Hill Prize in Medicine Awarded to Martin M. Matzuk, M.D., Ph.D. (NAS), Baylor College of Medicine
Hill Prize in Engineering Awarded to Maria A. Croyle, Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin
Hill Prize in Biological Sciences Awarded to Russell A. DeBose-Boyd, Ph.D. (NAS), UT Southwestern Medical Center
Hill Prize in Physical Sciences Awarded to Allan H. MacDonald, Ph.D. (NAS), The University of Texas at Austin
Hill Prize in Technology Awarded to Hermann Lebit, Ph.D., Alma Energy
February 5, 2024 – Austin – TAMEST (Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology) and Lyda Hill Philanthropies today announced the recipients of the 2024 Hill Prizes. The prizes, funded by Lyda Hill Philanthropies, accelerate high-risk, high-reward research ideas with significant potential for real-world impact.
The prizes are given in five categories: Medicine, Engineering, Biological Sciences, Physical Sciences and Technology. They recognize exceptional innovators by providing seed funding to advance groundbreaking science and highlight Texas as a premier destination for world-class research.
The prizes aim to bridge the path from research to business development and further innovations that need additional funding for greater impact. A committee of TAMEST members (Texas-based members of the National Academies) selected the recipients, and finalists were endorsed by a committee of Texas Nobel and Breakthrough Prize Laureates and approved by the TAMEST Board of Directors .
Principal Investigators of the winning proposals will be recognized this evening, February 5, 2024 , at the opening reception of the TAMEST 2024 Annual Conference in Austin, Texas. Each of the five winning proposals will receive $500,000 in funding from Lyda Hill Philanthropies to accelerate their work.
The Principal Investigators of the winning proposals are:
“Our organization is committed to funding game-changing advances in science and nature and that is exactly what the Hill Prizes’ mission is,” said Lyda Hill, Entrepreneur and Founder of Lyda Hill Philanthropies. “We hope that the funding awarded to these Texas scientists will help enable them to launch their pivotal research into development and continue to make advancements in scientific innovation.”
“We are thrilled to announce this year’s recipients of our Hill Prizes and to support these top researchers in our state as we watch them change the world,” said TAMEST President Brendan Lee, M.D., Ph.D. (NAM), Baylor College of Medicine. “These prizes will accelerate their groundbreaking contributions and put them in a stronger position to receive more research funding in large-scale grants and collaborations. We are proud to advance these exceptional innovators and ideas and highlight the most exciting research in the state thanks to the vision and support of Lyda Hill.”
“We had an astonishing amount of interest for our inaugural year of the Hill Prizes, which truly showcases not only the groundbreaking research happening in our state but the vital need to support and fund high-impact research in Texas,” said 2024 Hill Prizes Committee Chair David E. Daniel, Ph.D. (NAE), The University of Texas at Dallas. “The real work came from our volunteer subcommittees, who reviewed more than 160 applications and had the difficult task of selecting five proposals for funding. Their hard work paid off, and we are proud to put forward these five diverse and truly innovative research proposals to advance with the support of Lyda Hill Philanthropies. We can’t wait to see the results of this commitment in the years to come.”
Each recipient will submit an annual impact report to TAMEST and Lyda Hill Philanthropies to showcase their progress and highlight how the prize has accelerated their research.
After an incredibly successful first year of the prizes, Lyda Hill Philanthropies has committed over $10 million in funding to continue the prize program for the next three years. The $10 million will include the addition of a new prize in the category of Public Health, resulting in six prizes per year of $500,000 each. In addition, at least $1 million in discretionary research funding will be allocated by Lyda Hill Philanthropies on an ad hoc basis to highly ranked applicants and finalists not selected as recipients.
Applications for the 2025 Hill Prizes will open May 1 and close May 31, 2024.
Visit www.tamest.org/hill-prizes for more information on the prizes, application and selection process. TAMEST thanks the Hill Prizes Committee for their work selecting the 2024 recipients. Learn more about the committee members here .
About Lyda Hill Philanthropies:
Lyda Hill Philanthropies encompasses the charitable giving for founder Lyda Hill and includes her foundation and personal philanthropy. Her organization is committed to funding transformational advances in science and nature, empowering nonprofit organizations and improving the Texas and Colorado communities. Because Miss Hill has a fervent belief that “science is the answer” to many of life’s most challenging issues, she has chosen to donate the entirety of her estate to philanthropy and scientific research.
TAMEST (Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology) was co-founded in 2004 by the Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison and Nobel Laureates Michael S. Brown, M.D., and Richard E. Smalley, Ph.D. With more than 335 members, 8 Nobel Laureates and 22 member institutions, TAMEST is composed of the Texas-based members of the three National Academies (National Academy of Medicine, National Academy of Engineering and National Academy of Sciences) and other honorific organizations. TAMEST brings together the state’s brightest minds in medicine, engineering, science and technology to foster collaboration, and to advance research, innovation and business in Texas.
TAMEST’s unique interdisciplinary model has become an effective recruitment tool for top research and development centers across Texas. Since their founding, more than 275 TAMEST members have been inducted into the National Academies or relocated to Texas.