Vilcek Foundation

Foreign minds, fenceless imagination: The 2013 Vilcek Foundation Prizes

Every year, the White House announces the winners of the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. Awarded during a special ceremony by the president, these medals represent the highest honors bestowed by the United States government on scientists and engineers. In his address during the White House awards ceremony in the fall of 2011, President Obama noted that nine of the 12 honorees were born outside of the U.S.. The winners came to the U.S., he said, because “America is the best place in the world to do the work they do.”

A $100,000 Prize for Yo-Yo Ma

Yo-Yo Ma, the popular and successful cellist who has already received several major cash awards, has won another: the $100,000 Vilcek Prize, given by the Vilcek Foundation.

Two Yale Researchers Who Study The Immune System Share Vilcek Prize

The Vilcek Foundation is a New York City-based non-profit organization devoted to raising public awareness of the contributions of immigrants to the sciences, arts, and culture in the United States. Richard A. Flavell, chair and Sterling Professor of Immunobiology, and Ruslan M. Medzhitov, the David A. Wallace Professor of Immunobiology, were honored by the foundation for their long-standing and influential work on the innate immune system, the first line of defense against infection by bacteria and viruses.

Barack Obama, Jan Vilcek

President Barack Obama congratulates Dr. Jan Vilcek, New York University Langone Medical Center, after he awarded him the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, Friday, Feb. 1, 2013, in the East Room of the White House in Washington.

Vilcek Prize Winners Cited by the Carnegie Corporation of New York

We are proud to announce that three of our 2012 prizewinners were among those cited by the Carnegie Corporation of New York in its annual full-page public service advertisement, “Immigrants: The Pride of America.” This PSA, which appears each year on the Fourth of July in the New York Times salutes the contributions of foreign-born Americans to the United States.

CNN Interviews Carlos Bustamante, PhD

Recognition of Peruvian science - Carlos Bustamante, is honored for his research on the functioning of cells.

Gems from Distant Shores: The 2012 Vilcek Foundation Prizes

Six years ago, The FASEB Journal reported the inauguration of an annual prize to recognize the contributions of foreign-born scientists to the biomedical research enterprise in America. The report described the new prize, sponsored by the Vilcek Foundation, as a fitting tribute to foreign-born scientists working in the United States. As a testament to those contributions, the authors pointed out that at least one in three Nobel Prize winners in Physiology or Medicine who were active in the United States since the launch of the prize hailed from outside the country.

New York Time's Evening Hours

Foundation Honors Baryshnikov

When Jan and Marica Vilcek established their foundation a dozen years ago, they set out with the singular mission to celebrate the achievements of immigrants.

Dance Awards for Baryshnikov and Forsythe

Mikhail Baryshnikov has been awarded the Vilcek Prize for the Arts. The award, which honors the contributions of foreign-born artists and scientists in the United States and is given by the the Vilcek Foundation, includes a cash prize of $100,000.

New York Times: "Springtime Arts" by Bill Cunningham

Philanthropy 50: Jan T. and Marica F. Vilcek

Dr. Vilcek is a professor of microbiology at New York University School of Medicine and co-developed Remicade, an anti-inflammatory drug. Ms. Vilcek is a former associate curator and head of the accessions and catalog department at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York.

New York State of Mind

From May 20 through to June 5, 2010, New York City became the home of ‘The Vilcek Foundation Celebrates Lost: A showcase of the International Artists and Filmmakers of ABC’s Hit Show.’

A Man of Many Gifts

Jan T. Vilcek, Md, PhD, professor of microbiology, and his wife, Marica, recently pledged $21 million to NYU Langone Medical Center that will help purchase and renovate residence hall space on East 26th Street for students at NYU School of Medicine, create a merit-based full-tuition scholarship fund for medical students, and expand the couple’s fellowship fund for students in the Department of Microbiology.

Teacher Funds School's Dorms

Jan Vilcek wants to repay New York University's Langone Medical Center for taking a chance on him. The microbiology professor will on Wednesday announce a $21 million gift to the medical school to purchase and renovate a student dormitory.

2010 Hawaii International Film Festival Partners with The Vilcek Foundation to Present American Immigrant Filmmakers on Profile

Celebrity Chef Jose Andres Picks on Palin for Writing on Palm

March 10, 2010 - It seems the celebrity chefs are taking a cue from the country's comedians.

Inspired by Immigrant Success Stories

March 10, 2010 - I spent an inspiring evening at the residence of the Ambassador of Spain last night, where the New York City-based Vilcek Foundation held a reception to honor Washington celebrity chef Jose Andres, a 2010 recipient of the organization's fifth annual immigrant achievement awards.

Tom Sietsema's Dish

March 10, 2010 - José Andrés remembers driving to work and being somewhat distracted when he got the official call informing him of his most recent award: the 2010 grand prize from the Vilcek Foundation, which annually honors the contributions of foreign-born Americans in the areas of art, culture and science.

José Andrés Wins Culinary Arts Prize

March 9, 2010 - Just when you thought that José Andrés had won every culinary award out there – the James Beard Best Mid-Atlantic chef, Bon Appetit Chef of the Year, Food & Wine's 35 under 35 – here comes another one.

José Andrés: Vilcek Foundation Prize

March 9, 2010 - If a tally of prizes and honors is worth the same in the culinary world as it is in the film world, then Jose Andres is having a terrific year.

Caltech Professor Earns Vilcek Prize for Research

March 4, 2010 - Alexander Varshavsky, Caltech's Howard and Gwen Laurie Smits Professor of Cell Biology, has been named a recipient of the 2010 Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science, Caltech officials announced Wednesday.

José Andrés Talks Awards, Italy's Backwards Politics, and New Restaurants

March 4, 2010 - José Andrés, the now-stateside Ferran Adria protégé has been linked to the small-plates craze, molecular gastronomy, and is often considered Spain's culinary ambassador. This week, New York's Vilcek Foundation announced that judges Ruth Reichl, Dan Barber, Dana Cowin, and James Beard's Susan Ungaro picked Andrés (out of a no-contest lineup of immigrant chefs) to receive the group's annual award and $50,000. It honors foreign-born individuals who make great contributions in the arts. We caught up with Andrés, and he told us how his next decade in America will be more deserving through political activism, why Italy is jealous of Spain, and the status on a New York venture.

Michelin Stars and Other Honors

March 4, 2010 - L’Auberge du Vieux Puits in Corbières in the southwest of France has joined the ranks of restaurants with three stars in the latest Michelin red guide to France, which was published this week.

Eyes on the Prize - A Big One

Not feeling much love these days at your restaurant job? We’ve got a prestigious and lucrative option for you—provided you’re 38 or younger, were born outside the U.S. but are now a naturalized citizen or green card holder, and have worked in foodservice for at least five years. Apply for the 2010 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in the Culinary Arts, which will award $25,000 to a foreign-born chef, artisan or innovator who “demonstrates outstanding early achievement.” It’s kind of a vague standard, but so what: even the four runners-up get $5,000 apiece. What have you got to lose?

RSRT Advisor, Huda Zoghbi, Receives 2009 Vilcek Prize for Biomedical Science

The trustees, staff and volunteers of RSRT congratulate Dr. Huda Zoghbi on receiving the 2009 Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science. The Vilcek Foundation was established in 2000 by Czechoslovakian immigrants Jan and Marica Vilcek to raise public awareness of the contributions of immigrants to the sciences, arts and culture in the United States. Dr. Zoghbi, a world renowned physician-scientist, was selected for this honor for her seminal contributions to neuroscience and genetics, including her discovery, a decade ago, that mutations in MECP2 cause Rett Syndrome.

Composer Osvaldo Golijov Sets Sights on Brazil's Sultry Beat

April 3 (Bloomberg) -- Argentine-born composer Osvaldo Golijov, who crosses musical boundaries with inspired abandon, plans to use the $50,000 prize money he won from the Vilcek Foundation to venture into new rhythmic waters -- the sexy, sultry beats of Brazil.

Dr. Inder Verma Chosen for Cozzarelli and Vilcek prize

New York: Eminent Indian-American scientist Dr. Inder Verma has been selected for two prestigious awards in biomedical science: Vilcek Prize and Cozzarelli Prize.

Golijov Awarded Special Prize

NEW YORK -- Osvaldo Golijov is the first musician to receive the Vilcek Foundation Prize, a relatively new award for foreign-born artists and biomedical researchers who have made "extraordinary contributions to society in the United States." He receives his award at a ceremony in New York on March 26, along with Dr. Inder Verma, the 2008 recipient for biomedical research.

Vilcek Foundation Honors Innovation by Immigrants

February 5, 2008 (The New York Sun) - A geneticist from India studying cancer prevention and a Grammy awardwinning Argentinean Jew have won this year's Vilcek Prizes for arts and science innovation, the Vilcek Foundation announced yesterday.

A Prize for the Foreign-born

The FASEB Journal - HOW GOLDEN WOULD AMERICAN SCIENCE BE WITHOUT OUR FOREIGN-BORN SCIENTISTS?

Creative Review

Couples Philanthropy Honors the Achievements of Immigrants

NEW YORK - Jan T. Vilcek and his wife, Marica, fled Communist Czechoslovakia in 1964 with two suitcases and the names of a few professional contacts in the United States. Now Dr. Vilcek, a New York University medical professor and co-inventor of the antiinflammatory drug Remicade, and Ms. Vilcek, an art historian, have started an operating foundation to recognize the contributions of immigrants to America.

Professor Gives $105-Million Thank-You

Doctor Writes Rx For $105 Million

The Wall Street Journal - A doctor who helped invent a successful anti-inflammatory drug has donated an estimated $105 million to the New York University School of Medicine -- one of the largest gifts ever made to a U.S. university.

Research Scientist Gives $105 Million to N.Y.U.

The New York Times - A scientist who hid from the Nazis as a child, escaped a Communist regime, did pioneering medical research and made a fortune on a blockbuster drug will give $105 million to the New York University School of Medicine, his professional home for four decades, university officials said yesterday.