Karin Jensen, Ph.D. is a Teaching Assistant Professor in bioengineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  Her research interests include student mental health and wellness, engineering student career pathways, and engagement of engineering faculty in engineering education research. She was awarded a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation for her research on undergraduate mental health in engineering programs. Before joining UIUC she completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Sanofi Oncology in Cambridge, MA.  She earned a bachelor’s degree in biological engineering from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the University of Virginia.

Andrew Danowitz is an Associate Professor of Computer and Electrical Engineering at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. He is passionate about engineering education and particularly about mental health and wellness of students. His interests also include student motivation and improving inclusivity and accessibility in the classroom.

Sarah Wilson is a lecturer in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Kentucky. She completed her bachelor’s degree at Rowan University in New Jersey before attending graduate school for her PhD at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, MA. Her research interests include engineering communication, process safety and undergraduate student mental health. Recently, she was awarded an NSF RIEF grant to student mental health related help-seeking in undergraduate engineering students. She is completing this project in collaboration with faculty members from educational and counseling psychology. With this work, they aim to better understand the help-seeking beliefs of undergraduate engineering students and develop interventions to improve mental health related help-seeking.

Melanie Miller, M.S. (she/her/hers) is currently a PhD student in Counseling Psychology. She is currently a doctoral practicum counselor at the University of Kentucky as well as an Student Success Coach. In all areas of her work as a researcher, clinician, teacher, and advocate she specialized in access to satisfactory education, employment, and mental health treatment for underserved groups. She can be reached at melmiller931@uky.edu or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniemiller931/

Courtney is in her first-year as a Counseling Psychology PhD student at the University of Kentucky, after completing both her BA and MA at Boston College. Courtney is now a member of the RISE^2 Research Team and advised by Dr. Candice Hargons. Broadly, her research interests include: the intersections of race, culture, gender, and their impact on health; mental health seeking behaviors in marginalized communities; and trauma, healing, & resilience among Black people. Courtney is currently completing practicum at the University of Kentucky Counseling Center. She is also the research assistant for the NSF funded Research Initiation in Engineering Formation team.