Speaker of the Senate
She/Her
Kristine Barnes, P.E., works in systems engineering and strategy at General Motors. Since joining GM in 2016, she has worked in a variety of roles within body engineering, including side closures engineer and rear bumper lead engineer responsible for the first integration of Super Cruise technology into full-size trucks. She was then appointed the quality lead for bumper, fascia, grille, and exterior trim and most recently was the exterior vehicle systems engineer for full-size trucks.
Prior to joining GM, Barnes worked for more than nine years in the nuclear power industry as a principal engineer at AREVA Inc. and was a technical expert in finite element structural analysis.
Barnes has been a leader within the Society of Women Engineers for more than 20 years and is a life member. She has held leadership roles at all levels of the Society, including collegiate representative and leadership coach, and several roles in the Chicago Regional Section, including treasurer and president. Barnes is a long-term member of the finance committee and was chair in FY18. She started her work with the senate in FY19 and led the creation of the FY23-FY27 strategic plan as deputy speaker of the senate in FY22.
Barnes is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Texas. She holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and an MBA in engineering management from Valparaiso University and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Marquette University. In recognition of her dedication to engineering excellence, Barnes received SWE’s Emerging Leader Award in 2020 and the WE Local ELiTE award in 2019.
Email: senate-speaker@swe.org
