IN THIS ISSUE  Women Spotlight • Women’s History at Tech Timeline • Pathway to Progress
Spring Self-Care • Service Anniversaries

Spotlight on Women, part I

Meet some of the women making a difference in every corner of the College.

Tracie Arnold
Director of Operations, BME

Since 2023, Tracie has served as the first Black woman director of operations for BME. In this role, her impact has been transformative, leading to her recognition with the prestigious College of Engineering Culture Champion Award in 2024.

The Culture Champion Award recognizes Arnold’s ability to foster an environment where diverse perspectives are valued and where staff feel empowered to contribute their best work. Under her leadership, the Department has implemented several initiatives aimed at improving workplace culture, communication, and professional development opportunities. Colleagues describe Arnold as a leader who leads by example, consistently demonstrating the values of integrity, respect, and excellence that are central to Georgia Tech's mission.

Beyond Tech, Arnold became the first Black woman to represent Ward III on the College Park City Council in 2023, defeating a long-time elected official who had held the seat for four years. Arnold entered the race on the final day of qualifying, giving her only about 70 days to campaign — and she was on a previously planned trip to Italy for 15 of those days.

“I wasn’t planning to enter politics,” Arnold says. “But when my neighbors asked me to represent them, I saw it as an extension of the advocacy work I was already doing, both in my community and at Georgia Tech.”

As the HOA president in her historic College Park neighborhood, Arnold had established herself as a community advocate before running for city council. Running for office exemplified her philosophy to seize moments of opportunity.

“I firmly believe that opportunities come once in a lifetime,” Arnold says. “Whether in my professional role at Georgia Tech or in public service, when doors open, you have to be ready to walk through them — even when the timing isn’t perfect or the odds seem stacked against you.”

During Women’s History Month, Arnold’s journey reminds us that history isn’t just something we study — it’s something we create through courage, service, and a willingness to step forward when called upon, especially when the odds seem insurmountable.
– Alexis Brown

Shauna Bennett-Boyd
Administrative Manager II & Assistant to the Chair, CEE

I am truly grateful for the chance to share my career journey with Georgia Tech. My path began in 1992 as an administrative secretary in the Office of Information Systems and Services. After a brief time with the State of Georgia, I returned to Tech in 1994 for an administrative role in Science, Engineering, Communication, Mathematics and Enrichment (SECME). Since then, my career has spanned more than 28 years across various Schools in the College, including ChBE, ME, and currently CEE. Since 2009, I’ve held leadership roles, and I now serve as the administrative manager and executive assistant to the school chair.

My time at Georgia Tech has been incredibly rewarding, with several recognitions, including the 2015 CoE Team Builder award, the 2024 CoE Soaring Jacket award, an honorarium for organizing the Woodruff School’s Nuclear Engineering 100th Anniversary, and two CEE staff awards. I was also nominated for the inaugural CoE Professional Readiness, Organizational Performance, and Effective Leadership (PROPEL) program by my school chair, which I am excited about as it will provide valuable opportunities for my future growth.

One of my proudest achievements is completing my Bachelor of Business Administration from Clayton State University in 2024, returning to finish my degree after 40 years. Thanks to Georgia Tech’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), I completed my degree with minimal costs. I’m now pursuing a Master of Strategic Leadership & Development at Clayton State with TAP support and plan to graduate in Fall 2025.

My career at Georgia Tech has been both successful and fulfilling. I’m excited about the future and opportunities ahead.

Martha Grover
Professor, Thomas A. Fanning Chair in Equity Centered Engineering, CoE ADVANCE Professor, Associate Chair for Graduate Studies, ChBE

Martha Grover is a systems engineer whose work addresses the complexity of molecular organization and how it can solve complicated grand challenges. For instance, she has worked with the Department of Energy for 10 years to create processes for separation and immobilization of millions of gallons of liquid nuclear waste at the Hanford Site in Washington and the Savannah River Site in South Carolina.

Grover’s research also focuses on the origins of life and understanding the essential role of diversity and cooperation. Her work includes modeling and engineering the self-assembly of atoms and small molecules to create larger scale structures and complex functionality. 

As ChBE’s associate chair for graduate studies, Grover has implemented new mechanisms for recruiting that have helped the School significantly increase the number of women and students from underrepresented groups.
 
Grover was selected for Thomas A. Fanning Chair in Equity Centered Engineering for her efforts to educate engineers who approach their work with an intent to close societal gaps of wealth, power, and privilege by ensuring equitable access to opportunity.

Grover also serves as the College’s ADVANCE professor. She and peers in each of Georgia Tech’s colleges seek to develop approaches that increase the representation, full participation, and advancement of women and underrepresented groups in STEM-focused academic careers. Grover has advocated for more equitable hiring practices, equitable salary structures, and representation in leadership. She organizes College faculty retreats to provide community, support, and dedicated time to identify priorities.

Grover also has become a recognized leader across campus and was recently named to Georgia Tech’s Faculty Executive Leadership Academy. The program is designed to identify and develop senior faculty members for leadership positions.
– Nisha Kukreja

Shirley Manchester
Academic Advisor II, MSE

Shirley Manchester is our undergraduate advisor in MSE. She has been advising students for 14 of her 23 years in the School. She’s more than an advisor: She mentors students and gives them a safe space to be themselves. Her caring nature and willingness to help have made a difference in not only the lives of our students, but with our faculty and staff as well. 

Manchester is a proud mother, grandmother, and member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. Her volunteer activities extend far into her community as she dedicates much of her free time to the service of others.

On campus, Manchester is always willing to lend a helping hand, including chaperoning a group of Georgia Tech students on a study abroad trip to Oxford last summer. She was a GT 1000 instructor last semester and nominated for Instructor of the Year for the second time. Meanwhile, Manchester also earned her master’s degree in May 2024.

Manchester is a team player and a true blessing to our School and we are thankful for her every day.
– Cassandra Trawick

Spotlight on Women, part II

Women play key leadership roles across the College. They shape College-wide efforts, and they guide the strategic visions of our Schools. In fact, in the long history of progress for women at Tech (more on that below), 2025 marked another milestone: the first time women have led three engineering Schools simultaneously. We asked these leaders to tell us about their day-to-day work and the women mentors who’ve helped them, pushed them, and made an impact on their lives and careers.

Kimberly Kurtis
Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Scholarship
Raymond Allen Jones Chair and Professor, CEE
26 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: Every day is different, which I like! But mostly they are a balance of meetings with faculty and students; working with College staff on new initiatives and longer-term projects; and teaching, research, and service mixed in.

Research: Combines advanced characterization methods, novel synthesis and manufacturing approaches, and data science techniques to improve the design, use, and performance of cement-based materials. It’s work motivated by the broad societal need to equitably provide infrastructure for all people in the most sustainable and economical ways possible. Learn More

What’s your favorite part of your work?
I really enjoy working with our outstanding faculty and students, helping them find opportunities to reach their goals and fulfill their greatest potential.

Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
When I took my first college-level administrative role, as the College’s ADVANCE professor, Jane Ammons took me out for a long lunch and shared some thoughtful advice — words that I continue to rely on today — about how important it is to be a resource for others and to take those responsibilities seriously. Through my major professional society, the American Concrete Institute, I’ve had tremendous opportunities to learn from female peers, including Maria Juenger (ACI’s incoming president!), Cathy French, JoAnn Browning, Francis Griffith, and Luna Lu, among others. All are incredible leaders! 

My Ph.D. advisor, Paulo Monteiro, continues to be a trusted source of advice as well as an inspiration — he’s really been the person who has believed in me every step of the way.

And at Georgia Tech, we are so fortunate to have many allies. I couldn’t ask for better mentors than what I’ve found here, including folks like Larry Jacobs, Larry Kahn, David Frost and, of course, Raheem Beyah. And, of course, nothing is possible without the incredible support we have in the College, including incredible women like Assistant Dean Terri Lee and Director of Strategic Operations LaJauna Ellis!

Hang Lu
Associate Dean for Research and Innovation
Cecil J. “Pete” Silas Chair and Professor, ChBE
20 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: I spend my time helping faculty solve research-related issues (planning, pre- and post-awards, facilities, etc.), and working with Institute and College leadership, faculty, and staff to ensure that we can conduct the best research possible. I also spend some time working with my own research group (brainstorming, analyzing results, writing, coaching, etc.).

Research: Lies at the interface of engineering and biology. The lab engineers microfluidic devices and Bio Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (BioMEMS) to study neuroscience, genetics, cancer biology, systems biology, and biotechnology. Learn More

What’s your favorite part of your work?
I get to know many of our incredible colleagues and learn about their amazing, wide-ranging research in the College.
 
Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
My postdoc advisor was Cori Bargmann, who is an extraordinary scientist, mentor, and human being. She taught (and is still teaching) me how we can be scientists without losing our humanity.

Terri Lee
Assistant Dean, Director of Faculty Affairs and Accreditation
20 years at Georgia Tech, 17 in the Dean’s Office

Day-to-Day Life: I handle tasks related to faculty reappointment, promotion, and tenure (RPT) processes, including responding to inquiries, reviewing and providing feedback on documents, training new faculty and staff, and guiding interpretation of the Georgia Tech faculty handbook. I also assist our HR director with faculty evaluations, collaborate on accreditation processes, and manage undergraduate student awards for the Institute Student Honors Ceremony. On any given day, I can be doing all of these things or just focused on a few.

What’s your favorite part of your work?
When an RPT process is completed for a cycle. I get a momentary sigh of relief before having to immediately jump back in for the next cycle. 
 
Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
At Emory, Dr. Danielle Gray-Singh, and at Georgia Tech, Dr. Felicia Benton-Johnson and Dr. Beth Spencer, all taught me the importance of advocating for myself and recognizing my worth. They emphasized that the worst outcome is simply a “no.” Dr. Gray-Singh facilitated my initial appointment in BME at Georgia Tech, while Dr. Benton-Johnson and Dr. Spencer coached me for the interview that led to a position in the Dean’s Office. Both Dr. Benton-Johnson and Dr. Spencer continue to be invaluable mentors, guiding me through challenging situations in my career.

Pinar Keskinocak
H. Milton and Carolyn J. Stewart School Chair and Professor, ISyE
25 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: Most of my day-to-day activities are collaborating with amazing staff and faculty colleagues and students as well as interactions with our wonderful alumni, other collaborators across Tech, or external organizations. On any given day, I work on: (i) A variety of strategic planning activities and initiatives around advancing ISyE’s excellence, leadership, and impact in education and research; (ii) Revisiting our educational portfolio; (iii) Improving (or redesigning) our processes by applying systems principles and utilizing data and analytics; (iv) Communicating our impactful research, education, or outreach activities; (v) Important recurring activities such as faculty searches, mentoring, community building, and a lot of administrative tasks.

Research: Applying systems engineering, operations research, and analytics in health and humanitarian systems. An example research area is modeling disease — polio, guinea worm disease, malaria, depression, and others — evaluating interventions (e.g., testing, vaccines, treatment), and allocating limited resources. Learn More

What’s your favorite part of your work?
Creating opportunities to support our amazing colleagues and students so they can progress towards their life and career goals and be happy and productive, personally and professionally. And working with amazing colleagues and collaborators! One of my favorite proverbs: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
 
Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
I have been fortunate to have many mentors — colleagues, family, friends — from a variety of life and career stages relative to me — more senior, peer, or more junior. I am grateful to all of them for setting great examples as well as for collaborating with, believing in, and supporting me, personally and professionally. It takes a village!

Alyssa Panitch
Wallace H. Coulter Department Chair, BME
2.75 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: I mix in meetings with faculty and administration – that help with thinking about Department direction and initiatives – with time to think about the Department planning. I schedule one day a week to meet with my research group, mentor trainees, and do research.

Research: Designing biopolymers to improve tissue healing and regeneration. Work includes peptide therapeutics that penetrate cells to fine-tune the body’s inflammatory responses and acting on the environment outside of cells to influence their functions and promote tissue healing while limiting scar formation. Learn More

What’s your favorite part of your work?
It is a toss up between mentoring students and being able to develop/implement new initiatives for the Department.
 
Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
Colleen Brophy, a vascular surgeon, taught me the importance of understanding what problem you are trying to solve with the research you are doing, and paying careful attention to the data and what the data is telling you. She helped me to focus my research on solutions to true clinical needs to improve human health.

Natalie Stingelin
Chair and Professor, MSE
9 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: Taking care of emails, meeting with faculty or staff, planning for the School, research.

Research: Spans the broad area of functional plastics for electronics, energy harvesting, light- and heat-management, and quantum materials. Learn More

What’s your favorite part of your work?
Working with people: staff, students, faculty, and others.

Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
I had all male mentors, but as I’ve grown as a researcher, I’ve been working to change that with one of my best friends, Quyen Nguyen, a professor at UC Santa Barbara. We have started to support each other, and we have established a “Women Supporting Women” WhatsApp group that now has more than 75 members. We use this platform to mentor and support each other.

Veda Chandler
Director, Center for Engineering Education and Development
Interim Director, Women in Engineering
4 years at Georgia Tech

Day-to-Day Life: I try to make sure my days are as structured as possible. However, in this fast-paced and even-faster-changing landscape, that often proves to be an epic fail. From strategic planning, corporate partner interactions, team leadership, and operational management, to emergency meetings focused on addressing urgent student issues, my day is always a hodge-podge of activities that directly impact and address the well-being of our students.

What’s your favorite part of your work?
I am so fortunate to have the opportunity to dabble in areas that have very tangible effects on students’ lives, while at the same time contributing to the mission of the Institute.

I take pride in the positive impact our programming has on the personal and professional development of students. I love being in a position that builds community and creates a supportive environment for all. As director, I also have the opportunity to shape the direction of my units and work closely with various stakeholders in defining our strategic path forward. I absolutely love contributing to the field of higher education and advocating for policies and practices that promote student success!
 
Tell us about the women who’ve mentored you and the impact they made on your life and career. 
There are too many to name! Mentorship for me looks different than what is traditionally recognized, as the formalities of that relationship are not required. I am mentored every day by the women I work next to, from my first boss at Georgia Tech, Dr. Sybrina Atwaters, to my current team in CEED!

One name that immediately comes to mind is Dr. Cynthia Clem, an administrator at Clark Atlanta University who has been a constant source of inspiration and love — starting during my undergraduate journey and continuing throughout my career in higher education. She was a daily lesson in self-belief, perseverance, and the value of connection. She leads by example, with integrity, empathy, and effectiveness in the student success space. It feels good to know that no matter how many months or years go by, you know that there will always be this one person who loves you and roots for you. She is that person for me and so many others whose lives she touched at CAU.

Seven Decades of Firsts

Pathway of Progress

The newest permanent art installation on campus informs, inspires, and celebrates decades of Georgia Tech women’s achievements. ISyE alumna Andrea Laliberte championed the soaring, reflective structure, which officially opened March 8.

Spring Self-Care

Straight from the CoE Cares Committee, how we practice self-care. What’s your go-to?

“One of the things I do to practice self-care is to make time for exercise and mix up my mode of exercise to keep it fun and avoid monotony. Lately, I’ve been really enjoying alternating between boxing and fast track (high-intensity training) because it helps release stress and boosts endorphins.”
– Dawn Franklin, Dean’s Office 

“How I practice self-care: I volunteer. And I binge watch TikTok to decompress. TikTok tickles my fancy and keeps me laughing — especially cats of TikTok. 😊”
– Cassandra Trawick, MSE

“Recharge emotionally by spending quality time with friends or family. And don’t let social media take the place of in-person relationship building. Commit to setting aside time to hang out with your loved ones face-to-face.”
– LaJauna Ellis, Dean’s Office

Happy Anniversary

Congratulations to our colleagues celebrating service anniversaries in December, January, and February.
 
We have 117 employees who’ve served the College from one to 45 years! Thanks for all each of you brings to our community. 💛

ICYMI: Check Out Our New Staff Development Website

There’s a new home for College-wide staff resources and development initiatives. From COESCAC and our staff awards to new programs like SOAR and PROPEL, everything now lives at staff.coe.gatech.edu.

Last Look: Brush with Kindness

Some of our CoE colleagues spent March 1 working alongside an Atlanta Habitat for Humanity homeowner to give their house a fresh coat of paint.

COE CARES COMMITTEE

Alexis Brown, BME

Sudie Davis, ISyE

LaJauna Ellis, Dean’s Office

Melody Foster, ME

Dawn Franklin, Dean’s Office

Michael Gooden, CEE

Nisha Kukreja, ChBE

Cassandra Trawick, MSE

Marva White, AE

Shalonda Williams, ECE

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