Monica F. Cox, Ph.D., is a disruptor, trailblazer, change agent, and leader who believes in living an authentic life even if it makes people uncomfortable. She grew up an only child in a rural southeast Alabama community, where her educator parents raised her to persist in the face of personal and professional adversity. As a child, she dreamed of traveling to the places she read about, using science to make life better, and entering politics to change the world. Her inquisitive nature contributes to her passion for educating others and sharing what she has learned via her experiences.

Professionally, Dr. Cox is a 2020 Fellow of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and is a Distinguished Professor of Engineering in the Department of Engineering Education at The Ohio State University where she served as the Inaugural department chair from 2016-2020. No stranger to conflict, Dr. Cox transformed the fabric of the department and the larger organization as a vocal advocate for people and women of color.

Dr. Cox earned degrees in mathematics (Spelman College), industrial engineering (University of Alabama), and leadership and policy studies (Vanderbilt University) debt-free and interned at NASA as she pursued her mathematics and engineering degrees.

 In 2011, Dr. Cox became the first African-American female to earn tenure in the College of Engineering at Purdue University. There she was the Inaugural Director of the Purdue College of Engineering’s Leadership Minor. She is the Director of the International Institute of Engineering Education Assessment (i2e2a) and CEO of STEMinent LLC, a brand that houses a variety of STEM education offerings.

Dr. Cox’s research is focused on the infusion of equity in STEM education and on the empirical exploration of women of color in the workplace. She has led and collaborated on multidisciplinary projects totaling approximately $20 million and has authored over 130 publications.

Because of her turbulent workplace experiences, Dr. Cox created the “Dr. Monica” brand (www.drmonicacox.com) to guide people and organizations in authentic ways to emerge wiser, bolder, and whole. Dr. Monica shares her Stop Playing Diversity® message with tens of thousands of followers across social media platforms (@drmonicacox). She offers highly lauded keynotes, workshops, seminars, and personalized training that moves people from performative diversity allyship to uplifting sustainable diversity-related efforts.