Darya Pirmohammadi, a Ph.D. student in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T, has been selected for a national professional development program designed to prepare future engineering educators. 
 
Pirmohammadi, of Iran, will attend the 2026 Emerging Engineering Educators (EMEE) workshop this summer — part of the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN)’s Engineering Unleashed initiative. 
 
“I’ve been fortunate to learn from some amazing educators and mentors at Missouri S&T and throughout my past experiences, and I hope to have that same positive influence when I become a mentor,” Pirmohammadi says. “I truly appreciate being selected for this Engineering Unleashed program because it supports my goal of becoming a more effective engineering educator and preparing the next generation of engineers.” 
 
The selective program brings together graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from universities across the United States to explore academic career pathways, develop teaching strategies and build professional networks. Participants learn to apply an entrepreneurial mindset, which emphasizes curiosity, connections and creating value through engineering solutions. 
 
The EMEE experience includes a four-day, in-person workshop, with travel and lodging funded by KEEN, followed by yearlong virtual sessions to support participants as they prepare for academic careers. 
 
Missouri S&T joined KEEN in 2023 and has hosted several on-campus events and workshops to support faculty in incorporating an entrepreneurial mindset into their courses. 
 
Pirmohammadi began her doctoral studies at Missouri S&T in January 2025. Her research focuses on how ions move within soft, water-based materials called hydrogels, which can be used for drug delivery and wound healing. 
 
Earlier this year, she presented her research at the Biophysical Society Annual Meeting in San Francisco. 
 
Before continuing her education in the U.S., she completed an internship with the Pasteur Institute of Iran and was a team lead for Amirkabir University of Technology’s (AUT) Office of Sustainability. 
 
Pirmohammadi earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at AUT and completed some graduate studies in chemical engineering at Kansas State University. 
 
To learn more about S&T’s Linda and Bipin Doshi Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, visit chbe.mst.edu.  

About Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to the Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit www.mst.edu.