarship
Novel therapies and a variety of cellular, molecular and imaging tools to treat stroke and traumatic brain injury
Highlights
- 51 journal articles as either author or co-author
- 22 published papers from her lab during the past three years
- 3 book chapters
- Principal investigator on three current National Institutes of Health R01 projects
- More than $16 million in career awards from the National Institutes of Health
- Oversaw the creation of the Neurotrauma Research Program in the Fralin Life Sciences Institute
In the Nominator’s Words
“While other universities have similar programs, Dr. Theus has distinguished the goals of Virginia Tech's Neurotrauma Research Program by identifying understudied areas of TBI [traumatic brain injury] research and strategically developed innovative approaches to address these critical gaps. Dr. Theus' work aims to translate basic science findings into targeted, sex-specific therapeutics that can improve long-term outcomes for diverse patient populations.” — Ira Blader, professor and head of the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology
Area of Scholarship
Ecosystem dynamics, ecological and Earth system modeling, environmental data science, forecasting, forest ecosystems, carbon cycling, water quality, land-atmosphere interactions, data assimilation, and open science
Highlights
- 79 peer-reviewed manuscripts
- 5131 total citations
- More than $12 million in funding from seven different federal agencies and philanthropic organizations
- Principal Investigator of the National Science Foundation-sponsored Research Coordination Network on Ecological Forecasting
- Helped lead the establishment of the Virginia Tech Center for Ecosystem Forecasting that has received more than $4 million in external funding since August 2023
In the Nominator’s Words
“Quinn’s research is at the international frontier of developing and applying novel quantitative techniques to examine the effects of global change on the environment. His specific objective is to develop quantitative methods to forecast future terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem dynamics in response to natural and anthropogenic drivers…Quinn is internationally recognized for his vision and leadership in water quality forecasting. He developed a state-of-the-art water quality forecasting system with a team of computer scientists, sensor engineers, and freshwater ecologists. Each day, data are transmitted wirelessly and securely from water quality sensors deployed in multiple lakes and reservoirs worldwide to inform ensemble hydrodynamic and ecosystem models. These models are continuously updated with new sensor data to generate daily forecasts for each waterbody that are delivered to water utility managers. The forecasting system is now being deployed at 15 lakes across the globe.” -- Joe Knight, professor and head of the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation
About the Award
The Frontier Award recognizes exceptional scholarly achievement for mid-career faculty, as well as their potential to build on established research to advance knowledge and innovation.
Up to three faculty will be selected per year and will receive $2,000 each.