On July 20 Professor Cato T. Laurencin of the University of Connecticut was further recognized as the 106th Spingarn Medalist, the highest honor of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

The NAACP proudly presented  Laurencin at the Spingarn Award Dinner, which honored the 107th Spingarn Medalist, Democratic Majority Whip James E. Clyburn.

The Spingarn Medal is a gold medal awarded by the NAACP for the highest or noblest achievement by a living African American during the preceding year or years in any honorable field. Laurencin’s influential work and accomplishments in tissue regeneration, biomaterials science, nanotechnology, and regenerative engineering, a field he founded, have made him the foremost engineer-physician-scientist in the world. His breakthrough achievements have resulted in transformative advances in improving human life. His fundamental contributions to materials science and engineering include the introduction of nanotechnology into the biomaterials field for regeneration.

Laurencin serves as the University Professor and Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Connecticut. He is the first surgeon elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine. He received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in ceremonies at the White House. ​