Advancing cancer care

The AbbVie Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to addressing health inequities, has made a $75 million donation to the University of Chicago to support the construction of UChicago Medicine’s new cancer pavilion—the first standalone facility in Illinois dedicated to cancer care and research. The building, to be named the AbbVie Foundation Cancer Pavilion when it opens in 2027, reflects the shared mission of both organizations to advance health equity and increase access to high-quality, culturally competent care. The donation helps fund the $815 million, 575,000-square-foot building, which will serve as UChicago Medicine’s flagship hub for cancer research, pioneering clinical treatments, and personalized patient care.

Support for Booth

Global investment management firm AQR cofounders Clifford Asness, MBA’91, PhD’94, and UChicago trustee John Liew, AB’89, MBA’94, PhD’95, have made a $60 million gift to the University in support of Chicago Booth and its Master in Finance Program. In honor of their commitment, the program will be renamed the Asness and Liew Master in Finance Program. This August Booth welcomed the first students into the 15-month program, which is intended for recent college graduates seeking to build on their analytical skills and start a career in finance with a competitive advantage. This program and the Master in Management Program were announced in 2023 as the school’s first new degree programs in 88 years. Asness and Liew joined Booth faculty and students from the two new programs for a lunch and fireside chat in November.

Making a splash

Botany Pond reopened in October following an extensive restoration. Work over the past year included repairs to the pond’s base and walls, major structural reinforcement for the bridge, a new biological filtration system, and improved pedestrian access and gathering spaces. Next steps include adding mud and zooplankton and introducing larger pond inhabitants, such as native fish and turtles. Ducks are expected to return to Botany Pond in the spring.

Dreaming spires

College fourth-years Francesco Rahe and Anqi Qu have received Rhodes Scholarships to study at the University of Oxford next fall. Rahe, who is majoring in Fundamentals and religious studies, will pursue a master’s degree in classical Indian religions; Qu, an economics major, plans to study innovative methods of applying artificial intelligence to economic research and policy. They are among the 55 UChicago students and alumni to have received the prestigious honor.

Medical excellence

Selwyn O. Rogers Jr., James E. Bowman Jr. Professor of Surgery, was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in October. Rogers is a trauma surgeon, public health expert, founding director of UChicago’s Trauma Center, and executive vice president for community health engagement at UChicago Medicine. He was among the 100 people elected this year to the academy, which recognizes outstanding achievement in medicine. To read about new alumni inductees, see Notes.

Green seeds

A new master’s program in environmental science will provide students with the foundational quantitative and data science skills needed across a wide range of environmental science disciplines. Students in the MS in Environmental Science program—set to launch in autumn 2025—will take data science courses and choose from electives covering topics such as climate dynamics, glaciology, and paleoclimatology. The program aims to prepare students for further graduate study or careers in fields related to the environment.

Energetic endorsement

Two UChicago scientists have been selected as awardees for the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Early Career Research Program. Allison Squires, a Neubauer Family Assistant Professor of Molecular Engineering, will research how cyanobacteria efficiently turn light into energy, with the goal of improving technologies such as solar cells. Austin Joyce, an assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics, will use cosmological quantum field theory to understand how the universe evolved and got its structure. Both will receive five-year grants.

Philosopher honored

Robert B. Pippin, the Evelyn Stefansson Nef Distinguished Service Professor in the John U. Nef Committee on Social Thought, the Department of Philosophy, and the College, has received the Luhmann Science Prize from the Sparkasse Bielefeld Foundation in Germany. Pippin, whose research encompasses studies of 19th-century philosophy and 20th-century filmmaking, was honored for his contributions to the political, moral, and aesthetic self-image of society.

Hands-on science

The third annual South Side Science Festival attracted more than 4,500 attendees this year. Co-organized by UChicago’s Biological Sciences Division, Physical Sciences Division, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, and Office of Civic Engagement, the festival aims to bring the campus and broader South Side communities together to explore science in a fun, accessible way. Activities included a paper airplane design contest, a liquid nitrogen show, an emergency medicine demo, and a laser maze.