Halo Awards to Honor ‘Heroes Of Medicine’ and 40 Under 40 Chicago Scientists, Featuring Many Polsky Partners

Published on Friday, September 27, 2019

The second Annual Halo Awards will take place Saturday, October 12, at 6:00 p.m. at the Museum of Science and Industry, celebrating the city’s “Heroes of Medicine” and the 40 Under 40 Chicago Scientists who are making impacts in a variety of fields. Many University of Chicago and Polsky-affiliated scientists and researchers will be among its honorees, and Halo Cures, the company hosting the awards ceremony, is a Polsky Incubator company.

Jeffrey Hubbell, PhD, of the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at UChicago, will be recognized as one of three “Heroes of Medicine.” A serial entrepreneur, Hubbell has worked with the Polsky Center on commercializing a variety of his discoveries. One of his current projects is ClostraBio, a startup he cofounded with support from the Polsky Center, which is focused on treating food allergies.

Along with Hubbell, eight other 40 Under 40 being honored are UChicago researchers, all of whom have some affiliation with Polsky:

Diana West-Szymanski // Polar Genomics; University of Chicago
Theodora Pappa // University of Chicago Medicine and Biological Sciences Division
Alex Muir // Cancer Biology; University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center
Alex Pearson // Hematology and Oncology; University of Chicago Medicine
Anthony Williams // Postdoctoral Scholar; University of Chicago Medicine
Bryan Dickinson // Gordon Center for Integrative Science; University of Chicago
Mark Applebaum // Pediatric Hematology and Oncology; University of Chicago Medicine
Shannon Elf // Ben May Department of Cancer Research; University of Chicago

The new associate vice president and head of the Polsky Center, Jay Schrankler, will introduce the entire 40 Under 40 group to celebrate these up-and-coming Chicago scientists. The event will close with a concert featuring UChicago cancer researcher (and rock/blues guitarist) Tom Gajewski, who recently launched his startup, Pyxis Oncology, with support from the Polsky Center. He will take the stage with cancer survivor Jenny Conlee of the Grammy-nominated indie rock band, The Decemberists.

Tickets to the Halo Awards are available here. A $50 discount is available using the promo code, “POLSKY.” For more info, visit the event website.