Ijeoma Uchegbu, a professor of pharmaceutical nanoscience at the University of Cambridge, has been named as the seventh president of Wolfson College, one of its 31 colleges.
On the university’s website, a statement with the headline “Wolfson elects Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu as the College’s 7th President” announced this.
Uchegbu, who is renowned for her groundbreaking work in nanoparticle medication delivery, will take over as President on October 1, 2024, replacing the outgoing President, Professor Jane Clarke.
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The Nigerian academic was a lecturer at University College London prior to her appointment.
The announcement said, “We are happy to announce that Wolfson’s seventh President, Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu, is a groundbreaking nanoscientist.
The seventh president of Wolfson will be Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu, a professor of pharmaceutical nanoscience who is renowned for her groundbreaking work in medicine delivery via nanoparticles. On October 1, 2024, she will take over as President in place of Professor Jane Clarke.
At University College London, Professor Uchegbu teaches pharmaceutical nanoscience. Her groundbreaking research on drug transport processes has paved the way for the creation of novel painkillers with the potential to revolutionize pain management. One such treatment is the enkephalin pain medicine contender, Veltaå, which is intended to combat the opioid crisis.
She has received multiple honors, fellowships, and prizes for her work, and she is an honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry in addition to serving on a number of academic boards and councils, including the Wellcome Trust and the Academy of Medical Sciences.
“She has also led the organization’s race equality agenda while serving as UCL’s Provost’s Envoy for Race Equality and Pro Vice Provost for Africa and the Middle East, establishing new research collaborations in those areas.
“I am so thrilled to be joining Wolfson College, an ambitious and forward-thinking College,” Uchegbu responded.
Leading such a vibrant, varied, and involved student body in a setting that fosters intellectual, social, and cultural stimulation will be an honor. I’m excited to collaborate with the students, faculty, and Governing Body to assist them reach their goals and fulfill their potential.
“I congratulate Ijeoma for being elected President of Wolfson College,” stated Professor Clarke, the existing president, in the interim. I can promise her that she will have a great time leading the “Wolfpack,” if she finds it even half as satisfying as I have.
Uchegbu grew up in Hackney and South East Nigeria. She graduated from the University of Benin in 1981 with a degree in pharmacy and then went on to the University of Lagos to complete her master’s program.
She pursued postgraduate studies at the University of London after coming back to the UK, where she graduated with a PhD in 1997. Her dissertation was overseen by Alexander (Sandy) Florence, the dean of the pharmacy school. She was employed as a lecturer at the University of Strathclyde from 2002 until 2004.