Rebecca Willett Named 2026 Recipient of the Arthur L. Kelly Faculty Prize
We are proud to announce that Rebecca Willett, the Worah Family Professor in the Wallman Society of Fellows in Statistics, Computer Science, the Committee on Computational and Applied Mathematics, and the College, and Faculty Director of AI for the University of Chicago Data Science Institute, has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Arthur L. Kelly Faculty Prize for Exceptional Service in the Physical Sciences Division (PSD).
About the Prize
Established in 2013 through the generosity of Arthur L. Kelly, a 1964 University of Chicago MBA graduate, longtime Trustee, and two-decade member of the PSD Council, the Kelly Prize celebrates faculty members who have made exceptional contributions to the Division beyond their teaching and research. Past recipients include Aaron Dinner, Stuart Kurtz, Young-Kee Kim, Edward “Rocky” Kolb, Michael J. Franklin, Dan Nicolae, John E. Carlstrom, and Andrew J. Campbell.
A Leader in AI and Data Science Research
Rebecca Willett receives this honor in recognition of her extraordinary work to build and advance interdisciplinary collaborations in artificial intelligence research across the University. As Faculty Director of AI at the Data Science Institute and a faculty affiliate in multiple departments and committees, Becca has been instrumental in positioning the University of Chicago as a leader in AI innovation and data science education.
Her leadership extends across some of the most significant research initiatives in the field. She serves as deputy director for research at both the NSF-Simons Foundation National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology (NITMB) and the NSF-Simons Institute for AI in the Sky (SkAI). She is also faculty director of the Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship and a member of the executive committee of the NSF Institute for the Foundations of Data Science, as well as the Scientific Advisory Board for the NSF Institute for Mathematical and Statistical Innovation at the University of Chicago.
Through these roles, Becca has cultivated a vibrant, collaborative ecosystem of scholarship at the intersection of data science, artificial intelligence, and computation at the University.
Congratulations, Becca
The Kelly Prize will be awarded at the PSD Convocation ceremony on June 6, 2026. The University of Chicago Data Science Institute congratulates Rebecca Willett on this well-deserved recognition of her vision, leadership, and tireless commitment to the University community!