University of Texas Chemist Receives Presidential Early Career Award
Zachariah Page is among a select group of scientists and engineers to receive a 2025 PECASE award.
Zak Page, an assistant professor of chemistry and in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, has been awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), according to an announcement from the White House.
The PECASE is “the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers early in their careers,” according to today’s announcement.
Page and his research group use cutting-edge chemistry to create new materials that can be used in areas such as 3D printing, engineering tissue for medical uses, making flexible electronics and shock-absorbing materials. Some of their main projects include developing special materials that react to visible and infrared light, hydrogels inspired by natural materials, stretchy electronics and strong, flexible “smart plastics.” They’re especially interested in using light to control where and when chemical reactions happen.
Page’s work has implications for tissue engineering for health uses, 3D printing technology, soft robotics, advanced electronics and biotechnology.
Fourteen agencies across the federal government recommend researchers for the award. Nominated by the Department of Defense, Page is among nearly 400 scientists and engineers named as award winners today. The PECASE was established in 1996 and recognizes scientists and engineers who show exceptional potential for leadership early in their research careers.
Page joined the chemistry faculty at UT Austin in 2018 and has previously been recognized for his teaching and research, as a 2022 Cottrell Scholar and a 2023 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar. He received the Faculty Early Career Development Award from the National Science Foundation in 2021. Page is also among the faculty in the Texas Materials Institute.
