On behalf of the entire UA Health Sciences, I would like to express congratulations to our esteemed colleague Marvin Slepian, MD, for his much-deserved appointment as a Regents’ Professor, a title awarded to full professors who have the most distinguished accomplishments in teaching, scholarship, research or creative work.
A professor of medicine, cardiology and medical imaging, Dr. Slepian was appointed April 11 by the Arizona Board of Regents. These prestigious appointments are limited to no more than 3 percent of the university’s tenured and tenure-track faculty members and only four other UA professors received this title for 2019.
A true Renaissance man, Dr. Slepian is a noted cardiologist, inventor, entrepreneur, innovator and educator. Indeed, to ensure our university fully promotes the spirit of innovation, collaboration and entrepreneurship, he founded and directs the Arizona Center for Accelerated Biomedical Innovation (ACABI), a university-wide “creativity engine,” or “inventor’s workshop,” that helps faculty members and students identify unmet needs and address them, developing and amplifying ideas into practical solutions that can be translated into innovations and products to improve life and health.
Dr. Slepian also is associate head of the UA Department of Biomedical Engineering, professor of materials science and engineering and a member of the UA Sarver Heart Center and the UA BIO5 Institute. His groundbreaking work in medicine, engineering and business has resulted in many breakthroughs that have had dramatic impact in saving and improving people’s lives. For example, his translational work has resulted in novel therapeutic solutions, including stent coatings, polymer paving, synthetic tissue and cardiovascular prosthetic devices, including the total artificial heart, to name a few.
Regarded as a spectacular teacher and mentor, Dr. Slepian is a McGuire Scholar in the Eller College of Management who teaches a popular course on innovation aimed at fostering critical thinking, invention and creativity, involving students from disciplines across campus.
All of us at the UA Health Sciences are so pleased that Dr. Slepian’s long record of outstanding accomplishments has been recognized with this noteworthy title. We know he will have many remarkable milestones in the days and years ahead and look forward with great anticipation to our continued successful collaboration.
Michael D. Dake, MD
Senior Vice President, UA Health Sciences