In recognition of her work to literally put science in the hands of young people, Anne Lynn Gillian-Daniel has received a 2026 Bassam Z. Shakhashiri Public Science Engagement Award.
This award, which is co-sponsored by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the Morgridge Institute for Research, and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, honors Shakhashiri’s philosophy that, “Science is Fun,” by recognizing University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty and academic staff who show excellence in engaging the public in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) research.
Gillian-Daniel directs the Wisconsin Materials Research Science and Engineering Center’s (MRSEC) Integrated Education and Outreach group. In this role, she leads the creation and dissemination of research-inspired educational content, including engaging hands-on activities, digital educational games, and field trips. In the past decade, this content has reached more than 50,000 people in person and been accessed online over 3 million times. Professor Emeritus Wendy Crone, Co-Lead of MRSEC Education and Outreach, said “Anne Lynn is always seeking innovative ways to both communicate science and help other scientists become better communicators and reach new audiences. She has made a tremendous positive impact on our campus, the local community, the State of Wisconsin, national and international audiences through her work in science outreach education.”
Professor Paul Voyles, Director of the Wisconsin MRSEC said, “AnneLynn’s enthusiasm for science outreach is infectious! Her leadership of the MRSEC demonstrations at the Wisconsin Science Festival and Engineering Expo makes those events a joy for the UW researchers presenting the demos and for the thousands of people who visit every year.”
Some of Gillian-Daniel’s work that garnered recognition included her engagement with a local food pantry to bring science outreach to people who face barriers to participating in on-campus events. Initially, she led science outreach activities with families at the pantry as they waited for food. In response to COVID restrictions, she collaborated with MRSEC members to develop free science activity kits for drive-through distribution at the pantry. Since then, over 8,000 kits have been distributed to food pantry clients, students in rural schools, library patrons across Wisconsin, and K-12 teachers and students in Puerto Rico in partnership with the University of Puerto-Rico Mayagüez.
“It’s really important to me that everyone feels like science and engineering are for them and they can engage with it in whatever way is comfortable; therefore, we work to reach people who may not have many opportunities to come to a campus like ours and experience all the cool science and engineering happening here,” said Gillian-Daniel. “I’m honored to receive an award that recognizes the importance of public science engagement and honors Professor Shakhashiri who made chemistry accessible to so many people.”