Toussaint named to AIMBE 2021 Class of Fellows

Brown engineering professor Kimani Toussaint has been elected to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows. Representing a select group of the top two percent of medical and biological engineering professionals, the College of Fellows is comprised of outstanding bioengineers in academia, industry and government.

The 174 inductees, who were nominated by their peers, were screened by committees of Fellows within their specialty and were finally elected by the full College as the official Class of 2021. A formal induction ceremony will be held during AIMBE’s Annual Event, this one to be held virtually on Friday, March 26, 2021.

Toussaint was elected for his outstanding contributions to biomedical engineering using both novel photonic materials and optical imaging systems.

Recently named to the board of reviewing editors for Science, Toussaint joined Brown University in 2019. He directs the laboratory for Photonics Research of Bio/nano Environments (PROBE Lab), an interdisciplinary research group which focuses on both developing nonlinear optical imaging techniques for quantitative assessment of biological tissues, and novel methods for harnessing plasmonic nanostructures for light-driven control of matter. His research has been supported by a diverse array of federal and private funding sources including the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Energy, the National Academies Keck Futures Initiative, and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.

During his 12 years on the faculty at the University of Illinois, Toussaint was a recipient of a 2010 NSF CAREER Award, the 2014-2015 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Visiting Associate Professor at MIT, the 2015 Illinois Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research, the 2017 Illinois Everitt Award for Teaching Excellence, and the 2019 Campus Distinguished Promotion Award. He is also a Fellow of both the Optical Society of America and the SPIE (the International Society for Optics and Photonics), and holds senior member status in the Institute of Electric and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

He was named Brown’s School of Engineering Senior Associate Dean in August of 2020, and works closely with the dean on all matters related to promoting the School of Engineering and its academic mission.

Toussaint becomes the sixth AIMBE Fellow from Brown University, joining Professor Edith Mathiowitz (2002: For pioneering work in the area of microencapsulation), Professor John P. Donoghue (2006: For significant contributions to the field of neuroscience, and for developing a neuroprosthetic device for patients with spinal cord injury), Professor Vicki L. Colvin (2012: For contributions for understanding the biocombatability and toxicology of nanomaterials and their effect on the environment), Professor Anubhav Tripathi (2016: for advancing understanding biochemical and biomolecular processes in microchip environments), and Professor Jeffrey R. Morgan (2016: For outstanding contributions to genetic engineering, tissue engineering, 3D cell culture and biomedical engineering education at Brown University).

AIMBE is a non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., representing the most accomplished individuals in the fields of medical and biological engineering. Its mission is to provide leadership and advocacy in medical and biological engineering for the benefit of society. In addition to representing the most accomplished in the top 2% percent of medical and biological engineers, AIMBE represents academic institutions, private industry, and professional engineering societies.

The College of Fellows is comprised of more than 2,000 bioengineering leaders who have distinguished themselves through their contributions in research, industrial practice and/or education. Since 1991, this group has led the way for technological growth and advancement in the fields of medical and biological engineering. Fellows have helped revolutionize medicine and related fields to enhance and extend the lives of people all over the world. They have also successfully advocated for public policies that have enabled researchers and business-makers to further the interests of engineers, teachers, scientists, clinical practitioners, and ultimately, patients.