Engineering Mindset and Agency

Dr. Christine M. Cunningham is a Professor of Practice in Education and Engineering at the Pennsylvania State University. She aims to make engineering, science, and computational thinking education more equitable, especially for populations that are underserved and underrepresented in STEM. Christine is the founding director of Youth Engineering Solutions (YES), which develops equity-oriented, research-based, and field-tested curricula and professional learning resources for preK-8 youth and their educators. Her research focuses on articulating frameworks for precollege engineering education. Previously, Christine was a vice president at the Museum of Science where she founded Engineering is Elementary (EiE). Christine currently serves on the National Assessment Governing Board and as Chair of the National Academy of Engineering’s Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable Engineering, for All (IDEEA) Committee. She is a fellow of the American Society for Engineering Education and has received numerous awards including the American Society of Engineering Education K-12 and Pre-College Division Lifetime Achievement Award, the IEEE Pre-University Educator Award, the International Society for Design and Development in Education Prize, and the Harold W. McGraw Jr. Prize in Education. Christine holds joint B.A. and M.A. degrees in biology from Yale University and a Ph.D. in education from Cornell University.