Kristen Peña, Ed.D. serves as the Director of Faculty Development for the John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering, a unit within ASU Health. In this role, she leads faculty development initiatives that advance teaching effectiveness and promote an inclusive, supportive learning environment for both faculty and students. Kristen collaborates with academic leadership to design orientation workshops, instructional trainings, and mentorship programs that support the development of clinical and foundational faculty as educators and academic leaders.
From 2021 to 2025, Kristen worked at the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering Learning and Teaching Hub, where she led the planning, development, and delivery of faculty professional learning programs. Her work included establishing communities of practice, leading professional book studies and workshops, and creating instructional guides and resources to enhance teaching and learning. Between 2017 and 2021, she supported entrepreneurial programs within the Fulton Schools, helping cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset among ASU engineering students.
Kristen has also taught undergraduate courses on entrepreneurial pathways in engineering and graduate courses on innovation and entrepreneurial mindset.
Before joining ASU, Kristen held various roles in higher education focused on student success and academic programming, including coordinating electives and selectives for fourth-year medical students and advising art students. Earlier in her career, she worked for a local foster care and adoption agency as a family specialist and trainer, as well as a habilitation therapist supporting children with autism - experiences that continue to inform her commitment to inclusive education.
As a first-generation college graduate, she earned her Doctor of Education in Leadership and Innovation from ASU. Her research interests include faculty professional learning, faculty-student interactions, first-generation student experiences, and strategies to improve student retention in STEM fields. She also holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology.