Guigen Zhang, professor and associate chair of Department of Bioengineering at Clemson University, has joined the University of Kentucky College of Engineering as the inaugural F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Chair in Biomedical Engineering, and the Department Chair of the F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME). He began his duties August 1. The endowed chair is part of a $7 million commitment from alumnus Joe Halcomb and his wife, Joani, announced in April 2016.
Zhang is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and a national leader. He currently serves as the executive editor of Biomaterials Forum, and the president of the Institute of Biological Engineering. Zhang pursues research to advance biomedical engineering and innovation through utilization of integrated investigative approaches based on coupled experimentation and computation. He has published extensively in the areas of biomechanics, biomaterials and biosensors. Over the years, his research has been funded by diverse funding sources ranging from federal agencies such as National Institutes for Health and National Science Foundation, to private foundations like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to venture groups and major industry. Zhang holds numerous patents and has published three books, the latest of which is a textbook on “Introduction to Integrative Engineering” just published by the CRC Press.