Athena Lin

Athena Lin


Athena Lin is a junior studying Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She believes in the power of student voices to effectuate change in higher education. She is a student advocate for Big Beacon and chair of Students for a Whole New Education (SWNE), which is an initiative launched to empower students to become change agents in engineering education and higher education, more generally. SWNE aims to bring together students from around the world who are united by the challenges they face in an education system that resists change. Athena hopes to encourage students to reflect on their education and create opportunities for them to challenge the status quo. Athena has been involved in engineering education projects at the University of Illinois. She also participated in the Summer Experience in Education Research (SEER) at Olin College this past summer. She is planning to pursue a graduate degree in engineering education after graduation.