Ryan Henrici honored with Alumni Achievement Award
Eight accomplished young alumni, including Penn State Eberly College of Science alumnus Ryan Henrici, who have made remarkable impacts in their professional fields received the prestigious Alumni Achievement Award during a ceremony held by the Penn State Alumni Association on March 28. The event took place at the Hintz Family Alumni Center on Penn State's University Park campus.
This award recognizes alumni 35 years of age and younger for their extraordinary professional accomplishments. These prominent young alumni are nominated by an academic college and invited by the president of the University to return to campus to share their expertise with students, faculty and administrators.
"Once again, these remarkable alumni have demonstrated that Penn Staters can make significant impacts in their professions and communities early in their careers. Their achievements reflect not only their individual excellence, but also the foundation that a Penn State education provides," said Ryan Jones, interim executive officer of the Alumni Association. "Their drive and accomplishments continue to make Penn State proud."
Henrici graduated from Penn State in 2015 with a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology and with honors from the Schreyer Honors College. He is senior director of translational research at BigHat Biosciences, where he leads the development of next-generation antibody therapeutics for patients with challenging diseases. At this biotech startup, he bridges clinical experience with deep scientific knowledge to drive innovation in antibody engineering and drug development through the integration of machine learning and synthetic biology.
Prior to the award ceremony, honorees gathered with their guests for a pre-ceremony reception where they conversed amongst each other and met with Alumni Association staff. Many of the award recipients also took time to speak to students during classes prior to the award ceremony, while others toured campus facilities with college faculty.
Read more about the honorees here. The entire ceremony is available to watch on the Alumni Association's YouTube page.
For more than 150 years, the Penn State Alumni Association has provided alumni with a strong and welcoming community representative of the Penn Staters it proudly serves. The association keeps alumni connected to the University and to each other, while upholding Penn State traditions and supporting the University’s mission of teaching, research and service. The association also produces the award-winning Penn Stater magazine and other publications, and offers alumni and friends volunteer opportunities, educational programming and many other services. For more information about the Alumni Association, visit alumni.psu.edu/youbelong.
