Jalil Hemphill Receives the Fletcher Prize for Rising Undergraduate Research Star

The HEART-GeN Lab is proud to congratulate Jalil Hemphill on being selected as the recipient of the Fletcher Prize for Rising Undergraduate Research Star.

The Fletcher Prize honors undergraduate researchers in the Undergraduate Research Assistant Program (URAP) who have shown significant growth as researchers, made meaningful contributions to faculty-mentored research, and demonstrated strong potential to apply their research skills toward future goals.

Jalil was nominated by his faculty mentor, Dr. Kynon J. M. Benjamin, and selected by the URAP Committee, which includes faculty from across the University. The committee reviewed nominations based on the skills and methods students developed during the program, their contributions to faculty research projects, and their promise as emerging scholars.

In his nomination, Dr. Benjamin highlighted Jalil’s intellectual rigor, quantitative aptitude, organization, responsiveness to feedback, and ability to troubleshoot challenges systematically. These qualities have made Jalil an important contributor to the HEART-GeN Lab and reflect the kind of careful, thoughtful, and collaborative science we strive to support.

This recognition is a significant accomplishment and speaks to Jalil’s hard work, creativity, and dedication to undergraduate research.

We are excited to celebrate Jalil’s achievement and look forward to seeing how he continues to grow as a researcher.

Congratulations, Jalil!