UofL’s knowledge enterprise celebrated at 2025 Research and Innovation Awards

More than 70 of the university’s best and brightest faculty and staff were celebrated at the 2025 Research & Innovation Awards on March 26. The honorees, including eight signature award recipients, were recognized for their work advancing research, innovation and creative activity.

“At UofL, what we celebrate reflects what we value as an institution – research, scholarship and creative activity. This event is so important because it shines a spotlight on YOU — the backbone of UofL’s knowledge enterprise,” said Jon Klein, UofL’s executive vice president for research and innovation.

Eight signature awards were presented for outstanding achievement.

• Researcher of the Year – Ayman El Baz, professor of bioengineering, J.B. Speed School of Engineering. A global leader in AI and bio-imaging, El Baz’s AI-powered autism diagnostic was licensed to Brain Diagnostic and widely covered by media. With 50 patents, $29 million in grants and 23,000 citations, El-Baz is translating ideas into real-world solutions – contributions that push boundaries and benefit humanity. El-Baz is bridging engineering and health care and enhancing diagnostics through AI.
• Innovator of the Year – Ginevra Courtade, professor, College of Education and Human Development. A leader in special education, Courtade authored five peer-reviewed publications in 2024, including pioneering work on AI to enhance instruction for students with intellectual disabilities and frameworks for accessible STEM education. Her projects address teacher shortages, especially in rural regions, and shape national special education policy.
• Center of the Year – Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences. Led by J. Christopher States, CIEHS is a powerhouse in understanding how environmental factors affect health, from air quality to chemical exposures, with an interdisciplinary approach uniting medicine, engineering and public health. Its mission is to advance scientific discovery, train the next generation of researchers and translate findings into actionable solutions for communities.
  

  

• Early Career Researcher Award – Adam Cocco, assistant professor of sports administration, College of Education and Human Development. In 2024, Cocco published four peer-reviewed articles, including a groundbreaking study on how personal branding and institutional factors shape college athletes’ Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) values on social media. His work tackled retention of first-generation college athletes, offering practical solutions for small institutions and produced resources for athletic programs.
• Creative Works Award – Ché Rhodes, associate professor in fine arts, College of Arts & Sciences. One of America’s top glass artists, Rhodes’ work joined the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s permanent collection in 2022 and was featured in their “This Present Moment” exhibition. His art graced the cover of “Glass: The Urban Glass Art Quarterly.” A UofL faculty member for 20 years, Rhodes previously won Louisville Visual Art’s Educator of the Year award and was an Ascending Star Fellow.
• Research Administrator of the Year – Anne Noe, manager, Research Grants Program, School of Medicine, who is recognized for her impact in overseeing pre-award services for the Schools of Medicine, Dentistry and Public Health and Information Sciences. Noe also manages the Summer Research Scholars Program, coordinates Research!Louisville, handles budgets and serves as a vital liaison with the Office of Research and Innovation.
• Industry Partnership of the Year – Additive Manufacturing Institute of Science and Technology and ISCO Industries. AMIST, led by Tom Berfield, and ISCO Industries, a Louisville-based titan in the world of piping solutions led by President Mark Kirchdorfer, collaborated on innovative manufacturing projects. This collaboration leverages AMIST’s world-class capabilities to enhance ISCO’s innovations, driving real-world impact.
• New Venture of the Year – Gretel Monreal, Inspired Therapeutics NeoMate System. Monreal and multiple collaborators across several departments are developing the NeoMate Mechanical Circulatory Support System to serve as a bridge for infants with heart failure until they can receive a heart transplant. This miniature, low-cost heart pump will provide up to 30 days of support, improving quality of life for the smallest patients.

Ascending Star Fellows

Nine promising mid-career researchers were recognized for their achievements as the third cohort of Ascending Star Fellows. During this year-long program, they worked with external mentors and were coached through an ambitious project to elevate their scholarship to the next level. 

Amanuel Beyin • Adam Enders • Lesley Harris • Jonathan Kopechek • Matthew Nelson • Stephanie Prost • Farshid Ramezanipour • Hui Zhang • Jianhua Zhao

Patent awardees

In addition, 55 researchers were recognized for the 73 patents awarded to UofL over the last two years:

Alexander V. Ovechkin • Alireza Tofangchi • Andrew P. DeFilippis • Andrew Switala • Ayman S. El-Baz • Balamurugan Appakalai • Charles S. Hubscher • Chi Li • Cindy Harnett • Claudia A. Angeli • Dan O. Popa • Daniel S. Metzinger • David Caborn • Dennis M. Evans • Donald Miller • Douglas J. Jackson • Esma S. Yolcu • George Pantalos • Gerald B. Hammond • Gretel Monreal • Guruprasad A. Giridharan • Huang-Ge Zhang • Jagannadh Satyavolu • Janina Ratajczak • Jason Chesney • John Naber • John O. Trent • John W. Eaton • Joseph A. Burlison • Joshua Spurgeon • Kavitha Yaddanapudi • Kenneth S. Thomson • Kevin Tran • Levi Beverly • Magdalena Kucia • Mahendra K. Sunkara • Mariusz Z. Ratajczak • Mark S. Slaughter • Martin G. O’Toole • Michael H. Nantz • Neal Bhutiani • Nichola C. Garbett • Nobuyuki Matoba • Noppadon Sathitsuksanoh • Paula J. Bates • Richard J. Lamont • Sarah A. Andres • Steven C. Koenig • Sucheta Telang • Thad Druffel • Thomas A. Berfield • Thomas J. Roussel • Yury Gerasimenko • Zhihui Sun • Zhong Yang

The UofL Office of Research and Innovation assists researchers by connecting them with funding, ensuring safety and compliance, managing awards and engaging industry. Over the past year, UofL researchers submitted 1,060 proposals, secured more than $188 million in new funding and produced impactful publications, performances and exhibits.

See photos from the awards ceremony here.