Kristala Prather

Kristala Prather

she/her
Chemical Engineering
Driving departmental success with purposeful support

Impacting her mentees in a student-forward way, Kristala Prather “has provided extensive and valuable mentorship beyond her formal advising duties in the department, for which… she deserves the highest praise and recognition.”

Kristala Prather is the Arthur Dehon Little Professor of Chemical Engineering and is the head of the Department of Chemical Engineering. Her research involves the design and assembly of novel pathways for biological synthesis, enhancement of enzyme activity and control of metabolic flux, and bioprocess engineering and design.

Meaningful support

Prather has proven to be a dedicated mentor and role model for her students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. One nominator mentions that as an immigrant woman of color with no prior exposure to academia before coming to MIT, Prather’s guidance has been extremely important for them. Prather has pointed the nominator to resources that they didn’t know existed, and helped them navigate US and academic norms that they were not well versed in. 

“As an international student navigating two new cultures (that of the US as well as that of academia), it is easy to feel inadequate, confused, frustrated, or undeserving,” the student stated. Prather’s level of mentorship is not easy to find and it is extremely important to the success of all students, especially to the success of minority and international students. 

Prather actively listens to her students’ concerns and helps them to identify their areas of academic improvement with regard to their desired career path. She consistently creates a comfortable space for authentic conversations where mentees feel supported both professionally and personally. Through her deep caring, advisees feel a sense of belonging and worthiness in academia.

“I treat everyone fairly, which is not the same as treating everyone the same,” Prof. Prather says. This is a way of acknowledging the reality that each individual comes as a unique person; different people need different advising approaches. The goal is to get everyone to the same endpoint, irrespective of where they start.

Departmental impact

In addition to the meaningful support which Prather provides her students, she has also dedicated extra time to mentoring women of color in the Department. 

“She meets for dinner with multiple women of color in the Department to check in on their progress and help them navigate academia,” a nominator explains. She also works closely with the Office of Graduate Education to connect minority students and those from disadvantaged backgrounds to resources that will help them succeed. Among women of color in the Department, she is known to be a trustworthy and caring mentor. 

Since much of Prather’s mentoring goes beyond her official duties, this work can easily be overlooked. It is clear that she has deliberately dedicated extra time to help students, adding to her already numerous commitments and official positions both inside and outside of the department. Students immensely commend her, sharing that “she deserves recognition for her mentoring, which has meaningfully impacted so many in the Department.”