Engineers!
Karen Lozano is the Trustee Professor and Chair of the Materials Science and NanoEngineering Department at Rice University, a role she assumed in January 2025. Previously, she spent 25 years at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) as the Julia Beecherl Endowed Professor in Mechanical Engineering and Founding Director of the first Ph.D. program in Engineering and the UTRGV Nanotechnology Center. Dr. Lozano is known for her innovative strategies in education and technical research, she has designed multiple designed projects that have led to an educational/social/economic mobility experience for hundreds of at-risk students, all now leading successful professional careers. She determinedly led a far-reaching transformation at a once teaching institution. Her efforts led to 100% retention and graduation for 600+ students who worked on her NanoTeam, 50+ students from her team pursued Ph.D. degrees in Engineering. A prolific inventor and entrepreneur, she co-founded two companies, one recognized with the R&D 100 Award. Dr. Lozano is a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). She has received the PAESMEM Award, was named Engineer of the Year by Great Minds in STEM, and won a Lone Star EMMY for STEM outreach. She earned her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Universidad de Monterrey and her M.S. and Ph.D. from Rice University.