Meet the Team

Matthew studied Programming Language Design and CS Education for his PhD work at Tufts University (August 2022). His focus was on the design and implementation of CS course curricula to support self-efficacy and self regulated learning by providing learning environments and tools to explore the computational thinking needed to make software that resembles the technology learners use on a regular basis. Matthew primarily studied pre-university, first-time programming experiences where learners made smart appliances (IoT), web videogames, computer music performances, and wearable ...

I am an applied mathematician working in the fields of small-scale fluid mechanics and microfluidics. My research includes both mathematical modeling and physical experiments. In particular, I am interested in particle and solute transport in small-scale systems, such as municipal water filtration facilities. I am the PI of the FMNTS Lab - Small-scale Fluid Mechanics and Transport Lab hosted at LEAP. I enjoy teaching courses fundamental to applied mathematics and modeling, and I look forward to mentoring students on projects both in and outside the lab. I am very active in ...

Debra Boucher is Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Studies at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Prior to coming to WPI, her work positioned her work at the intersection of enrollment management, student success, and academic affairs. At WPI Debra oversees the summer session offerings and works to leverage summer activities to support strategic initiatives. She works to build systemic supports for vulnerable students, smooth the pathway for transfer students, and build collaborative systems of support for all students. In her spare time, Debra enjoys baking bread, spending time with family, ...

Dr. Crystal Brown earned her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Oregon in Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Public Administration. She also has a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Pennsylvania State University and a certificate in Data Analytics from Harvard University.She is an internationally focused scholar who examines the inclusivity of marginalized groups such as immigrants, people of color, Black people, women, and others. As a computational social scientist, she uses mixed methods, combining statistical approaches with qualitative techniques to ...

Kathy Chen joined The STEM Education Center at WPI after 15+ years as a professor in Materials Engineering at California Polytechnic (Cal Poly) State University, San Luis Obispo where she served as Department Chair and lead many K-12 and community STEM outreach activities. In her current role to support PreK-12 STEM educators, she works to broaden the participation of students in STEM (especially those from underrepresented and excluded groups) by advancing equity in education through holistic and innovative approaches. She also currently leads the Central MA STEM Network.At Cal Poly, she ...

Information visualization is a powerful means for understanding data and informing human minds. As people begin to rely on visualizations to make high-impact and even life-critical decisions, there is a growing need to ensure that information can be perceived accurately and precisely. My research addresses these challenges by leveraging cognitive and perceptual principles to quantify and model user performance with visualizations. Results from these projects have led to visualization design guidelines in domains such as cyber security and health-risk communication, as well as a better ...

I am a data mining researcher who investigates how to develop and leverage ground-breaking techniques to explore time series datasets at the confluence of theoretical computer science and application domains like medicine, neuroscience, economics, transportation, and complex decision making. With more than fifteen years of teaching experience in various academic institutions, I am committed to using my love and talent for teaching and research to empower others through education to make a difference in the world . I am one of the WPI faculty included in the inaugural cohort of WPI’s new ...

 My research is in human-computer interaction and human-AI interaction. One focus of my research is on next-generation interaction techniques, such as brain-computer interfaces, physiological computing, textile sensing, radar sensing, and reality-based interaction. My students and I design, build and evaluate interactive computing systems that use machine learning approaches to adapt and support the user’s changing cognitive state and context. I also investigate novel paradigms for designing with accessibility in mind, particularly for the Deaf community. Much of my work also explores ...

With teachers for parents, I have always respected those who teach and the importance of education. While I did not originally set out to have a career in education, I found myself coming to WPI to do precisely that, after spending a decade in the corporate world as a statistician. During my time as a statistician, I taught engineers, particularly those in industrial, biomedical, and electrical engineering, how to apply statistics effectively to their work from designing a new medical device to sustaining commercialized medical devices. It was this passion for teaching statistics to engineers ...