UT BME Recognizes Academy of Distinguished Biomedical Engineers, Class of 2025 

Established in 2023, the Academy of Distinguished Biomedical Engineers honors alumni, faculty and friends of the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Cockrell School of Engineering. 

The 2025 class of inductees, including Jennifer Barton, Thomas Milner, Jennifer West and Kristy Wood, was celebrated with a banquet last fall.

Jennifer Barton

• Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 

• M.S., Electrical Engineering, University of California Irvine  

• B.S., Electrical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 

Jennifer Barton is the interim vice provost for health programs at the University of Arizona. In this role, she oversees the research and administrative functions within the university’s health sciences programs and its clinical partnership with Banner Health. She also has joint appointments as a professor in biosystems engineering, electrical and computer engineering, optical sciences and medical imaging at the institution. During her tenure at the university, she has served as the head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, the associate vice president for research and the interim vice president for research. Currently, Barton also serves as director of the BIO5 Institute, a collaborative research institute dedicated to solving complex biology-based problems affecting humanity.  

Barton’s research combines multiple optical imaging techniques, particularly optical coherence tomography and fluorescence spectroscopy, to develop miniature endoscopes. She evaluates the suitability of these endoscopic techniques for detecting early cancer development. She has a particular interest in the early detection of ovarian cancer, the deadliest gynecological malignancy. Throughout her career, she has published over 140 peer-reviewed journal articles. 

Barton is a UT alumna, having received a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from The University of Texas at Austin before attending the University of California, Irvine to obtain a master’s in electrical engineering. She went on to work for McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) on the space station program before returning to the Forty Acres to obtain her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering. 

Barton is a fellow and past president of SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, and is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. 

Thomas Milner

• Ph.D., Optical Sciences, The University of Arizona 
• M.S., Physics, Colorado School of Mines  
• B.S., Engineering Physics, Colorado School of Mines 

Thomas Milner is the Olga Keith Wiess Endowed Professor of Surgery at the Baylor College of Medicine and the director of the Michael E. DeBakey Center for nano-biophotonics. Prior to his appointment at Baylor, Milner was a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, and director and professor of surgery and biomedical engineering at the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic at the University of California, Irvine. 

Milner’s research and innovations are based in photonics, a field of study that uses light to investigate and manipulate biological materials. He is known for co-inventing the dynamic cooling device that is used on laser dermatological surgical instruments worldwide. He is also one of the early developers of optical coherence tomography, a diagnostic imaging technology used clinically in ophthalmology and cardiology. 

The former BME faculty member is the inventor of 55 issued U.S. patents and five international patents, all licensed to six companies. Royalties from these patents have returned over $100 million to University intellectual property owners and licensees. Throughout his career, he has also authored over 200 peer-reviewed articles and 19 book chapters. 

Milner is highly regarded for his contributions to the field. He is the recipient of the Coherent Young Investigator Award, numerous grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Inventor of the Year award at UT Austin. He is also a member of the National Academy of Inventors, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and the American Society for Lasers in Medicine and Surgery. 

Jennifer West

• Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 
• M.S., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 
• B.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology 

Jennifer West currently serves as dean of the University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science and is a professor in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. As dean, West has built upon the school’s research trajectory, increased undergraduate research and experiential learning opportunities and created a clearer pathway to entrepreneurship for faculty and students. Before joining UVA, West was the associate dean for Ph.D. education at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering.  

The UT BME alumna has a formidable record of accomplishments spanning 30 years as a highly respected engineering leader, a transformational researcher in biomaterials and nanomedicine, an award-winning teacher and a forward-looking inventor and entrepreneur. West’s research focuses on the use of biomaterials, nanotechnology and tissue engineering. She is renowned for applying engineering approaches to solve unmet medical needs, particularly in the fight against cancer.  

West is the author of more than 225 research publications, with her work cited over 60,000 times. In 2024, she published a ground-breaking study demonstrating the clinical success of a cancer therapy she invented. West holds 20 patents, licensed to 10 companies, including Nanospectra Biosciences Inc., which she co-founded. 

West is a member of the National Academies of Engineering, Medicine and Inventors, and in 2025, she received the prestigious Pierre Galletti Award from the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), recognizing her career-long commitment to advancing the field through transformative research, service and advocacy.  

Kristy Wood

• Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 
• M.S., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin 
• B.S., Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison

As Senior Vice President of Technical Operations at Intellia Therapeutics, Kristy Wood leads process development, analytical development and manufacturing operations across the company’s diverse therapeutic platforms, including gRNA, mRNA, lipid nanoparticles (LNP), AAV, cell therapy, and small- molecule technologies. Since joining Intellia in 2017, she has been instrumental in establishing the company’s LNP platform and advancing delivery technologies that enable therapeutic applications of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. 

Wood brings nearly two decades of specialized expertise in developing innovative drug delivery systems for nucleic acids and proteins. Her career in nucleic acid delivery began at Baxter Healthcare, where she cultivated her passion for this cutting-edge field. Throughout her career, she has successfully advanced projects delivering antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), siRNA and mRNA through various administration routes across multiple therapeutic areas. 

Her comprehensive technical experience spans the entire development pipeline, from small-scale formulation development and process scale-up to analytical characterization and technology transfer, enabling the transition of drug substance and drug product processes from research laboratories into clinical manufacturing facilities. Prior to Intellia, Wood specialized in manufacturing and delivering mRNA therapeutics using lipid nanoparticle delivery systems during her tenure at industry leaders Moderna, Pfizer and Shire. 

A recognized innovator in her field, Wood holds multiple U.S. patents in RNA and LNP technologies, reflecting her significant contributions to advancing these therapeutic modalities. 

Wood is a proud Texas Engineer, having earned her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin under the mentorship of Nicholas Peppas. Her strong academic foundation in biomedical engineering continues to inform her leadership in translating cutting-edge research into life-changing therapies.