When a Stanford University-led study ranked the world’s most influential researchers, Professor Elena Novak, Ph.D., was on the list — placing her among the top 2% of scientists cited by peers worldwide. For Novak, a professor of educational technology in the School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies at Kent State’s College of Education, Health and Human Services, the recognition is less about personal accolade and more about what it signals for the field she loves.
“What excites me about this recognition is that it reflects a body of work built on one central question: How can we create learning experiences that promote learning, interest, and engagement?” Novak said. “That question drives everything I do, from my NSF-funded research to the courses I teach here at Kent State.”
Novak’s research focuses on designing, implementing, and evaluating educational interventions that incorporate cutting-edge technologies—such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, 3D printing, and video games—across diverse learning environments. She is particularly interested in broadening participation in STEM in historically unrepresented populations. Her work has appeared in leading peer-reviewed journals, including , and . Novak has secured more than $5 million in external funding to bring that research to life.
Her flagship project, a nearly $1.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation, centers on a “cascading peer-mentorship” model called PRIDe — Physical Science Robotics Interdisciplinary Design. Through PRIDe, Kent State students work alongside high schoolers, who in turn mentor middle and elementary school students in robotics, computer science, and artificial intelligence. Partner school districts include Kent City Schools, Cleveland Metropolitan School District, and New Philadelphia City Schools.
“When I see a high school student who has never thought of themselves as a ‘tech person’ suddenly teaching a younger kid how to program a robot — and seeing both students lighting up — that’s the research working,” Novak said. “That’s when I know why I chose this work.”
As a woman who has built her career at the intersection of STEM and education research, Novak is keenly aware of the value of representation — in who conducts research and who it reaches.
“I want students — especially young women and girls — to see that someone who looks like them is doing this work and thriving in it,” she said. “The PRIDe project was designed from the beginning to broaden participation in STEM. That means reaching students who have historically been left out of computer science, engineering, and science pathways.”
Novak joined Kent State in 2015 and built her career here, earning tenure and being promoted to full professor in 2025. Her award record spans research and teaching: in 2023 alone, she received Kent State’s Platinum Teaching Recognition Award, the Burton W. Gorman Faculty Impact on Reality Award, and an international outstanding paper award from the EdMedia + Innovate Learning conference in Vienna. In 2024, EHHS honored her with its Outstanding Research and Creativity Senior Investigator Award.
“Kent State has given me the space to do work that matters, and the students here have given me the reason to keep doing it,” Novak said.
For more information about research at Kent State University, visit www.kent.edu/research.