Max Robotics — Global Service Robot Directory + US Certification

About

Emily Hamner is a pioneering researcher at Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute whose work sits at the intersection of educational robotics, broadening participation in STEM, and K-12 curriculum design. She is best known for developing and assessing innovative programs that use robotics as a gateway to engaging diverse student populations—particularly girls and underserved communities—in computing and engineering. Her earliest high-impact work, the Robotic Autonomy mobile robotics course (154 citations), established a rigorous framework for robot-centered learning at the secondary level, incorporating both curriculum and formal educational assessment. She subsequently co-developed Robot Diaries, a groundbreaking initiative that drew middle school girls into computer science through social and creative robotics exploration (55 citations). Perhaps her most sustained contribution is the Arts & Bots program, a craft-based STEAM robotics curriculum that she successfully scaled into mainstream K-12 classrooms across multiple subject areas, accompanied by dedicated teacher professional development—work reflected across several of her later papers. Hamner's research consistently bridges technical rigor with inclusive pedagogy, demonstrating measurable gains in student learning, attitudes toward technology, and technological fluency. With over 500 cumulative citations, her body of work has materially shaped how educators and researchers conceptualize robotics as an equitable educational tool.