Kat Allen (she/her) is a PhD Candidate at Tufts University. She holds a SB in Aerospace Engineering with Information Technology (XVI-2) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a joint MS in Human-Robot Interaction and Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University.
Her work breaks down barriers to make informal engineering education (such as makerspaces) more accessible, so that everyone can build what they imagine. She builds collaborative robots that work interdependently with humans to do what neither could do alone. Her research draws from the areas of robotics, control systems, machine learning, and cognitive science, as well as disability justice and culturally-responsive education.
She is advised by Elaine Short (AABL Lab) and Chris Rogers (FETLab of the CEEO)