Cato T. Laurencin, the Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, professor of chemical engineering, materials sciences, and biomedical engineering, and one of only two University Professors at the University of Connecticut, was selected as the recipient of the 2020 Herbert W. Nickens Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges.
The award is bestowed on an individual who has made monumental contributions to promoting justice in medical education and health care equity throughout the nation. Dr. Laurencin will receive the prestigious award in November during the virtual AAMC annual meeting, where he will give a presentation entitled “Black Lives Matter in Science, Engineering, and Medicine.”
Dr. Laurencin is the former dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Connecticut. In 2016, he was awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. Today, he also serves as a core faculty member of the Africana Studies Institute at the university. Dr. Laurencin is the founding editor-in-chief of the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.
Dr. Laurencin is a graduate of Princeton University, where he majored in chemical engineering. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Medical School and holds a Ph.D. in biochemical engineering and biotechnology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
