Jessica Rush Leeker has joined Cornell Engineering’s School of Operations Research and Information Engineering as a professor of practice. Her work sits at the intersection of engineering education, data-driven decision making, and social impact—fields she approaches with both systems-level insight and deep empathy for how people learn.
“I’m an active learning teacher,” Rush Leeker said. “In my classes we role-play, analyze case studies, play games—anything that helps students practice what they’ll face in professional settings” Even her two young children get involved, sometimes helping Rush Leeker pick out prizes for classroom games. “It’s all about making learning interactive, engaging, and relevant.”
Rush Leeker grew up just outside Atlanta, Georgia. Her father was a police officer who passed away when she was just eight years old, and her mother, a lifelong Delta Air Lines flight attendant, encouraged her curiosity about travel and culture. “Through my mom, I learned to love seeing other places and understanding different ways of living,” she said. “I’m raising my kids the same way. I don’t want them to think another culture is weird—just different, and wonderful in its own way.”
From an early age, Rush Leeker was a planner. “I was in charge of planning family vacations and Thanksgiving menus,” she said. “I was the organized one.” That instinct for logistics eventually led her to Penn State University, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in supply chain and information systems. She studied abroad in Dijon, France and later began a career managing global supply chains at companies like Georgia Pacific, Unilever, and Schneider Electric.
A volunteer trip to Haiti in 2011 changed her trajectory. Delivering shoes and helping with hydroponic systems after the devastating earthquake, she noticed a disconnect between well-meaning interventions and community needs. “They were growing kale, but the locals eat callaloo,” she said. “It made me realize that engineering solutions have to begin with understanding people. You can’t just bring technology—you have to listen.”
That experience rekindled her interest in sustainability and set her on the path toward academia. She earned an MBA at Purdue University, focusing on sustainability operations , and then joined DocuSign as a procurement specialist before returning to Purdue for her Ph.D. in engineering education. “My favorite professors were the ones who had worked in industry,” she said. “They could say, ‘Here’s what this looks like in the practical settings’ I wanted to be that kind of professor.”
After completing her doctorate, Rush Leeker joined the University of Colorado Boulder in 2020. Her arrival coincided with the state’s first COVID-19 case but she adapted quickly, pioneering online active-learning techniques. “I required my students to keep their cameras on to meet with me one-on-one at least once per semester,” she said. “It made all the difference in building connection and community.” Within three months she was appointed director of undergraduate education, leading curriculum reform based on feedback from recruiters, alumni, and employers.
At Cornell, Rush Leeker teaches Engineering Economics and Data-Driven Decision Making, a popular course she has updated to include application-focused work with Power BI, Tableau, and datasets drawn from authentic, applied scenarios.. “Students build their own data sets and apply the tools to something that matters to them,” she said. “It’s about critical thinking and justification—not just getting the right answer, but explaining why it works.” As a scholar working within ORIE, Rush Leeker bridges data, human-centered design, and systems thinking. “I see engineering education as a form of applied decision science,” she said. “My work connects analytics with the ways people learn, make decisions, and navigate complex systems.”
Her research focuses on broadening participation in engineering and understanding how people come to see themselves as problem solvers. “Everyone is an engineer,” she said, echoing her Ph.D. advisor, Monica Cardella. “We’re all born trying to solve problems. Somewhere along the way, someone tells you you’re not good at math or science, and you believe them. I want to reach students before that moment.”
As a recent Fulbright U.S. Scholar, Rush Leeker conducted research on engineering identity across international contexts, examining how engineers in Brazil understand the purpose of their work. Through interviews and observations, she found a striking common thread: “Engineers overwhelmingly saw themselves as helpers—people who serve their communities, just like teachers or doctors,” she said. “But that’s not always how we teach engineering. Rush Leeker’s international engagement also extends to her leadership in the global engineering education community. She was recently appointed to the Research in Engineering Education Network (REEN) Governing Board, a collective that guides international collaboration and scholarship in engineering education research. REEN oversees the prestigious Research in Engineering Education Symposium (REES) and supports cross-institutional partnerships that advance the field worldwide.
In addition to her teaching and research, Rush Leeker co-chairs Cornell’s Community of Practice for K–12 Outreach, connecting faculty and local organizations such as 4-H and Upward Bound. Much of her work focuses on informal education—learning that happens in museums, libraries, and homes. “That’s where you can really reach kids,” she said. “It’s where curiosity begins.”
Rush Leeker’s students quickly learn that she expects them to think ethically as well as analytically. “Engineering is about responsibility,” she said. “I want them to ask, ‘Who does this impact? Who might I be leaving out?’ ”
Outside the classroom, she and her family are exploring Ithaca life. “We travel a lot,” she said, “but we also love to be home, to cook, read, and just enjoy being together.” Her seven-year-old son, already an avid reader who “finishes multiple 300-page books a week,” reminds her why curiosity matters. And her daughter, who already has a bold sense of style, keeps the family laughing as she declares she’ll be a “fashion engineer,” a playful nod to the fact that both of her parents are engineers. “They both love to learn,” she said. “That’s what I want for my students too—to keep their sense of wonder, to stay curious, and to see engineering as a way to make the world better.”
“Ultimately, I want my students to understand that engineering is a tool for building more just and resilient communities,” she said. “That’s the kind of critical thinking the world needs