Recognized as the international “ambassador for biomaterials,” Professor Emeritus Allan S. Hoffman joined the UW in 1970 and helped form the UW Center for Bioengineering, which later became the Department of Bioengineering in 1997. Dr. Hoffman pioneered applications of temperature and pH-responsive intelligent polymers and hydrogels in the fields of drug delivery, diagnostic assays and biologically active and non-fouling polymer surfaces. With fellow UW Bioengineering colleagues, Dr. Hoffman helped Bioengineering become recognized as an international center for biomaterials.
Dr. Hoffman was inventor or co-inventor on 273 patent applications, of which 113 were issued; several of these were licensed to industry. His creativity as a scientist led to contributions on smart polymers and hydrogels, controlled drug delivery, and separations and biomaterial surface modifications. He wrote the first scientific paper on polyNIPAM for biomedical uses and published over 500 scientific papers.
A beloved mentor, Dr. Hoffman advised many PhD students and postdocs over the years, while also teaching undergraduate courses. He had a passion for guiding and inspiring the next generation. He also sat on many scientific advisory boards over the years, including Genetic Systems and Alza.
Dr. Hoffman’s numerous international awards include the Clemson Award for Contributions to Biomaterials Literature (1984), the Founders Award of the Society For Biomaterials (2000), the Founders Award of the Controlled Release Society (2007), the Science Prize of the Japanese Biomaterials Society, the International Recognition Award of the Society for Polymer Science, Japan (2006) and the Acta Biomaterialia Gold Medal (2017). He was named one of the “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds” by Thompson Reuters in 2015 and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2005.
A memorial is scheduled for March 11 at 1:30 p.m. and will be held at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, 4303 Memorial Way NE, Seattle. The Hoffman family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Professor Allan S. Hoffman Endowed Scholarship, which provides assistance to Bioengineering undergraduate students. The family also invites people to contribute memories and photos to Dr. Hoffman’s Kudoboard.
A memorial service will be held in the New Year. The Hoffman family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Professor Allan S. Hoffman Endowed Scholarship, which provides assistance to Bioengineering undergraduate students.