The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) was commissioned by President Clinton in 1996 to create an award program that would honor and support the extraordinary achievements of the finest scientists and engineers who, while early in their research careers, show exceptional potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific knowledge during the twenty-first century. The Presidential Award is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers beginning their independent careers.

The Awards embody the high priority placed by the government on maintaining the leadership position of the United States in science by producing outstanding scientists and engineers who will broadly advance science and the missions important to the participating agencies. The Awards support the continued development of the awardees, foster innovative and far-reaching developments in science and technology, increase awareness of careers in science and engineering, give recognition to the scientific missions of participating agencies, enhance connections between fundamental research and national goals, and highlight the importance of science and technology for the nation's future.

The participating agencies are:

Public Announcements

• President Obama Honors Outstanding Early-Career Scientists (December 23, 2013)
• NIH Press Release: President Obama Honors Outstanding Early-Career Scientists (December 23, 2013)

2012 Recipients

Dr. Debra Auguste (City College of New York) 1DP2CA174495-01 For research on personalized therapeutics for inhibiting breast cancer metastasis

Dr. Jeremy Clark (University of Washington) 5R01AA021121-02 For studies of neural mechanisms of risk preference following adolescent alcohol exposure

Dr. Damien Fair (Oregon Health and Science University) 5R01MH096773-02 For studies characterizing mechanistic heterogeneity across ADHD and Autism

Dr. Thomas Fazzio (University of Massachusetts Medical School) 5R01HD072122-02 For work on elucidating the roles of chromatin regulation in embryonic stem cell self-renewal

Dr. Jessica Gill (National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health) 1ZIANR000027-01 For an investigation of the predictors of neurological deficits and PTSD onset following TBI

Dr. Andrew Goodman (Yale University School of Medicine) 1DP2GM105456-01 For research on defining the causes and consequences of interpersonal microbial variation

Dr. Xue Han (Boston University) 1DP2NS082126-01 For research on light-actuatable nanorobots for molecular uncaging

Dr. Susan Harbison (National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health) 1ZIAHL006147-02 For studies on the impact of drugs on genetic networks affecting sleep

Dr. Richard Ho (Vanderbilt University Medical Center) 5R01GM099924-02 For studies of hepatic OATP drug transporters and chemotherapy disposition

Dr. Shingo Kajimura (University of California at San Francisco) 5R01DK097441-02 For studies on molecular control of brown adipose cell fate and energy metabolism

Dr. Young Kim (Yale University School of Medicine) 5R01ES021462-02 For studying the roles of environmental risks and GEX in increasing Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) prevalence

Dr. Todd Macfarlan (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute on Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health) 1ZIAHD008933-01 For research on mechanisms of mammalian epigenome reprogramming

Dr. Gaby Maimon (Rockefeller University) 1DP2DA035148-01 For work on linking genes to higher brain function by way of cellular electrophysiology

Dr. Sandra McAllister (Harvard Medical School) 5R01CA166284-02 For studies to understand how breast cancers activate and respond to the systemic environment
Dr. Quyen Nguyen (University of California at San Diego) 5R01EB014929-02 For testing fluorescently labeled probes for nerve imaging during surgery

Dr. Sallie Permar (Duke University School of Medicine) 1DP2HD075699-01 For studies of maternal immune protection against congenital CMV infection

Dr. Katherine Radek (Loyola University Chicago) 5R01AR061497-02 For studies linking nicotinic activation with skin innate immunity and atopic dermatitis

Dr. Katherine Rauen (University of California at San Francisco) 5R01AR062165-02 For studies on the role of germline mutations in the Ras/MAPK pathway on skeletal myogenesis

Dr. Ida Spruill (Medical University of South Carolina) 5R01NR012432-02 For work on ethno-cultural barriers to health literacy and disease management in African Americans

Dr. Andrew Yoo (Washington University School of Medicine) 1DP2NS083372-01 For studies of microRNA and neural factor-mediated direct reprogramming of cell fates