On December 8th The American Society for Cell Biology’s Minorities Affairs Committee presented the 2019 E.E. Just Award to Dr. Cato T. Laurencin. In addition to receiving the award, Dr. Laurencin provided the E.E. Just Lecture on “Regenerative Engineering of Complex Musculoskeletal Tissues.” The honor was presented in Washington DC during the 2019 joint meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) and European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO).
The Minorities Affairs Committee (MAC) was formed to memorialize the early 20th-century biologist E.E. Just, and recognizes outstanding scientific achievement by an underrepresented minority scientist.
Sandra Murray, cell biology professor at the University of Pittsburgh, describes Laurencin as “an outstanding speaker, a spectacular scientist who is well funded, recognized nationally and internationally, has trained [a] number of individuals, and is recognized by the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Engineering.” She added that “[Laurencin] has started programs to increase the diversity of the future workforce and, based on his many quotes, has given time to ponder where science is and should be going.”
Dr. Laurencin holds the title of University Professor, which is the highest academic honor bestowed at UConn and is also the Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the school.