Meet the Team

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 ...

Amy Blessington is the Operations Coordinator at the WPI STEM Education Center, where she brings 19 years of experience in educational publishing, project management, and event coordination. Beyond her professional life, Amy is passionate about making a positive impact. She volunteers with organizations like the Girl Scouts and Veteran’s Inc., demonstrating her commitment to leadership, community development, and building a brighter future for all.

Jillian DiBonaventura joined the STEM Education Center at WPI as Director of Teacher Preparation in 2022. She brings a wealth of experience to the role, with a diverse background in both classroom teaching and teacher education.Jillian began her career teaching K-12 Music in Worcester Public Schools before transitioning to middle-level Science, which she taught for 26 years across the Worcester and Wachusett Regional School Districts. Her passion for the field of education led her to higher ed, where she has taught educational pedagogy and elementary science methods courses as an adjunct ...

Mia is passionate about supporting educators in finding the excitement and beauty in teaching students about problem solving and the world around them. Mia’s 20+ years of experience as a science and STEM educator include founding and managing a science enrichment business, working with Native American teachers on embedding cultural themes with science and math, developing a game-like research tool for studying young children, and teaching graduate level courses at the University of Minnesota, Lesley University, and WPI. Mia also serves as the PI of the IES funded Seeds of STEM grant, which ...

Noemi Robertson joined the STEM Education Center as the Instructor/Director of Community Partnerships & Education Access in October 2022. Noemi is responsible for building and managing relationships in the local community to support teaching experiences for the WPI Teacher Preparation Program and PreK-12 STEM learning opportunities. She promotes and supports PreK-12 teachers in developing relevant and inclusive STEM curriculum and instructional practices. Additionally, she supports the Mass Academy of Math & Sciences in sustaining existing partnerships and building new ones ...

Prior to joining the STEM Education Center full time in 2018, Donna was a classroom teacher with 15 years of teaching experience. She holds National Board Certification in Early Adolescence Science and is a NASA Network of Educator Astronaut Teacher.  She has won several awards for teaching and curriculum development including the Blackstone Valley Educational Consortium Promising Practices in Education Award.  She was named Florida Wildlife Federation Conservation Educator of the Year, the Florida Association of Science Teachers Most Outstanding Science Teacher and the Palm Beach County ...