Distinguished Peter B. Dervan Lecture 2026

The University of Texas at Austin and the Welch Foundation invite you to a distinguished lecture by Professor Sir Cato T. Laurencin, MD, Ph.D., KCSL, University Professor at the University of Connecticut and the father and pioneer of regenerative engineering. Dr. Laurencin’s lecture, “Regenerative Engineering: Breakthroughs Across Science, Engineering and Medicine,” will discuss the pioneering advancements of regenerative engineering.

Seating for this event is on a first-come, first-served basis. No RSVP required.

About Professor Sir Cato T. Laurencin, MD, Ph.D., KCSL

Professor Sir Cato T. Laurencin is the Chief Executive Officer of the Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering at the University of Connecticut, a cross-university Institute created and named in his honor. He is the University Professor and Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at UConn. Sir Cato Laurencin is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Medicine, and the National Academy of Inventors. He is the founder and pioneer of the field of Regenerative Engineering.

Dr. Laurencin earned a B.S.E. in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University. He earned his M.D., Magna Cum Laude, from Harvard Medical School and received the Robinson Award for Surgery. He earned his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was named a Hugh Hampton Young Fellow.

Dr. Laurencin is the father and pioneer of the field of Regenerative Engineering. He is an expert in nanochemistry, biomaterials science, stem cell sciences, and biophysics and has worked in the Convergence of these areas of research. In receiving the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP, he was named as the world’s foremost engineer-physician-scientist.

A few of his awards and achievements include the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Math and Engineering Mentoring from President Barack Obama, the Beckman Award for Mentoring, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mentor Award. Dr. Laurencin is also the recipient of the Priestley Medal, the American Chemical Society’s highest honor, and the recipient of the Von Hippel Award, the Materials Research Society’s highest honor, for his work in Biomaterials and Regenerative Engineering. He is the recipient of the Founders Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Percy Julian Medal from the National Association of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers, both of which are their highest awards. The American Association for the Advancement of Science awarded Dr. Laurencin the Philip Hauge Abelson Prize, given ‘for signal contributions to the advancement of science in the United States.’ In recognition of his breakthrough achievements in Regenerative Engineering worldwide, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers created the Cato T. Laurencin Regenerative Engineering Founder’s Award.