Wake up to what's POSSIBLE.

Wake Forest is at the forefront of a character education movement across the country that stands to solve the leadership crisis facing the world. Through The Program for Leadership and Character, we develop methods to study teaching character and to serve as a model for other institutions developing their own character education programs.

Leadership, Character, Integrity

Powering the future of character education.

The Educating Character Initiative (ECI) at Wake Forest is expanding its nationwide network with $30M in new funding from the Lilly Endowment Inc. Since its founding in 2023, the ECI has already distributed $35M in grants to institutions for their own programs. This program will add $20M to fund and support another round of grants to even more institutions in 2026.

800+
organizations and higher education institutions engaged

600,000+
expected student impact by 2030

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Leadership, Character, Integrity

Wake Forest takes a whole-university approach to advancing environmental solutions that promote sustainability, planetary health, and resilience in the face of global change. Through our commitment to collaboration, we bring together expertise from all areas of study to build strong and reciprocal partnerships with communities, businesses, and organizations locally and around the world.

Environment and Sustainability

Fighting deforestation in the Amazon.

The Center for Amazonian Scientific Innovation (CINCIA) is leading the fight against illegal gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon. Guided by Sabin Center Presidential Chair of Conservation Biology, Miles Silman, nearly 400 students, trainees, and scientists from around the world have conducted field research to reverse the deforestation of over 370,000 acres. The results of this partnership with local officials is fueling solutions to a devastating environmental problem faced by over 40 developing countries.

10
years building scientific expertise and driving change on tropical frontiers in Peru through CINCIA

17
years of national leadership turning campus into a living lab for sustainability innovation

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Environment and Sustainability

We know that the brain sits at the center of humanity’s greatest challenges — from mental health and aging to addiction, artificial intelligence, and social fragmentation. This initiative tackles them all by connecting neuroscience across all disciplines to create a new kind of collaboration that drives more progress.

Neuroscience and Society

Accelerating research on the brain and human behavior.

How does our brain guide our behavior? Our decisions? Our experience of reality? These questions are driving the research being done by Kenneth Kishida, PhD. At his Neuroscience of Consciousness and Choice Lab, his pioneering work is investigating the underlying mechanisms that influence activities in the brain. And how they can be altered to treat patients with psychiatric and neurologic conditions.

70+
faculty members collaborating across disciplines

Over $5M
in NIH funding and one of nation’s first Neuroarts grants to study the effect of dance in neurodegenerative disease

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Neuroscience and Society

Wake Forest scholars and students collaborate to develop new technologies and build systems that are as ethical and inclusive as they are groundbreaking. From biomedical innovations that heal and the quantum properties of materials to algorithms that shape decision-making, our work ensures that technological progress serves humanity wisely, justly, and sustainably.

Emerging and Future Technologies

Driving next generation technology.

At the Wake Forest Organic and Flexible Electronics research lab, Dr. Oana Jurchescu and her students are changing the ways the world will interact with technology. Author of over 100 publications and funded by the National Science Foundation, she leads the testing and development of hybrid electronics in applications such as artificial skin, smart bandages, flexible displays, and wearable devices.

#14
in US News 2026 rankings of Engineering programs without doctorates

$200M
in funding to support 550+ people at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine

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Emerging and Future Technologies

Our approach combines cutting-edge research, interdisciplinary education, community engagement, and human compassion to drive real results. That’s why our students and faculty are prepared to lead with empathy and innovation as they find solutions to the health challenges we all face.

Health, Medicine and Humanity

Discovering new treatments for chronic diseases.

From connecting beet juice and heart health, to using far-red light to prevent blood clots, the work happening at Wake Forest makes a real impact in the lives of patients. Now, as part of a decades-long study, Translational Science Center Director Dany Kim-Shapiro and other researchers have shown how nitrous oxide can be stabilized for therapeutic uses. The work, funded by the National Institutes of Health and the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, represents the next significant step in treatments for heart attack and stroke victims, and those with diseases like diabetes.

500+
Clinical Trials currently available

$400M
in research funding for The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine

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Health, Medicine and Humanity