Dr. André L. Churchwell, a renowned cardiologist and health care leader who serves as senior advisor on inclusion and community outreach in the Office of the Chancellor, has received the 2025 Professional Impact Award for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion from the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE).
AIMBE acknowledged Churchwell for his national leadership in advancing diversity and inclusion in biomedical sciences, for championing underrepresented minorities in medical and engineering education, and for transforming institutional culture to one of belonging. The Professional Impact Award recognizes an AIMBE Fellow who has made significant contributions to improving the professional environment of the medical and biological engineering fields.
Churchwell was presented the award March 30 at a banquet during AIMBE’s 2025 Annual Meeting in Arlington, Virginia.
Churchwell holds the Levi Watkins Jr., M.D., Chair and is a professor of medicine, biomedical engineering, and radiology and radiological sciences. He also serves on the Medical Center’s clinical staff, caring for patients of the Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute, as well as his roles on numerous boards and committees both on the Vanderbilt campus and across the nation.
Churchwell’s career has been dedicated to advancing equity and diversity in medicine and academia. In addition to his work on behalf of the university, he served in various roles to increase VUMC’s diversity and inclusion for more than 12 years and served as VUMC’s first chief diversity officer from 2015 to 2021. In 2019, he also was named interim vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion and chief diversity officer for Vanderbilt University. He joined the Office of the Chancellor in 2023 as a senior advisor.
Churchwell graduated magna cum laude from Vanderbilt University with a bachelor of science in biomedical engineering in 1975. He then earned his doctor of medicine from Harvard Medical School and completed his internship, residency and cardiology fellowship at Emory University. In 1984, he became the first African American chief resident of medicine at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta.
After completing his training, he joined the faculty at Emory, where he served as the first director of diversity for the medical school from 1985 to 1991, the year he joined Vanderbilt University. Churchwell was part of the team of Emory Medical School faculty and Georgia Tech (biomedical engineering), who in 1985, developed the Emory-Georgia Tech Biomedical Engineering Program, a world-class research and education program.
In 2016 he was named an AIMBE Fellow for his work in biomedical engineering education, and in 2017 he received the Vanderbilt University Pioneer in Diversity Award. Churchwell was recognized by Modern Healthcare as among the top 25 diversity leaders for 2022.
Churchwell has been widely recognized throughout his career for his leadership and contributions to advancing inclusion in the medical field. In 2005, he was named the Walter R. Murray Jr. Distinguished Alumnus by the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni, and in 2010 he was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award by Vanderbilt University School of Engineering.