This was made known in a statement titled, “Wolfson elects
Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu as the College’s 7th President on the University’s
website.
Uchegbu, who will succeed the current President, Professor
Jane Clarke, on October 1, 2024, is known for her ground-breaking work in
nanoparticle drug delivery.
The Nigerian professor currently lectures at University
College London.
The statement read, “We are delighted to announce that
Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu, a ground-breaking nanoscientist, has been elected as
Wolfson’s seventh President.
“Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu, a Professor of Pharmaceutical
Nanoscience known for her ground-breaking work in nanoparticle drug delivery,
will become the 7th President of Wolfson. She will succeed the current
President, Professor Jane Clarke, on 1 October 2024.
“Professor Uchegbu is currently a Professor of
Pharmaceutical Nanoscience at University College London. Her pioneering work on
the mechanisms of drug transport has led to the development of new treatments
which promise to transform pain relief, including the enkephalin pain medicine
candidate (EnveltaÔ), designed to address the opioid crisis.
“Her work has won her numerous awards, fellowships and
accolades, and she holds positions on several academic boards and councils
including the Wellcome Trust, the Academy of Medical Sciences and is an
honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
“She has also played a leading role during her time at UCL
as Pro Vice Provost for Africa and the Middle East, in forging new research
partnerships in those regions and as UCL’s Provost’s Envoy for Race Equality,
steering the organisation’s race equality agenda.
Responding, Uchegbu said, “I am so thrilled to be joining
Wolfson College, an ambitious and forward-thinking College.
“It will be an honour to lead such a lively, diverse and
engaged student community in an environment where people are stimulated
culturally, socially and intellectually. I look forward to working with the
Governing Body, staff and students to help realise their ambitions and
potential.”
Meanwhile, the current President, Professor Clarke, said, “I
congratulate Ijeoma for being elected President of Wolfson College. If she finds being the leader of the
‘Wolfpack’ half as rewarding as I have, then I can assure her that she will
enjoy herself immensely.”
Uchegbu was raised in South East Nigeria and Hackney. She
completed her pharmacy studies at the University of Benin in 1981 before
attending the University of Lagos to obtain her master’s degree.
After returning to the UK, she studied postgraduate work at
the University of London, earning a PhD in 1997. Alexander (Sandy) Florence,
the Dean of the School of Pharmacy, supervised her dissertation. From 2002 to
2004, she worked as a lecturer at the University of Strathclyde.