Who we are
About Us
Cathy Lachapelle
Dr. Cathy Lachapelle fell in love with conducting research on learning as an undergraduate at MIT in 1991. In her doctoral program at Stanford, she learned on the job from the best in the field, working on innovative research and curriculum development programs. For 15 years, she worked on the Engineering is Elementary project, researching and designing engineering and science curricula for kids in preschool through grade 8: first as a research associate, then as Director of Research and Evaluation. In her roles at EiE, she led formative and summative evaluation efforts working with the curriculum and professional development teams, and also served as co-PI of the Exploring the Efficacy of Engineering is Elementary (E4) project. Cathy worked for four years as a part-time professor helping to run a master’s program in Learning Engineering – a more student-centric version of Instructional Design – for Boston College; she taught Design Studio and a class on choosing, designing, and evaluating assessment tools and methods.
Today, Cathy devotes her expertise to STEM curriculum development, research, and evaluation for PK-12 STEM at STEM Education Insights.
Elizabeth Parry
Elizabeth (Liz) Parry is an engineer and engineering/STEM educator. Liz spent the first 10 years of her career at IBM Corporation, but since then, she has focused on science and engineering teaching and learning from preschool through college. At North Carolina State University, she directed federal grants aimed at increasing the number and diversity of engineering students, as well as collaborating with P12 classroom teachers to develop and foster the growth of engineering habits of mind through collaborative, hands on engineering activities and lessons. She published research on the engineering attitudes of students and teachers, and worked on grants to bring engineering to young students. Liz has been an active leader in the emerging field of precollege engineering, leading a strategic committee for ASEE on the topic that resulted in the elevation of the field in the engineering education community. She was elected a Fellow of ASEE in 2016, a recognition of her scholarship and service in the field.
Throughout her career, Liz has intentionally and joyfully prioritized mentoring in all she does; a conservative estimate of the number of mentees over her career would be well over a thousand. In 2015, she received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring from President Barack Obama in the White House.
Alison Kay
Dr. Alison Kay has 15 years of social research and evaluation experience, with a particular focus in education. After qualifying as an elementary school teacher in Scotland, she spent some time in the US where she further developed her interest in curriculum development and evaluation, working on the Engineering is Elementary project. On her return to the UK she undertook doctoral studies in Physics Education Research at the University of Edinburgh, investigating the use of an online learning platform within a range of undergraduate courses. Her most recent role has been as a managing consultant for SQW, a UK-based evaluation company, evaluating initiatives in in the education and health sectors. Clients include the UK government, Scottish Government, and NHS England.
Alison is passionate about ensuring learners have access to high quality, research-based learning resources, and that their educators are empowered to deliver inspiring learning experiences.
Emerita Partner
Carolyn DeCristofano
Carolyn DeCristofano, M.Ed., helped to found SEI in 2018 and was a partner through 2022. She has worked in innovative science (and STEM) curriculum development and teacher professional development since 1989. Highlights of her work include years developing inquiry-based science units for the Museum of Science, WGBH Boston, and TERC (on a NASA-funded project) before becoming the Professional Development (PD) Director for Engineering is Elementary (EiE). Later, Carolyn joined the development team of the Engaging Youth through Engineering (EYE) Middle School Module Study, which developed eight innovative middle school modules integrating standards-aligned math and science content through unifying student engineering projects. Carolyn also collaborates with Citizen Schools to create middle school STEM modules that integrate social emotional learning for learners in typically low- or under-resources schools; and she has contributed to Making Waves’ Grade 8 materials. Rounding out her PD and research experience is her role as a Research Specialist with the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Project Zero, where she facilitated teacher programming and PD.
Carolyn is currently pursuing her passion as an author of science books for children.