Carle Illinois College of Medicine (CI MED) Dean Mark Cohen has been inducted into the prestigious American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows in recognition of his pioneering work at the intersection of engineering, medicine, and technology.
Cohen’s nomination and election honor his contributions to advancements in medical and biomedical engineering education, advocacy, and research, including his educational efforts leading the world’s first engineering-based medical school and his research in drug development, nanoparticle drug delivery, tissue engineering, and the application of extended reality (XR) technologies to medical education and clinical care delivery.
“My research and my educational efforts across my whole career have all aligned at the intersection of engineering, technology, and medicine. It is a true honor for these efforts to be recognized by my peers and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering,” said Cohen.
Cohen’s research spans several areas including novel approaches to tissue engineering to create functional organs from fat stem cells, creation of a novel class of anticancer drug compounds that target chaperone proteins, nanoparticle drug-delivery systems for cancer and bone regeneration, and use of mixed reality and artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) technologies to improve telemedicine, clinical care delivery, and health care workforce training and education.
Cohen is one of 175 AIMBE Fellows inducted in 2026, joining a distinguished cohort that includes three additional CI MED faculty members [See the accompanying article here]. Election to the AIMBE College of Fellows is one of the highest professional distinctions accorded to medical and biological engineers, comprised of the top two percent of engineers in these fields.
Beyond the recognition for his individual achievements, Cohen says this honor reflects CI MED’s growing influence and impact at the forefront of advances in the converging fields of biomedical engineering and medicine.
“The future of health care and medicine is happening at the intersection of engineering, technology, and medicine, and this is part of the core mission of the Carle Illinois College of Medicine. Being honored with this recognition of becoming a fellow of the AIMBE is an opportunity for me to continue to advance CI MED’s mission to the world, bringing together leaders in engineering, medicine, and policy to help shape that future and improve healthcare around the country and around the world,” remarked Cohen.
A formal induction ceremony was held during the AIMBE Annual Event in Arlington, Virginia, on April 13, 2026.
Mark Cohen, MD, FACS, FSSO, MAMSE, joined Carle Illinois College of Medicine – the world’s first engineering-based medical school – as its dean in 2022, just prior to CI MED graduating its inaugural class of Physician Innovators. He serves as a professor in CI MED’s Departments of Oncology and Biomedical and Translational Sciences. He is also a Founder Professor in The Grainger College of Engineering in the Department of Bioengineering, as well as a professor in the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, all at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.