Adam Biggs

Adam Biggs is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), where he teaches courses on the history of race, science, medicine, American history, and African American studies. He is also the faculty lead of the Racial Justice Lab at RPI, fostering interdisciplinary inquiry into systemic inequities.

His research focuses on the intersections of race, medicine, and civil rights in the early twentieth century, particularly examining how Black physicians leveraged professional medicine to advance racial justice. His forthcoming book, Strange Cures: Black Doctors, Harlem Hospital, and the New Negro in American Medicine, 1919-1935, investigates the desegregation of Harlem Hospital through the activism of Black doctors.

Before joining RPI, he held postdoctoral positions at the Scarlet and Black Research Center at Rutgers University and the Department of the History of Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He previously served on the faculty at the University of South Carolina Lancaster and Claflin University.

Dr. Biggs earned his Ph.D. from the American Studies program at Harvard University. His scholarly work contributes to broader conversations about racial politics in academic merit, medical professionalism, and historical memory.

Selected Research Focus:

• Race and Medicine
• Civil Rights History
• Black Professionalism in Medicine
• Science and Social Justice

Though no publications or awards are listed in the provided text, his ongoing book project and leadership of the Racial Justice Lab indicate active scholarly engagement. He mentors students through research initiatives and integrates critical thinking and historical reflection into his pedagogy.