President Joe Biden has recognised three Nigerian scientists who contributed significantly to healthcare research and development with the prestigious Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).
The recognition, established by former President Bill Clinton in 1996, is the highest honour bestowed by the United States government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers.
President Biden announced this year’s awardees on Tuesday. They are employed or funded by 14 participating United States government agencies.
The Nigerian honourees include Azeez Butali, Gilbert Lilly Endowed Professor of Diagnostic Sciences at the College of Dentistry at the University of Lowa; Ijeoma Opara, Associate Professor of Public Health at the Yale School of Public Health; and Abidemi Ajiboye, executive vice chair of the Case School of Engineering’s Department of Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University.
President Bola Tinubu commended them on Thursday for their remarkable achievements, noting that their exceptional talents underscore Nigerians’ potential to excel locally and globally.
Here is more about the honourees.
Azeez Butali
Butali was recognised for his research on understanding the genetic factors that contribute to cleft lip and palate by studying the genomes of people with these conditions, particularly within African populations, where he is the world’s foremost expert.
“It is an honour to be recognised by President Biden and the White House with this award,” says Butali. “It truly takes a village, and I cannot thank those enough at the University of Iowa who have supported me and sacrificed to further our research mission. This award is an impetus to do more.”
Through numerous National Institutes of Health and foundation grants, his work has advanced scientific understanding of cleft lip and palate and significantly affected the lives of families by improving access to care and addressing cultural and mental health challenges.
Cleft lip and palate are common birth defects that affect millions of people worldwide. They can cause various problems, including difficulty eating, speaking, and hearing. Although there is no cure for cleft lip and palate, the conditions can be treated with surgery and other therapies.
Butali joined the University of Iowa in 2008 and has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the university’s Inventor Award and Leadership in Research Award. He was included in Iowa’s 2017 Dare to Discover campaign.
He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Academy of Medical Specialities of Nigeria, and the International College of Dentists. In 2023, he was named the college’s 23rd endowed professor.
Ijeoma Opara
Opara is an associate professor in the Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences at Yale School of Public Health and the director of the SASH Lab. Her research interests include using strengths-based approaches to preventing substance misuse and improving sexual health outcomes for youth of colour. Her secondary focus is developing race- and gender-specific prevention interventions for black adolescent girls incorporating empowerment and ethnic identity principles.
Opara has received many awards for her work, including her latest grant, the 2023 NIDA Racial Equity Initiative Visionary Award, the 2020 NIH Director’s Early Independence Award, which is given to exceptional, creative early-career scientists who are conducting high-impact research; the John D. Slade Memorial Advocacy Award from the American Public Health Association, the AcademyHealth Population Health Scholar; and being named the Top 100 Women by POZ Magazine to end the HIV epidemic.
Opara received a PhD in Family Science and Human Development from Montclair State University, a Master of Social Work from Silver School of Social Work at New York University, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from New Jersey City University, and an Associate of Arts in Psychology from Union County College in New Jersey.
During her doctoral training at Montclair, Opara received a training grant from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) as a pre-doctoral fellow in the Behavioural Sciences Training in Drug Abuse program at New York University to fund her doctoral training and dissertation study. Opara’s dissertation, entitled “Exploring the Role of Social Support, Ethnic Identity, and Psychological Empowerment on Drug Use and Sexual Risk Behaviour among Urban Black and Hispanic Female Adolescents” used empowerment theory and intersectionality theory as frameworks to highlight protective factors for girls of colour while also acknowledging the unique social locations that Black and Hispanic girls belong to.
In 2018, she presented the preliminary findings of her dissertation research at the International AIDS Society conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Her dissertation was awarded the John L. and Harriette P. McAdoo Dissertation Award for its focus on promoting strengths within Black and Hispanic families, girls, and communities and moving away from a deficit perspective often found in prevention research.
Abidemi Ajiboye
Ajiboye is the executive vice chair of the Case School of Engineering, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University.
Biomedical engineering is a field that combines engineering and biology to create medical devices and technologies. Biomedical engineers use their knowledge to improve healthcare and human health.
Biomedical engineers design, test, and implement medical solutions that ultimately benefit clinicians, surgeons, and patients. They work in various settings, including industry, academia, entrepreneurship, medicine, and law.
