Cory Hixson

Blacksburg, VA

I am the husband of an amazing woman and wife, Kate, and the new father of our little boy Thatcher. After graduating from Penn State, my wife's graduate education took us to Dallas, TX where I worked as an audio-video engineer/designer and high school teacher. We now find ourselves in the New River Valley of Virginia as I pursue a PhD in Engineering Education at Virginia Tech. I love being outdoors, particularly hiking, golfing, running, and anything that reveals the beauty of what God has created. As you may have guessed, I am a Christian and I'm happy to discuss that more if you'd like. Finally, I love spending time with friends and could pretty much watch movies (good and bad) and TV shows (good only) all day long.

At Virginia Tech, I recently finished a Masters in Industrial and Systems Engineering with a focus in Management Systems Engineering. I believe the disciplines in which I've chosen to work and study–engineering, education, innovation, & entrepreneurship–provide a unique perspective as both an educator and researcher. Specifically, I view these disciplines from the organizational and systems perspectives acknowledging that proper design, continuous improvement, and innovation go hand in hand with success.

My research interests include understanding

  • the institutional structures and policies that influence educational systems,
  • technology commercialization both within academia and more broadly (research to practice),
  • entrepreneurship and innovation drivers (motivation, incentives, etc.),
  • teaching engineering and entrepreneurship, and
  • engineering faculty behaviors.

I explore these ideas from a dynamic, systems perspective making connections between the "micro" and "macro" elements of systems.

I am blessed to be a NSF Graduate Research Fellow because it has given me the time and space to fully pursue my research interests. It has also supported my ability to practice what I study and teach through starting an innovation consulting/education company (see my founder page). Our company, Inside Out Innovations, was created to help organizations (large and small, old and new) optimize innovation efforts by helping business leaders align internal and external sources of value.

  • Work
    • Director - InsideOut Innovations, LLC
  • Education
    • B.S. Engineering Science - Penn State University (2007)
    • M.S. Industrial & Systems Engineering (2014)