Rena Wood received a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University in the Department of Craft/Material Studies.

Rena is an Associate Professor of Fiber Art at Tennessee Tech University's Appalachian Center for Craft. Previously, she was a Visiting Instructor at Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania 2017-18 and a Visiting Assistant Professor at Skidmore College, 2015-16.

Former Artist in Residence at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in Houston, TX, 2014-15, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, TN, 2013-14 and at the Craft Alliance in St. Louis, MO, 2010-11.