A Penn Engineering faculty member was honored with the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ 35 Under 35 award this month.
Lorena Grundy, an assistant professor in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, was recognized in the Education & Outreach category for her approach to education — which seeks to help students build confidence in engineering. The prize recognizes AIChE members under the age of 35 who have made impactful contributions to chemical engineering and the national organization.
In an interview, Grundy described the prize as an acknowledgment that the educational work she is doing is “valued and impactful” in the chemical engineering community.
At Penn, she develops curricula and programming designed to prepare students for connecting technical engineering knowledge with real-world applications — with a commitment to energy and sustainability.
“A lot of what I focus on has to do with helping students bridge the gap between the technical knowledge that they learn in their courses, and learn how to turn that into impact and think about their future career paths,” Grundy explained.
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She added that those technical skills can “often be theoretical and a little bit detached from real-world impact and application.”
Grundy expressed belief that the traditional engineering education can leave students “really good at solving textbook problems,” but not as prepared to translate that into action.
“If we want our engineering graduates to be ready to make a positive impact, we really need to do our part to prepare them to do that,” she said. “If we don’t, we risk sending students who don’t really know how to apply those skills in the most positive, ethical, safe and environmentally friendly way.”
She emphasized that the climate crisis is one of the “defining problems” of this generation, adding that to solve it requires effort from people of all disciplinary backgrounds.
Award recipients are recognized across seven categories: bioengineering, chemical and materials, education and outreach, energy and environment, innovation and entrepreneurship, leadership, and safety.
Grundy explained that she often structures her teaching around the material that excites her students, emphasizing that she learns from them as well. She described her educational accomplishments as a collaboration with her students, saying that she has been fortunate to work with “incredible” Penn undergraduates during her time at the University.
According to her, the AIChE honor has often gone to “tenure-track faculty.” She noted, however, that this year’s 35 Under 35 list includes industry professionals outside academia, and two non-tenure-track, teaching-focused faculty members — herself included.
“I really appreciate the recognition of what people in these kinds of roles can provide, and the value that I hope that we bring to Penn and to chemical engineering,” Grundy said.
She directs the undergraduate energy and sustainability minor at Penn and founded the Master of Science in Engineering in Energy and Sustainability.