Biomedical engineering professor honored with Shaw Early Career Research Award to support innovative research
University of Wisconsin–Madison Assistant Professor Joshua Brockman from the Department of Biomedical Engineering has been awarded the 2026 Shaw Early Career Research Award. This award provides $200,000 over two years to support early career researchers in the fields of Biochemistry, Biological Sciences, and Cancer research.
The Shaw Early Career Research Award replaces the Shaw Scientist Program, which had been on hiatus for several years. Unlike its predecessor, the new award program is administered directly by UW-Madison, which has been delegated decision-making authority by Greater Milwaukee Foundation.
The award is open to full-time, tenure-track assistant professors within three years of their appointment, with each department allowed to nominate one candidate annually. The funding aims to support innovative and high-impact research at a critical stage in a scientist’s career.
The Brockman Lab merges chemistry, bioengineering and imaging approaches to address questions in cancer immunotherapy and cellular mechanobiology, an interdisciplinary field that explores the effects of mechanical forces on cell behavior, development and disease.
Brockman investigates how viscoelasticity—when a material behaves like both a solid and a liquid–affects cellular forces. Specifically, Brockman explores cellular receptors working at the piconewton scale (approximately one trillionth the force required to pick up an apple). These minute forces influence many biological processes, including coagulation, cell migration, cancer metastasis and T cell antigen recognition.
Brockman also is a trainer in the UW–Madison interdisciplinary Biophysics program, joined by trainers from 15 different Departments belonging to five different Colleges.
Brockman came to UW–Madison in 2023 after spending three years at Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering as a postdoctoral researcher. There, he gained experience working in the lab of Harvard Professor David Mooney, a UW–Madison chemical engineering alumnus and National Academy of Engineering member. Brockman completed his PhD research in the Salaita Lab at Georgia Tech and Emory University where his thesis focused on developing DNA nanotechnology approaches and fluorescence microscopy techniques capable of quantifying the forces cells utilize to interact with their surroundings. Brockman’s Bachelor of Science degree is from The Ohio State University.
In May 2025, Brockman was awarded a five year $1.86 million Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award from the National Institute of General Medical. Previous other awards for Brockman include the 2019 Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Excellence in Fundamental Research Award; 2018 National Cancer Institute/National Institute of Health, NCI Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow); and 2015 National Science Foundation, NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.
“Seed funding such as this is often the catalyst that brings interdisciplinary ideas to life,” explains Brockman. “This is especially critical in rapidly advancing fields like cancer immunotherapy and cellular mechanobiology—areas where breakthroughs depend on scientists working across traditional boundaries. These initial investments don’t just launch promising projects; they help cultivate the transformative discoveries that push science forward and improve human health. I am grateful to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation and the UW–Madison Department of Biomedical Engineering for their continuing support of interdisciplinary research.”