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University of Oklahoma Scientist Receives U.S. Government’s Highest Academic Research Honor

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Steven Crossley.
Steven Crossley, recipient of a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. Photo by Travis Caperton.

University of Oklahoma Scientist Receives U.S. Government’s Highest Academic Research Honor

Engineering researcher Steven P. Crossley named Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers recipient


By

Josh DeLozier

joshdelozier@ou.edu

Date

Jan. 24, 2025

NORMAN, OKLA. – University of Oklahoma engineering professor Steven P. Crossley has been awarded a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers by the U.S. government through the National Science Foundation. This award is the highest honor bestowed by the federal government to outstanding scientists and engineers for early career achievements.

“Dr. Crossley is well deserving of this prestigious award,” said Carol Silva, OU interim vice president for research and partnerships. “His research is both ambitious and innovative, focusing on smart and efficient solutions to sustain and advance American industrial growth well into the future.”

Crossley’s research focuses on catalysis and nanomaterials synthesis, exploring how metal oxides enable the next generation of materials and energy. This work seeks to uncover what governs the effectiveness of these complex systems and the mechanisms that make them work.

“Catalysis is a beautiful field, ripe for innovation. Catalysts are used to make the fuels and chemicals we need, clean the air and water around us, and convert a wide range of feedstocks, including biomass, waste plastics and natural gas into more valuable products. Often the most promising catalysts are also incredibly complex, and we are fortunate to have the opportunity to study how they function on a fundamental level,” he said. “I’m truly honored to receive this award, but want to credit my mentors Daniel Resasco and Walter Alvarez, as well as the wonderful students I have the privilege to work with, for this recognition.”

Crossley is the Sam A. Wilson Professor of Chemical Engineering and the Roger and Sherry Teigen Presidential Professor in the OU Gallogly College of Engineering, as well as a faculty fellow if the OU Institute for Resilient Environmental and Energy Systems where he focuses on low carbon energy and infrastructure. Since joining OU in 2011, he has received the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund Doctoral New Investigator award in 2014, an Early CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation in 2017, the Vice President for Research and Partnerships Award for Excellence in Research in Engineering and Applied Science as well as the Inaugural Jischke Prize in Engineering in 2023.

He has served as principal investigator or co-PI on projects that have brought over $17 million in grant funding to OU from the U.S. National Science Foundation, Department of Energy and industry collaborations. He also participates in numerous interdisciplinary and convergent projects through the OU Vice President for Research and Partnership’s Big Idea Challenge, an NSF sponsored Growing Convergence Research Grant and an NSF-sponsored Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation project.

He is a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Chemical Society, American Indian Science and Engineering Society, Great Plains Catalysis Society and the North American Catalysis Society. He leads the Crossley Catalysis and Nanomaterials Group, is a member of the OU Center for Interfacial Reaction and Engineering and the Carbon Free H2 Energy Production and Storage team, and serves as the faculty advisor for the OU American Indian Science and Engineering Society.

Crossley earned his doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 2009 and his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Oklahoma City University in 2004. Before joining the OU faculty in 2011, he conducted research at Phillips 66.

Crossley is the first OU recipient to receive an U.S. National Science Foundation PECASE award since fellow engineering professor Amy Cerato was honored in 2008 and is the first OU faculty member to receive this recognition since 2012 when School of Meteorology faculty member Corey Potvin was selected for a Department of Commerce PECASE.

About the award

Steven P. Crossley is one of nearly 400 recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers awarded by President Joe Biden on Jan. 14, 2025. PECASE was established by the Clinton Administration to recognize early career researchers and contributions to far-reaching developments in science and technology.

About the University of Oklahoma

Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. As the state’s flagship university, OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and health care needs of the state, region and nation. For more information about the university, visit www.ou.edu.


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