Biology undergraduate student, Jia Zhao, has received a Summer Research Fellowship from the Iowa Center for Research by Undergraduates for the Summer 2020. This fellowship allows current University of Iowa undergraduates in any discipline to work with UI faculty or professional & scientific staff mentors on a specific project during the summer. Jia is an undergraduate researcher in the lab of Dr. Bin He in the Department of Biology.

Jia was also the recipient of the Kenneth J. and Sharon L. (Reisch) Erickson Scholarship awarded to an undergraduate student in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences with a major in Chemistry, Physics & Astronomy, Mathematics, Biology, Communications Science & Disorders, Computer Science, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Health & Human Physiology, Psychology, and/or Statistics & Actuarial Science. The student must have earned a minimum of 30 hours of credit toward graduation, have a minimum UI grade point average of 3.33, be enrolled full-time, be seeking their first undergraduate degree, and must demonstrate financial need.

The Clifford W. Hesseltine Award for Academic Excellence was also awarded to Jia. The recipient of this award, offered by the Department of Biology, must be a Biology or Biomedical Sciences student of junior or senior standing and have a strong academic (grade point average of at least 3.5) and track record of excellence outside the classroom.

Jia is currently a junior majoring in Biology (Genetics and Biotechnology track) and is a Scholar in the Iowa Biosciences Academy. Congratulations Jia on these awards!