Héctor
E Rodriguez-Simmonds (he/him/él) is a Core Fellow/Visiting Assistant Professor in Engineering. Héctor received his M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering and his Ph.D. in Engineering Education from Purdue University. He has broad industry experience and has worked on various research projects, including projects in computer engineering, investigating students’ engineering identities, and examining the values students use to inform their choice of engineering major. Héctor's research primarily explores how students negotiate their visible and less visible identities as they form their professional identity, specifically at the intersection of their racial/ethnic, sexual orientation, gender, and engineering identities.  

Héctor’s research projects range from autoethnographic inquiries that investigate culturally informed collaborative qualitative research spaces, neurodivergence and disability in engineering, and examining the structural factors that impact student experiences in computer engineering courses. Héctor has taught various engineering courses and is invested in showing learners he cares about them and their future success. He creates a space where learners can feel safe to experiment, iterate, and try different problem-solving approaches while encouraging  learners to be critical of their professional practice so they create effective, holistic solutions that work for a broader range of individuals.