Dr. Kathryn Wingate started as an Academic Professional in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering in the summer of 2014. She received a BS in Mechanical Engineering and a BS in Astronomy from the University of Illinois in 2005. After graduation she went to work for Northrop Grumman Space Technology in Redondo Beach, California. In her time at Northrop Grumman Dr. Wingate served as a material scientist specializing in the failure analysis of microelectronics on several defense satellite programs. In 2009 she left industry to pursue a PhD in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado, where her research focused on the development of novel biomaterials for cardiovascular tissue engineering.