Ayanna Howard has been named to the Invention Ambassadors Program, sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Lemelson Foundation, a philanthropic organization that promotes inventions that will improve people’s lives around the world.

Howard is part of a class of 10 inventors from across the United States representing companies, universities, and small businesses that have over 1,100 patents among them. They were welcomed and recognized at “Celebrate Invention,” held July 14 in Washington, DC, where they shared their stories as inventors, introduced their inventions, and talked about their impacts on solving global problems.

Howard holds the Linda J. and Mark C. Smith Chair in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), where she has been a faculty member since 2005. She is the founder and CTO of Zyrobotics, which develops STEM apps and technologies that combine education and therapy to help achieve developmental milestones for children of all abilities.

Now in its third year, the AAAS-Lemelson partnership strives to enrich a fresh and diverse generation of young inventors worldwide by expanding global understanding of the role of invention in creating new products; building new intuitive businesses; cultivating the importance of invention education to foster innovation; and influencing policy makers, thought leaders, and the public. The program provides communications training and travel expenses for the ambassadors who commit to making at least two presentations about inventing during their year-long tenure with this activity.