Guigen Zhang, Chair of the F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) and Halcomb Endowed Chair, has been elected president of the Society for Biomaterials for the 2021-2022 term. The election results were announced at the 2020 Society for Biomaterials Business Meeting held virtually on July 15.
The Society for Biomaterials, known as the SFB to its members, is a multidisciplinary organization comprising academic, health care, governmental and business professionals dedicated to promoting advancements in all aspects of biomaterial science, education and professional standards to enhance human health and quality of life. Established in 1974, it is the oldest scientific organization in the field of biomaterials.
Zhang joined the University of Kentucky in 2017. He previously served as associate chair of the Department of Bioengineering at Clemson University, director of the Institute for Biological Interfaces of Engineering, and director of the Call-Me-Doctor URM Doctoral Fellowship program.
Zhang has served the SFB in many leadership roles, including as editor-in-chief of the Biomaterials Forum, SFB Council, chair of the Surface Characterization and Modification SIG and many committees. This will be the second time for Zhang to serve as president of a national society; he was president of the Institute of Biological Engineering for the 2017-2018 term.
Zhang's term as SFB president will begin at the 2021 SFB Annual Meeting in Chicago next April.