We are delighted to announce the appointment of Dr. Beth Pruitt as the Foundation’s inaugural Chief Scientific Officer. She joins us with an extraordinary record of scientific achievement, leadership, and strategic vision.
Dr. Pruitt holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT and both an M.S. in Manufacturing Systems Engineering and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. She also completed postdoctoral training in microtechnology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne. Her academic career began at Stanford as a professor in Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering. In 2018, she joined the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she played a pivotal role in establishing the Department of Bioengineering and served as its Founding Chair.
Dr. Pruitt’s career is also distinguished by her service. A Navy R.O.T.C. scholar at MIT, she served as a U.S. Navy officer between her graduate degrees, with tours at the Navy’s nuclear engineering headquarters and teaching Systems Engineering and offshore sailing at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Her international experience includes a visiting professorship at ETH Zurich’s Lab for Applied Mechanobiology. Dr. Pruitt is the recipient of numerous honors, including the NSF CAREER Award, DARPA Young Faculty Award, Denice Denton Leadership Award, NSF BRITE Fellow Award, and the Emerald Foundation Distinguished Investigator Award. She is an elected Fellow of the AAAS, ASME, AIMBE, and BMES.
As Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Pruitt will lead the Foundation’s research strategy, foster scientific collaborations, and serve as a key ambassador for our mission. Her vision and expertise will be instrumental in shaping the future of our programs and expanding our impact across the scientific community.
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Beth Pruitt to the Foundation.
