2026 BEEC Conference Keynote Speaker: Biography
Dr. Sindia M. Rivera-Jiménez
Dr. Sindia M. Rivera-Jiménez is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Education at the University of Florida, with affiliate appointments in Chemical Engineering, the Institute of Higher Education, and the Florida Semiconductor Institute. She directs the Engineering Communities and Participatory Change (ECoPaC) Lab, where her scholarship examines how individuals navigate self-adjustment and professional formation across engineering and technical education pathways. Her research spans five interrelated areas (i.e., transfer transitions and early pathways, cognitive–emotional responses in learning, graduate competence and mentoring ecosystems, faculty agency and educational change, and experiential learning and workforce innovation), all unified by a focus on how people interpret challenges and respond across academic, social, and structural transitions. Grounded in ecological systems, developmental, and transformational frameworks, she employs qualitative and mixed-methods approaches to investigate how institutional practices, professional cultures, and workforce ecosystems shape learning, identity, and persistence.
Dr. Rivera-Jiménez leads multi-institutional projects focused on transfer student success, workforce development, graduate student competence structures, and faculty transformational agency. She is the founder of the ELITE program for engineering transfer students and has co-led national workshops on qualitative methods, inclusive research practices, and equity-conscious academic labor. She also maintains a strong record of external research support, serving as PI or co-PI on NSF-funded projects spanning transfer student pathways, faculty agency, experiential learning, and semiconductor workforce readiness.
An award-winning educator, mentor, and scholar, Dr. Rivera-Jiménez has been recognized nationally and institutionally for her contributions to engineering education. She is the recipient of the 2025 ASEE Best Conference Paper Award (selected from more than 2,400 submissions) and has earned three ASEE division-level Best Paper Awards and two PIC-level recognitions. Her additional honors include the AIChE Chemical Engineering Education Service Award (2022), two-time recipient of UF’s Undergraduate Adviser and Mentor of the Year Award (2019, 2022), the AIChE IDEAL Star Award (2021), the AIChE Education Division Service Award (2022), and the ASEE Education Research Methods Apprentice Faculty Grant (2023).
Dr. Rivera-Jiménez is an active senior member of AIChE, where she co-founded the LatinXinChE affinity group and has held leadership appointments across the Minority Affairs Committee, Women in Chemical Engineering, K–12 Outreach initiatives, the Education Division, and two operating councils. She also serves in leadership roles within the American Society for Engineering Education, including as Vice Chair for Publications in the Education Research and Methods Division and as a past board member of several ASEE divisions.