Lauren Zarzar Receives 2026 Schmidt Science Polymath Award
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Lauren Zarzar, professor of chemistry and materials science and engineering, has been honored with the 2026 Schmidt Science Polymath Award. This prestigious award recognizes mid-career researchers who are pioneering new research areas and methodologies, driving scientific innovation.
With this year’s announcement, the Polymaths community now comprises 43 awardees from 31 institutions across nine countries. Zarzar is one of eight selected from over 150 applications this year.
Zarzar’s research delves into dynamic materials that can sense and adapt to their environments, essential for advancing future technologies. Her group investigates oil-in-water-like droplets for developing reconfigurable and stimuli-responsive fluid materials suitable for pollutant removal and medical applications.
“I’m deeply honored to receive the Schmidt Sciences Polymath Award,” Zarzar expressed. “It’s wonderful how the foundation supports scientists in exploring high-risk unconventional ideas, and I am eager to pursue bold, creative research directions in the years ahead.”
Her achievements include receiving the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the Simons Foundation Pivot Fellowship, and several other prestigious awards.
Before her appointment at Penn State, Zarzar served as a postdoctoral researcher at MIT from 2013 to 2016. She earned her doctoral degree in chemistry from Harvard University in 2013 and holds dual bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and economics from the University of Pennsylvania, awarded in 2008.
