Thomas H. Epps, III elected 2024 AAAS Fellow

Three University of Delaware faculty members — Thomas H. Epps, III, Velia M. Fowler and Delphis Levia — have been elected 2024 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society.

The class of 471 scientists, engineers and innovators was selected by their peers for achievements across a broad range of disciplines, including research, teaching and technology, administration, and excellence in communicating science to the public.

“We congratulate Thomas H. Epps, III, Velia M. Fowler, and Delphis Levia on this prestigious honor,” said Miguel Garcia-Diaz, UD’s vice president for research, scholarship and Innovation. “Election as a Fellow of AAAS is a testament to their extraordinary contributions to discovery and innovation, their outstanding reputation within the scientific community, and the profound influence and impact of their research programs.”

Sudip S. Parikh, AAAS chief executive officer and executive publisher of the Science family of journals, said: “This year’s class of Fellows are the embodiment of scientific excellence and service to our communities. At a time when the future of the scientific enterprise in the U.S. and around the world is uncertain, their work demonstrates the value of sustained investment in science and engineering.”

Thomas H. Epps, III

Epps, the Allan and Myra Ferguson Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, was elected a Fellow of AAAS “for distinguished contributions to polymer chemistry and materials science, particularly the design of nanostructured macromolecules for ion-conduction and therapeutic delivery, along with the development of performance-advantaged biobased and sustainable polymers.”

Critical questions drive Epps’ research: Can we reduce our waste and environmental impacts? Can we know enough about the relationships between structures and their properties to rapidly develop treatments when a new virus emerges? Can we have long-lasting energy supplies for powering storm-stricken areas or even a future camping trip?

Epps, who also has a joint appointment in materials science and engineering and is an affiliated professor in biomedical engineering, is making significant progress toward finding answers, with research focused on drug delivery to gene therapy, from better batteries to new methods of transforming plastic waste into useful products.

Cutting-edge studies are underway at the Center for Hybrid, Active, and Responsive Materials (UD CHARM), a National Science Foundation-funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at UD, which Epps directs. He also leads UD’s Center for Research in Soft Matter and Polymers (CRiSP) and serves as deputy director of the Center for Plastics Innovation, an Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC) funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and headquartered at UD.

Additionally, he is the chief scientific officer at Lignolix, a startup company he co-founded that is converting lignin, the structural material in wood and a byproduct of paper manufacturing, into new classes of renewable, specialty chemicals for making adhesives, cosmetics, flavorings and fragrances.

Epps has received multiple patents and academic honors for his work thus far, spanning the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers to induction as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

When NAI asked what inspired him to become an inventor, Epps credited his parents, as well as opportunities to participate in entrepreneurship competitions as an undergraduate and his work in the lab of Prof. Paula Hammond, his adviser at MIT.

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For the full list of awardees, click here.