She's the first faculty member from any Rutgers campus to earn this honor

President Bill Clinton has named Dr. Jing Li, an assistant professor of chemistry at the Camden campus, the recipient of a Presidential Faculty Fellow Award. 

Dr. Li is one of 15 scientists and 15 engineers nationwide to receive this prestigious award, which includes a grant from the National Science Foundation of $100,000 a year for up to five years. 

A statement from The White House notes that the Presidential Faculty Fellow Awards encourage promising research and teaching innovation in the scientific and engineering fields. Recipients may be called upon to contribute their advice and service to the U.S. Government. 

Dr. Li is one of only three chemists in the nation to receive this noteworthy honor. The other two chemistry researchers are Dr. Gareth McKinley of Harvard University and Dr. James Norwick of the University of California at Irvine. 

Dr. Li's research explores new types of solid-state materials, which have potentially beneficial magnetic and electronic properties. While most solid-state syntheses are traditionally produced at high temperatures, Dr. Li produces new materials that exist only at lower temperatures. Such materials, she explains, often exhibit unique structural, catalytic, and electronic properties that may lead to new applications. 

Since joining the Rutgers-Camden chemistry faculty in 1991, Dr. Li has earned numerous grants and awards for her research and teaching skills, including the esteemed Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, which honors educators who encourage students to become effective members of the chemical profession.