Gift will support five Ph.D. candidates for five years

An unprecedented five-year fellowship in the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science (CEMS) will support a cohort of five Ph.D. candidates committed to transformative interdisciplinary research in the areas of human health and sustainability.

The Wei-Shou Hu Fellowship is enabled by a $2.5 million private philanthropic gift from Stéphane Bancel, Moderna Therapeutics CEO and alumnus (M.S. Chemical Engineering ’95), and Brenda Bancel. The gift honors Distinguished McKnight University Professor Wei-Shou Hu, who retired from the University of Minnesota this fall after a 40-year career.

Hu was Bancel’s advisor in CEMS, and credits that mentorship as a defining influence—one he and his wife now hope to honor through this gift.

The Hu Fellowship will draw upon the collaborative principles inherent to Hu’s legacy of training and research in CEMS. Fellows will be selected through a competitive review process and evaluated for their potential to lead work that strengthens communities both in the United States and around the world. 

Through the generosity of the Bancels, CEMS will be able to provide five years of secure financial support, beginning in fall 2026, to five Ph.D. candidates as they pursue cutting-edge, often unexplored research alongside experienced faculty, in a time of uncertain federal funding levels.

"We are grateful for this type of private, long-term investment in our scientific and technological future. Partnering with the Bancels to attract and support the most talented, creative, and collaborative thinkers to the University of Minnesota is critical to the future of our state, nation, and world," said Andrew Alleyne, Dean of the University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering.

The Hu fellows, in partnership with their faculty advisors and the wider University of Minnesota community, will create a collaborative ecosystem of discovery that advances meaningful research.

“We train good human beings. We develop personal character, nurture the passions our students have for technology and science, but we really focus on their development as collaborative scientists, colleagues, and world citizens, all united in our passion for bettering our world,” said Professor Wei-Shou Hu.

Fellows in this program will receive full funding to pursue innovative and bold research, working closely with a CEMS faculty advisor who will encourage interdisciplinary exploration. This approach is designed to foster collaboration across disciplines—combining expertise from engineering, science, medicine, and more—to drive innovative solutions that address complex health and environmental challenges.

Related stories

Read about Professor Wei-Shou Hu’s Four Decades of Leadership.

Watch Stéphane Bancel’s commencement address at the 2023 University of Minnesota Conferral Ceremony.