Catalyst

Message from Dean Nelson

Welcome to the Summer 2026 edition of Catalyst. It is my privilege to share with you a season of remarkable achievement across our college — discoveries taking shape in our labs, ideas tested and refined in our classrooms, and a community of students, faculty, and alumni whose ambition continues to define what science can do.

In this issue, you will read about a Nobel laureate who joined us as this year’s Pran and Shashi Nath Distinguished Lecturer, students named Goldwater and Soros Scholars, and faculty pursuing breakthroughs in antibiotic discovery, climate solutions, and the health of our coastal waters. You will also meet graduates carrying their Northeastern education into the world and turning curiosity into impact. The caliber of this work — rigorous, creative, and deeply collaborative — reflects the very best of who we are.

None of it would be possible without you. Through this year’s Giving Day, your generosity raised more than $266,000 to fuel bold research, expand experiential learning, and open doors for the students who will become the next generation of scientific leaders. Your support is more than a gift; it is an investment in science as a force for good, and in the people who advance it.

Thank you for being part of this community. I hope you take pride in all that we have accomplished together — and I look forward to the discoveries still ahead.

2025 Nobel Laureate John Martinis Honored as 2026 Nath Distinguished Lecturer

The Department of Physics welcomed Dr. John Martinis as the 2026 Pran and Shashi Nath Distinguished Lecturer on Friday, April 10 to a packed room of faculty, staff and students in EXP. Martinis is a distinguished physicist and 2025 Nobel Laureate in Physics, renowned for his pioneering contributions to superconducting quantum computing.

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From co-op to CEO, this grad student aims to speed up climate change solutions

Jenna Woods, graduate student in the MS in Environmental Science and Policy program, studied the mineral olivine on an undergraduate co-op. Now she heads a company that aims to make it part of the global climate change solution.

Introducing the Barry L. Karger Laboratory for Instrumental Analysis

Douglas DeVivo (PhD ’70) never forgot the advice his mentor Professor Barry L. Karger gave him: scientists must always be willing to reinvent themselves. This spring, DeVivo honored that lesson through a landmark gift establishing the Barry L. Karger Laboratory for Instrumental Analysis.

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Northeastern undergraduate student speakers encourage bravery, open-mindedness

2026 Commencement Student Speaker Evan Kenny, who graduated with a bachelor’s in behavioral neuroscience, encouraged fellow graduates to chase their desires.

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In the classroom

Take a look inside Cosmetic Chemistry: Design & Innovation. In this video, students share their experience developing a cosmetic product from start to finish, including formulation, branding, and marketing their final ideas.

Step inside Biology Project Lab. From collaboration to real-world research. Students share what the course was like, the hands-on skills they gained, and how the experience helped them grow as scientists.

Student Achievements

Maren Ritterbuck, Numair Elahi and Sophia Guerra

Congratulations to Numair Elahi (biochemistry major), Maren Ritterbuck (bioengineering and biochemistry combined major), and Sophia Guerra (biology and mathematics combined major) on receiving this year’s prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship.

Oswaldo Vazquez was awarded the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, a prestigious scholarship for immigrants and children of immigrants making significant contributions in the U.S. His research, conducted under Professor Jonathan Weitsman, explores the complex intersection of mathematics and quantum physics, seeking to bring greater mathematical rigor to the field.

Alum Laurel Walsh, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and minor in art, will divide her time between the UK and the US as she pursues an accelerated doctorate in biomedical research under the prestigious NIH Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program.

Jordan Martino and Austin Mbaye were these year’s recipients of the Lakshmibai Fellowship. Established in honor of Professor Lakshmibai Venkatramani, a distinguished member of the department from 1987 to 2019 and an inaugural fellow of the American Mathematical Society, the fellowship recognizes PhD students for their outstanding academic records, strong potential for future excellence, and commitment to fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment within the department.

Anushka Chakrabarti, behavioral neuroscience major, was selected as the inaugural Jacob Davis Scholar. Chakrabarti was inspired to study the brain after early encounters with Parkinson’s disease patients and she currently works in a brain imaging lab studying how brain networks change during illness. Her plans are to attend medical school and become a physician-scientist, combining patient care with research to improve treatments for memory loss and cognitive decline.

Congratulations to Sashirekha Nallapati who was recognized this year with the Carole Shapazian Achievement Award. This award is granted to the graduating chemistry major with the highest GPA.

Faculty Highlights

Mary Jo Ondrechen, professor of chemistry and chemical biology, received the 2026 Lifetime Mentor Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The award honors individuals with more than 25 years of experience mentoring significant numbers of underrepresented students in STEM including women, men from minority groups, and people with disabilities. Professor Ondrechen was also selected as a Fellow of The Protein Society (TPS), the premier international society dedicated to supporting protein research.

Yizhi You, assistant professor of physics, was named a Cottrell Scholar, an honor for promising early-career academics in chemistry, physics, or astronomy. She received the award for her research proposal “A Route Map to Open Quantum Systems and Mixed States: Insights from Duality,” through which she and her team will study dissipation — the process by which quantum systems lose information to their surrounding environment.

David DeSteno was appointed Dean’s Professor of Psychology and Moral Development in the College of Science, recognizing his extraordinary contributions to understanding the moral dimensions of human behavior. Dr. DeSteno directs the Social Emotions Lab, where he has spent over two decades investigating how emotions shape trust, compassion, honesty, and cooperation. As part of this appointment, Dr. DeSteno will run a Speaker Series in Human Values and Moral Development, bringing leading voices to our campus to engage with questions at the intersection of psychology, ethics, and human flourishing.

Kim Lewis, a University Distinguished Professor of Biology in his lab with Yu Imai, a postdoctoral research student.

Kim Lewis, professor of biology, will lead a team developing an advanced platform to overcome key bottlenecks in antibiotic discovery. The project targets 30 sites in the cell envelope of Gram-negative bacteria, combining AI-driven genomic analysis with innovative screening technology capable of testing one million compounds per hour. The platform will tap into previously inaccessible soil microbes and silent gene clusters, with discovered antibiotics serving as starting points for further drug development.

Jennifer Bowen, professor of marine and environmental sciences, is co-leading a project funded through a $1.6 million Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant initiative. Her team will investigate bacterial contamination threatening soft-shell clam harvests in Plum Island Sound, where annual yields dropped by more than half in 2023 after weather-related shellfish bed closures. The project combines molecular techniques, community science, and machine learning to develop better shellfish sanitation monitoring methods.

Giving Opportunities

There are many ways to give back to support the College of Science. Visit the Giving website to search for and contribute to a fund or discuss opportunities for personalized giving with our Development Team.

Dean's Fund
Support this fund under the direction of the Dean which promotes leadership in such areas as diversity and inclusion, the development of science entrepreneurship programs, and access to global experiences.
Department Support
Unrestricted support, used at the discretion of the Department Chair, is directed where the need is the greatest to enhance the academic programs and faculty development.
College of Science Research Co-op Fund
The purpose of this fund is to provide stipends for students who are on an unpaid (or under-paid) co-op in a College of Science faculty member’s laboratory and are engaged in scientific research.

Support science research and education

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There are more ways to give.

These include planned giving, gifts of stocks, and matching gifts.

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The Northeastern College of Science is a hub of research, education, and innovation. Our faculty are pushing research frontiers to solve our planet’s greatest challenges. Through innovative, research-linked, experiential learning, our students are empowered to be confident, entrepreneurial problem-solvers with flexible skills for a vast spectrum of careers. And we embrace a culture of respect, equity, and diversity—where each person feels valued for their contribution and is treated fairly.

Scholarships: COS recruits exceptional students who reflect the diversity of society. Scholarships help us attract top students, and expand access to a Northeastern College of Science education through full and partial awards.
Support experiential Learning: COS is broadening access to and scope of work experience-based education at all levels. Support a co-op in research, medicine, and across a broad landscape of opportunities, or subsidize international co-ops. Help make these learning experiences a reality for our students!
INVEST in Faculty: The College seeks funding to recruit promising PhD candidates directly into tenure track positions, with extensive mentoring and research support. Through this innovative plan, the College will recruit a talented and diverse pool of faculty.

Graduate Fellowships: In the College’s new Connected Science PhD, students understand how the PhD opens a vast array of top career options. Students carry out groundbreaking research, explore opportunities, for cross-disciplinary research, and connect with outside work experience that may set up their next steps. COS seeks fellowship funding to support the next generation of science trainees.
Undergraduate Research: COS is committed to providing all of its undergraduate students with a lab-based research opportunity during their time at Northeastern. Support for undergraduate research will promote the creation of additional opportunities for students to work alongside faculty and graduate student mentors, and gain valuable experience in traditional and emerging fields across the College.
Summer Research Program: The new College of Science Summer Research Program will bring outstanding undergraduate students to Northeastern, where they will benefit from our hallmark experiential education opportunities. Support will enable the College to place students in research positions and encourage their future training at Northeastern.

Entrepreneurship: The College of Science encourages a culture of entrepreneurship and translational innovation across faculty and students. Support helps the College establish an ecosystem with features such as venture bootcamps, grand challenge-focused hack-a-thons, and funding that promotes a startup culture.
Space of the Future: The College of Science must be at the forefront of providing advanced research space that promotes collaboration and cross-disciplinary research, as well as support platforms and technologies that accelerate the rate of discovery.