5 early-career faculty win 2025 Hettleman Prizes

The annual Phillip and Ruth Hettleman Prizes for Artistic and Scholarly Achievement have been awarded to five promising faculty members who exemplify groundbreaking and innovative research along with future career promise.

The late Phillip Hettleman, a member of the Carolina class of 1921, and his wife, Ruth, established their prestigious named award in 1986 to recognize the achievements of outstanding junior faculty. The recipients of the $8,000 prize will be recognized at an upcoming Faculty Council meeting. They will also deliver presentations on their research during University Research Week.

Read descriptions of each prize winner’s research:

Sarah Cohen, cell biology and physiology department, UNC School of Medicine 

Cohen is redefining how scientists understand cellular organization and its impact on brain health. Her findings advance fundamental biology and open new avenues for therapeutic strategies targeting lipid metabolism in neurological diseases.

Marissa Hall, health behavior department, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health 

Hall’s research focuses on how product labeling, marketing and availability shape consumer choices, especially around tobacco, alcohol and food. She uses experimental methods to simulate real-world purchasing environments, and her work has demonstrated that pictorial warnings and front-of-package labels can significantly reduce the consumption of products like sugary drinks and cigarettes.

Lindsey James, chemical biology and medicinal chemistry department, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy 

James’ research focuses on understanding and controlling gene expression. She designs special molecules that can either block the activity of or break down the proteins responsible for controlling gene activity. One of her major achievements is creating new tools that can target and eliminate harmful proteins that were previously considered “undruggable.” These proteins are often involved in cancer, and by removing them, James’ work opens the door to new kinds of treatments.

Kathryn Leech, UNC School of Education 

Leech investigates how everyday conversations between adults and children shape early language, literacy and STEM development. By identifying the specific conversational features that drive development, she has provided a roadmap for designing interventions that are both effective and scalable.

Alex Zhukhovitskiy, chemistry department, UNC College of Arts and Sciences 

Zhukhovitskiy is reshaping the landscape of polymer chemistry through a concept he helped define: polymer backbone editing. He leads a research program that reimagines how polymers — long chains of repeating molecular units — can be transformed at their core. This work offers a transformative approach to recycling and upcycling plastics.

This year, two researchers in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences received honorable mentions for the Hettleman Prize: Ronit Freeman, applied physical sciences department, and Suzanne Lye, classics department. Both are eligible to receive the prize in the future.

Read more about the Hettleman Prize winners and their research.