Alumnus and Two Graduate Students Receive Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships
The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans recognizes the potential and contributions of immigrants and children of immigrants with up to $90,000 toward their graduate studies. This year, three students affiliated with Caltech have received this award: Patryk Kozlowski, who graduated from Caltech in 2024; Daniel Tang, a graduate student in bioengineering; and Clara Seo, a graduate student in chemistry.
Kozlowski, who grew up in Orange County, California, is the son of Polish immigrants. Inspired by his first-year chemistry class at Caltech, Kozlowski worked in the lab of Ryan Hadt, assistant professor of chemistry, and was a co-author on a paper published in The Journal of Chemical Physics. He then pursued an interest in quantum chemistry with Garnet Chan, Bren Professor of Chemistry and director of the Rudolph A. Marcus Center for Theoretical Chemistry. Kozlowski worked remotely for Chan's lab during the COVID-19 pandemic developing simulations of catalysis, which have the potential to produce chemicals in a sustainable fashion.
During his third year, Kozlowski suffered a stroke and was diagnosed with leukemia. He took a medical leave for two years and returned to complete his BS degree at Caltech. Kozlowski is now a PhD student at Harvard, where he uses computational tools to search for materials that could be useful in a range of technologies, including improved solar panels.
Tang's parents emigrated from China, first to Canada and then to the United States. Tang grew up in Portland, Oregon, and while still in high school became interested in medical research. He majored in bioengineering at Stanford as an undergraduate and then entered the UCLA–Caltech Medical Scientist Training Program. Under the auspices of this combined MD/PhD program, Tang is studying with Mikhail Shapiro, the Max Delbruck Professor of Chemical Engineering and Medical Engineering and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, who was himself the winner of a Soros Fellowship for New Americans in 2004. Tang is researching noninvasive ultrasound therapies for drug delivery and plans to specialize in neuropsychiatry. He is also active as a mentor in the MD/PhD program and is a co-host of Double Docs, an MD/PhD podcast.
Seo grew up in South Korea, moving with her parents first to Singapore, then Germany, and then to upstate New York. She attended Amherst College, majoring in chemistry and statistics, and conducted research on the synthesis of biodegradable polymers. As a graduate student in chemistry at Caltech, Seo works with William H. Hurt Scholar Karthish Manthiram, professor of chemical engineering and chemistry, to develop bioelectrochemical energy systems. Specifically, she is researching how bacteria impact renewable electricity and how biochemical conversions can be harnessed for sustainable energy and chemical production.
Thirty graduate students were awarded Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans this year, selected from a pool of more than 2,600 applicants. Alumni of the program include former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Caltech alumna Fei-Fei Li (PhD '05), professor at Stanford and pioneer in artificial intelligence, among many others. The Soros Fellowship program was founded in 1998 by Paul and Daisy Soros, Hungarian immigrants and philanthropists. According to the press release announcing the class of 2025, fellows are selected "based on their achievements, potential to make meaningful contributions to their fields and communities, and dedication to the ideals of America represented in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution."