Rate My Professor Lisa Friis

Friis's research interests include structural biomaterials, spine biomechanics, design and testing of medical devices, mechanical testing of materials and structures, medical implant design, and the use of piezoelectric materials in implants to stimulate biological tissue healing. Key publications comprise 'Negative Poisson's ratio polymeric and metallic foams' (1988, Journal of Materials Science), 'Primer of Biomechanics' (1999), and 'Mechanical testing of hydrogels in cartilage tissue engineering: beyond the compressive modulus' (2013, Tissue Engineering Part B: Reviews). She holds multiple U.S. patents covering spinal biomechanics, medical implant design, and piezoelectric regenerative devices. Her impact is evidenced by awards such as Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (2019), Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors (2026), KU Outstanding Woman Educator Award (2007), Kemper Fellowship (2006), and Kauffman Entrepreneurial Faculty Scholar (2004). Friis co-directs the Product Design and Development track in the KU Bioengineering Graduate Program since 2007, serves on the Editorial Board of The Journal of Biomedical Materials Research – Part A since 2007, directed the Graduate Fellowship Program for the Institute for Advancing Medical Innovation from 2009 to 2011, and acts as Faculty Lead for the KU site of the Great Plains Hub NSF I-Corps program.