The Sigrid Leirmo Award is given to a graduate student or postdoctoral student who best exemplifies the spirit of Sigrid Leirmo. Sigrid received her PhD degree in Biochemistry in 1989 and was a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Bacteriology when she died tragically in an accident in 1990. This award acknowledges a graduate student or postdoctoral student who is acknowledged by her/his peers and advisors as one who displays clear promise as a research scientist. Most importantly, the award is to be designated in appreciation of the student’s consistent willingness to contribute to the intellectual and technical potential of his/her fellow students and colleagues through the selfless help of others.
This year’s Sigrid Leirmo Award is being given to Christopher Warren.
Chris is currently a fifth year graduate student in Aseem Ansari‘s lab. Chris came from the Integrated Program at Northwestern, a rigorous and challenging science education program.
His colleagues describe him as a promising research scientist; a mentor and trainer for others; a leader; and an all-around nice person, well-liked, well-spoken and respected by his laboratory colleagues. During his first two years, despite his heavy and demanding course work, Chris single-handedly developed a robust high-throughput microarray platform. His work has changed the way transcription factors will be studied in the future. His work has led to numerous collaborations and helped improve knowledge of how DNA is recognized.
Because of his promise as a scientist in biomedical research and for embodying the values we hope to see in a Biochemistry graduate student, Chris is an outstanding recipient of the Sigrid Leirmo Award. Congratulations!