Four faculty members were awarded the university’s top honor for research and mentorship this year — recognition for the significant and consequential contributions they have made to their respective fields. The Outstanding Research Award honors faculty who lead in their areas of expertise, commit to mentoring their fellow NC State faculty and advance an intellectual, multidisciplinary research community.

By winning the Outstanding Research Award, these four faculty members have been automatically inducted into the university’s Research Leadership Academy, an organization committed to upholding NC State’s distinctive research culture. 

Collectively, these four award winners have brought in tens of millions of dollars in research funding, published hundreds of widely cited papers, presented at dozens of conferences worldwide and patented several novel inventions. They have also served as dedicated mentors to both their students and their fellow faculty members and other researchers. 

Caren Cooper, a professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. Cooper earned a Ph.D. in biology from Virginia Tech University and is part of the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program faculty cluster for Leadership in Public Science. She founded and directs the NC State Citizen Science Campus, which supports faculty across departments in developing participatory research, and serves as associate editor-in-chief of Citizen Science: Theory & Practice. Her research engages the public directly in scientific inquiry through projects such as the EPA-funded “Crowd the Tap,” which investigated drinking water quality with over 2,500 participants, and an NSF-funded effort to develop AI sensor systems for real-time freshwater mussel monitoring.

Carla C. Johnson, a professor of science education in the College of Education. Johnson earned a Ph.D. in science education from the University of Cincinnati. Johnson serves as executive director of NC State’s Artificial Intelligence Academy, a research-based apprenticeship program she conceptualized and launched in 2020 — the first of its kind in the U.S. — which has prepared nearly 3,000 AI professionals for the workforce across more than 100 industry partners. Her research spans STEM education policy, workforce development and equitable access to learning and she has served as lead editor of the Handbook of Research on STEM Education. Her STEM Road Map Curriculum Series, developed in partnership with the National Science Teaching Association, is now used in over 10,000 schools across the United States.

Cristina Lanzas, a professor of infectious disease and assistant department head of the Department of Population Health and Pathobiology. Lanzas earned a Ph.D. in animal sciences from Cornell University. Her research integrates mathematical modeling, data science and artificial intelligence to understand the transmission of antimicrobial-resistant and healthcare-associated pathogens, with applications for controlling resistant pathogens in food systems and clinical settings. Lanzas is a member of the NIH MIDAS network of research scientists tasked with responding to and assisting with infectious disease threats. She previously served on the Transatlantic Taskforce on Antimicrobial Resistance, a consortium spanning Canada, the European Union, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Carolyn Mattingly, a distinguished professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. Mattingly earned a Ph.D. in molecular toxicology from Tulane University. Mattingly founded and directs the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database, a publicly available resource established in 2001 that integrates curated data on chemicals, genes and diseases to advance environmental health research worldwide, accessed by over 2.5 million users in 2024. From 2019 to 2026, she directed NC State’s NIH-funded Center for Environmental and Health Effects of PFAS, an interdisciplinary program addressing drinking water contamination in North Carolina. She currently serves as director of the Career Development Core of the Center for Human Health and the Environment, an NIH-funded center supporting grant development and mentorship for over 70 environmental health faculty across NC State and partner institutions.

“The Research Leadership Academy was built on the premise that exceptional research and mentorship are inseparable — that the most impactful scholars are those who advance their fields while investing in the researchers around them,” said Cranos Williams, chair of the RLA. “This year’s recipients unequivocally demonstrate both. We are honored to welcome them as colleagues into the Research Leadership Academy.”

The Outstanding Research Award is given annually by the Office of Research and Innovation and the Alumni Association. The Research Leadership Academy, founded in 2016, is a faculty advisory group to the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation.