Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award

Two Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Awards are presented each year in honor of outstanding research or creative activity of national or international significance conducted by individual full-time faculty members at the University of Nebraska. Faculty members receiving the ORCA have sustained records of excellent accomplishment in their respective fields.

Information
Application/Nomination [ PDF ] [ Word ]
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Past Recipients

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2010 Award Winners

Jonis Agee, Adele Hall Professor, Department of English, UNL: Agee is the author of 13 books, including novels, short fiction collections and poetry books. Her novels Sweet Eyes and Strange Angels both were named New York Times Notable Books of the Year, as was one of her collections of short fiction, Bend this Heart. Agee also won the Mark Twain Award for 2008, given for distinguished contributions to Midwestern literature. At UNL, Agee started the Nebraska Summer Writers’ Workshops, which has grown in size and stature under her leadership and was designated as a Program of Excellence by the College of Arts & Sciences; and she has been a valuable mentor and teacher to students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Video:
Jonis Agee (.mpg)

Xiao Zeng, Ameritas University Professor, Department of Chemistry, UNL: One of the University’s most-respected scientists, Zeng has earned international attention for his work as a theoretical chemist. He has discovered a new form of ice (dubbed "Nebraska Ice"), which was created in high-pressure nanotubes; and his work in nanomaterials has earned him the nickname "Lord of the Nanorings." Zeng is one of UNL's most productive scholars, with 237 publications, and many of his papers appear in journals of international stature such as Nature. He also has built a record as an outstanding instructor, having graduated five masters and five doctoral students and trained eight postdoctoral co-workers at the time of his nomination. Zeng has been a Guggenheim Fellow and in 2004 received the Sigma Xi Outstanding Young Scientist Award.

Video:
Xiao Zeng (.mpg)