Graduate Research Team and alumni

Siddhartha Pradhan is a Graduate Student Researcher at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, focusing on applying machine learning, deep learning, and data mining methodologies in the field of Learning Analytics. His research primarily centers on modeling student behaviors and learning patterns to improve knowledge acquisition, while also striving to advance contemporary methodologies in the field

Tamisha is a PhD student in Learning Sciences and Technologies at WPI. She is a veteran math teacher and is currently the Math and Science Coach at Shaw Elementary School in Millbury MA. 

Andrew McReynolds is a first-year MS-PhD student in the Learning Sciences & Technologies program at WPI. He was an undergraduate researcher in the psychology department at the University of San Francisco (USF) while completing his bachelor’s degree in psychology (December 2020). During his time at USF, Andrew was a teaching assistant for courses such as abnormal psychology, child maltreatment, and advanced research topics, all while examining the impact of COVID-19 on his peers educational experience. He joined WPI in 2021 to pursue his graduate education in a multi-disciplinary program where he could combine his interests in educational interventions and psychology while expanding his knowledge on the use of computer science in the future of education. His research interests include equity in education, teacher-student interaction, and improving access to educational materials in developing countries.

Website

Alena is a PhD student in the Learning Sciences & Technologies program. She got her Psychology MA from Moscow State University, where she investigated how emotional burnout develops in teachers. After graduation, Alena studied how people interact with digital tools, working as a researcher and designer in tech projects for over 7 years. She came to WPI to learn the ways new technologies and data could be used to improve education. Her current research interests include (1) the interplay of anxiety and cognition in learning and (2) how it unfolds in the context of educational technologies.

Jennifer St. John is a part-time Ph.D. student in the Learning Sciences and Technology department. She earned her BA in Mathematics from the College of the Holy Cross in 1995. She earned her MA in Urban Education from Clark University in 1998. She has been a teacher for 27 years and has taught Math, English, and Spanish. Jennifer is fascinated by how, when, and why learning occurs. She is interested in studying how students come to understand mathematics, how technology can enhance understanding, and how gestures can both impact and demonstrate understanding. 

Carly is a professor of practice in Mathematical Sciences at WPI. Before joining WPI, she worked as a statistician at Boston Scientific and taught engineers, particularly those in industrial, biomedical, and electrical engineering, how to apply statistics effectively to their work from designing a new medical device to sustaining commercialized medical devices. 

Zelda Ferris is a MS student in the Learning Science and Technologies program. She earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Northeastern University in Boston and went on to work as a software engineer and a middle school math teacher in Providence, Rhode Island. Zelda is interested in researching math and computer science curriculums that are accessible, inclusive, and transferable. 

Wilson is a Computer Science (B.S.) and Learning Sciences & Technologies (M.S.) student at WPI with a passion for STEM education and educational technology. He is currently pursuing his teaching license in Digital Literacy & Computer Science through WPI’s Teacher Preparation Program. Wilson also works on multimedia development as part of Professor David Ibbett’s Multiverse Concert Series. In his free time, Wilson enjoys running and playing the piano.

Rishika Akunuru is an MS student in Information Technology at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, expected to graduate in December 2025. She is currently a Full Stack Intern at Mundoprints, focusing on web development and building a pricing engine. Rishika's interests span software development, cloud computing, and data analytics. She has been involved in various projects, including a Privacy-Preserving Cloud Storage Auditing Scheme and a RAG-enhanced chatbot for JIRA integration. Additionally, she has published research on cloud storage security.

Email: rakunuru@wpi.edu

Avery is now an Assistant Professor of Education at the University of Florida! 

After WPI, she was a postdoctoral research scientist at Purdue University! 

Avery Harrison Closser was a Ph.D. student in Learning Sciences & Technologies (PhD 2022) and was funded through the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Avery completed her B.A. at the University of Richmond where she studied cognitive psychology and then spent a couple of years teaching English as a Second language in Thailand and Spain before attending WPI. In addition to her research on math education and learning technologies, Avery is committed to broadening participation in STEM fields through research, mentoring and outreach opportunities. 

Website

Email: aclosser@purdue.edu

Hannah is now an Assistant Professor of Pyschology at Assumption University! 

Hannah Smith was a PhD student in Learning Sciences & Technologies graduate student at WPI (PhD 2023). She was a commonwealth honors student at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth where she received her B.A. in Mathematics and her B.A. in Psychology and was a four year member and two year captain of the softball team as well as NCAA woman of the year nominee. She was also an undergraduate math tutor and teaching assistant. She came to WPI in 2018 to combine her interests in psychology, mathematics, and education. Her research interests include using games as learning tools, teacher professional development, early childhood education, and improving math ed.

Linkedin

Email: hsmith2@wpi.edu 

Vy graduated with her Masters in LST in 2022. She studies how perceptual cues impact cognitive processing and performance during problem-solving in math. As a passionate project on the side, she considers the effects of the intersectionality of gender and race on Asian and Asian-American women’s experiences and sense of belonging in STEM. Her overarching goal is to promote equity and reduce gender gaps in education and the work environment. She is looking for full-time positions as a Research Analyst/Project Manager at research institutes. 

Website

Luisa graduated with her Masters student in the Learning Sciences and Technologies program in 2022. She was a psychology major at WPI prior to joining the LST Masters program in the fall of 2020. She worked on the WLCP project for several years. 

Katie Drzewiecki was a Learning Sciences & Technologies masters  student at WPI. She received her B.S. in Statistics and her B.S. in Psychology from Arizona State University in 2017 where she was a prominent member of the Social Addictions Impulse Lab and a professional tutor for high school and college aged students. Making the jump from alcohol and addictions research to learning sciences and technologies research was quite the experience! In 2019 she moved to Worcester to begin her graduate school journey with her two cats and four snakes. Her current research aims to develop interactive data analytics dashboards that display the clickstream log data from From Here to There in a way that is both easily interpretable and actionable for the teachers who will use those dashboards. 

Website

Email: kcdrzewiecki@gmail.com 

Paul  received his Master's in Learning Sciences and Technology in 2023.  Paul is a 2022 graduate of WPI majoring in Psychological and Cognitive Science with a concentration in psychobiology. Paul is also a first-generation student who completed WPI's Teacher Preparation Program to become a licensed high school biology teacher.  He is currently a middle school science teacher in Lowell, MA. 

Kirk is currently a postdoctoral scholar at UPENN. 

Kirk Vanacore graduated with his Ph.D. in Learning Sciences and Technologies in 2024 at WPI. He earned his Masters at Tuft University from the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study Human and Development. At Tufts, he worked as a graduate research assistant at the Center for Reading and Language Research studying and implementing effective pedagogy for dyslexic students. Kirk works as a Senior Analyst at Lexia Learning, where he uses data science to inform the development and improvement of educational technologies. He believes in the need for collaboration between academia and industry to ensure that the technologies used in schools are impactful, cost-effective, and aligned with students learning needs. Kirk's research interests include learning analytics, education data mining, causal inference in big data analysis, implementation science, and effective pedagogies for neurodiverse populations. 

Casey is a BS/MS student in the LS&T program, pursuing undergraduate majors in psychology, biology, and biotechnology at WPI.  His main interests lie in embodied cognition, gesture in learning, and motivation; however, more currently, due to working on a project with ANSI, he has become interested in the incorporation of standards in higher education.