Staff

IDEA Staff

Lynford Goddard

The Institute’s inaugural Director, Professor Lynford Goddard has been involved in and spearheaded numerous diversity efforts. Since 2010, he has helped develop on-campus summer camps for hundreds of K-12 students, including Girls Learning Electrical Engineering, Brain Fitness Fridays, Illinois Summer Academy, Illinois-ChiS&E Alliance for Nurturing Excellence in STEM Education Leadership (ICANEXSEL), and I-STEM/Urbana High School Student Athletes in Research.

Lynford also serves as the Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at the Grainger College of Engineering. He has also been named the Edward C. Jordan Professor with the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department as a recognition of his excellence in teaching, research, and service. 

 

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Ellen Wang Althaus 

Ellen Wang Althaus, PhD is the Associate Director for Faculty and Staff Engagement at the Institute. She is responsible for executing a college-wide strategy that establishes IDEA as ubiquitous in everything the Grainger College of Engineering does. She serves as a subject matter expert who plans, develops, implements, and evaluates programs to meet the evolving needs of the college, its departments, and its people. She also helps with broader impact grant efforts and assists with refining and communicating the institute’s vision, priorities, and activities. Ellen also serves on the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Advancing Women in STEM initiative as a member of the campus leadership team and as a member of the cross-institutional steering committee.

Prior to joining the IDEA Institute, Ellen served in several leadership roles at the University where she forged new initiatives fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM disciplines. In those roles, she collaborated with campus administrative leaders, faculty, and stakeholders in 19 STEM departments, three colleges, and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for DEI to identify needs, challenges, and priorities for facilitating systemic change in STEM higher education. Ellen earned a BA in Chemistry from Carleton College, and MS and PhD in Chemistry from Northwestern University.

 

 

Ashleigh R. Wright

Ashleigh R. Wright, PhD is the Associate Director for Student Engagement and Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. She is responsible for collaborating with college and departmental leaders and stakeholders to identify needs and priorities, developing and implementing evidence-based strategies, and measuring progress and effectiveness quantitatively against key metrics that promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and access to the undergraduate and graduate student communities. She also conducts research that analyzes trends, driving factors, barriers, and best practices to educate others and support organizational improvement.  Ashleigh is a member of the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) and serves as the faculty advisor of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign NOBCChE Student Chapter.

Prior to joining the University, Ashleigh managed and directed many training and pathway programs that support students from underrepresented backgrounds in STEM, and facilitated workshops that enhance the academic, personal, and professional development of  students at North Carolina State University and Louisiana State University. She holds degrees in chemistry from Wofford College (B.S.), North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (M.S.), and Louisiana State University (Ph.D.).