2019 Symposium
Dr. Edna Tan is professor of science education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Her collaborative research investigates what constitutes equitable and consequential science and engineering learning for historically underrepresented, minoritized youth across learning contexts and over time. She investigates how systemic injustice is made manifest in local practices, often in ways that are invisible or mundane, and the related impact of such oppressive local practices on youths’ science and engineering learning experiences. Her work is also focused on understanding how minoritized youths’ science and engineering experiences across science-related settings and across time can be studied and understood as holistic experiences, rather than siloed in particular formal or informal settings.
Paola Prado, Ph.D., an associate professor of Journalism and Digital Media and Program Coordinator for Latin American and Latino Studies at Roger Williams University, is a recipient of the Dr. Mark Gould Award for Commitment to Student Learning and a 2019 Hassenfeld Faculty Fellow for Community Engagement. Her research focuses on environmental journalism and on information and communication technologies for development and social change in Latin America. Prado has authored journal articles and book chapters on topics related to environmental risk news reporting and digital inclusion in Latin America. She is co-author of Environmental News in South America: Conflict, Crisis and Contestation in the Palgrave Studies in Media and Environmental Communication and co-editor of the forthcoming Emerald volume Climate Change, Media & Culture: Critical Issues in Global Environmental Communication.
A pioneer in online media, Prado directed content for the Latin American and U.S. Latino arm of RealNetworks and led U.S. operations for the Latino community portal El Sitio. Prado began her professional career at the Reuters television news agency, where she produced news reports for broadcast worldwide. She went on to lead affiliate relations for the pan regional cable news network CBS TeleNoticias and later, for the Weather Channel Latin America.
Prado holds a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Miami, a M.A. in Latin American Studies from Georgetown University, and a B.A. in Cinema from Denison University. She is fluent in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Sam Dyson is a learning designer with 25 years in education and non-profit leadership. His work recognizes that change requires learning. As a consultant, he designs and facilitates collaborative learning experiences for youth and adults so that organizations and philanthropies can put their vision into collective action. Current and recent project partners include The Barack Obama Foundation, the Community Programs Accelerator at the University of Chicago, and the Chicago Learning Exchange (CLX), a non-profit Sam co-founded with a vision for Chicago as a connected community where all learning counts.
Previously, as director of the Hive Chicago Learning Network and CLX’s deputy director, he led a city-wide professional learning community from an early-stage initiative to become a nationally recognized model that was cited twice by the National Education Technology Plan and that equipped more than 100 organizations and 300 educators to expand out-of-school learning opportunities for more than 20,000 Chicago youth.
As an aspiring physicist, Sam is motivated to experience and share personal encounters with the magic and mystery of the natural world. He has a B.A. in Physics from Yale and an M.Ed. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Lilah Sloane is the Communications Associate for the AAAS Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion (DoSER) program. In this role, she helps facilitate dialogue between scientific and religious communities. She is also active in the AAAS Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) Committee. Prior to working at AAAS, Lilah received a Religious Studies degree from Wesleyan University, then worked at the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE), organizing and managing their National Conference and Global Forum on Science, Policy, and the Environment.
Liz Crocker is a program associate in the AAAS Center for Public Engagement With Science program. She works on the AAAS IF/THEN Ambassador program which seeks to empower the next generation of women in STEM and she facilitates science communication workshops. She has a PhD in cultural anthropology and serves as the Co-Chair for the AAAS Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Committee.
Efrain Rivera-Serrano is a cell biologist by training interested in how eukaryotic cells respond to viral infections. He is originally from Puerto Rico, where he completed his undergraduate degree in biology and chemistry. He obtained his M.Sc. degree in plant biology studying protein movement in plant cells and later a Ph.D. in comparative biomedical sciences where he focused on studying viral infections in the heart, both degrees from North Carolina State University. He completed a two-year postdoctoral scholarship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is currently completing his second postdoctoral training at the University of California, Davis.
Outside of the laboratory, Efra is a science communicator on social media (@NakedCapsid on Twitter) where he uses the beauty of microscopy to teach complex biological systems, as well as promoting mental and physical health during higher education training. As a first generation gay latino man, he is passionate about promoting diversity and inclusion and fighting for equity, particularly in STEM fields. He is the founder of #UniqueScientists (https://uniquescientists.com), a program that focuses on highlighting and sharing daily stories of diverse scientists online and on social media. Aside from writing traditional peer-reviewed research articles, Efra also writes blogs and publishes articles on science communication, diversity and inclusion, and mentoring skills.
Dr. Jennifer D. Adams was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. After college she worked in physical therapy for two years before entering the field of education. Dr. Adams taught high school Biology in the New York City Public Schools and concurrently worked as a field instructor for New York City Outward Bound. Dr. Adams then moved on to the American Museum of Natural History where she worked as a manager of teacher education. Dr. Adams completed a MS in nutrition at Brooklyn College, CUNY and an MA in education at New York University followed by a PhD in urban education with a Science, Math and Technology specialization at The Graduate Center, CUNY. Prior to joining the University of Calgary in 2017, Dr. Adams was an associate professor of science education at Brooklyn College, CUNY. Dr. Adams enjoys running and dance.
Dr. Katherine Canfield (she/her/they) is an interdisciplinary scholar-activist working across fields of public engagement, environmental justice, and critical tourism studies. She recently completed her doctorate in Marine Affairs at the University of Rhode Island, where she studied residents’ perceptions of social injustices of tourism development on Catalina Island, California, and public memory on Block Island, Rhode Island. Since then, she has been working with the Metcalf Institute at the University of Rhode Island, researching the status of the field of inclusive science communication. This fall she begins a postdoctoral fellowship on translational science with the Environmental Protection Agency.
Kevin M. Alicea-Torres is a fifth-year doctoral candidate in cell and molecular biology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn). He obtained his Bachelor of Science in microbiology from the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao (UPR-H), where he conducted research as a Ronald McNair Scholar and NIH-MARC Fellow. He also participated in a summer research internship at the University of Chicago (2011) and at Penn (2012). After graduating from UPR-H, he joined the post-baccalaureate program at Penn and studied the impact of immunotherapy in the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer. Soon after, Kevin started his doctoral studies at Penn, and he is conducting his thesis research in Dr. Dmitry Gabrilovich’s lab at The Wistar Institute. His research focuses on the regulation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells by type 1 interferons in cancer. He has already published five peer-reviewed articles and earned several presentation awards. His ultimate goal is to develop a novel immune therapeutic approach to treat cancer patients. Kevin has been actively involved in several outreach initiatives, retention and recruitment of underrepresented students in STEM. He founded and led Penn’s SACNAS Chapter as president from 2016-2018 and is the co-founder of “Caminos en Ciencia,” a Spanish podcast that explores the challenges, successes, and lessons learned by Latinx researchers and students along their careers and training in science. Finally, he wants to serve as a mentor and guide the next generation of scientists by engaging with low-income communities in Latin America.
Kevin M. Alicea-Torres is a fifth-year doctoral candidate in cell and molecular biology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn). He obtained his Bachelor of Science in microbiology from the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao (UPR-H), where he conducted research as a Ronald McNair Scholar and NIH-MARC Fellow. He also participated in a summer research internship at the University of Chicago (2011) and at Penn (2012). After graduating from UPR-H, he joined the post-baccalaureate program at Penn and studied the impact of immunotherapy in the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer. Soon after, Kevin started his doctoral studies at Penn, and he is conducting his thesis research in Dr. Dmitry Gabrilovich’s lab at The Wistar Institute. His research focuses on the regulation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells by type 1 interferons in cancer. He has already published five peer-reviewed articles and earned several presentation awards. His ultimate goal is to develop a novel immune therapeutic approach to treat cancer patients. Kevin has been actively involved in several outreach initiatives, retention and recruitment of underrepresented students in STEM. He founded and led Penn’s SACNAS Chapter as president from 2016-2018 and is the co-founder of “Caminos en Ciencia,” a Spanish podcast that explores the challenges, successes, and lessons learned by Latinx researchers and students along their careers and training in science. Finally, he wants to serve as a mentor and guide the next generation of scientists by engaging with low-income communities in Latin America.
Jamie Bell is the Project Director and Principal Investigator for the Centre for Advancement of Informal Science Education at the Association of Science-Technology Centers in Washington D.C.He is a former Director of the Center of Learning at Petrosains: The Discovery Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and has held leadership and consulting positions at informal STEM learning institutions and organizations including the Exploratorium in San Francisco, the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and TERC. He is interested in the interface between informal STEM learning, science communication and public engagement with STEM.
Gemima Philippe is a communication associate for the American Association for the Advancement of Science Center for Public Engagement with Science and Technology. She coordinates marketing and social media for Center programs, facilitates Communicating Science workshops, and supports other Center programs. Prior to joining AAAS in 2016, Gemima worked with both federal and private sector clients to promote occupational health and health communication services and with volunteer organizations to promote adolescent health. She holds a Master’s in Public Health Marketing and Communication (George Washington University) and a Bachelor’s in Communication (University of Maryland). In her spare time, Gemima engages with adolescent girls in the Washington, D.C., metro area fielding awkward questions about sexual health, nutrition and body image.
Robert O’Malley is a Project Director for the AAAS Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion project. He earned a B.A. in anthropology and zoology at Miami University of Ohio, a M.A. in anthropology at the University of Alberta, and a Ph.D. in integrative and evolutionary biology at the University of Southern California. His subsequent postdoctoral research at the George Washington University and the National Zoological Park focused on diet and foraging behavior in eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) at Gombe National Park in Tanzania. Rob has taught biological anthropology and evolution courses at the University of Southern California, Kenyon College, the George Washington University, and the University of Maryland. He has participated in public science engagement through the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park, the National Museum of Natural History, the AAAS, and independently. His peer-reviewed research has been published in Folia Primatologica, Current Anthropology, the Journal of Human Evolution and the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, among other journals. In addition to studying primate behavioral ecology, Rob has a strong interest in questions of human origins — including the environmental context of human evolution, and how interactions of biology and culture shaped (and continue to shape) our species.
Barbara J. Natalizio, Ph.D. is a biomedical research scientist with the Ronin Institute. Immediately prior to joining the Foundation, she was a program officer with the Board on Higher Education and Workforce at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Before working at the Academies, she was an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science and Technology Policy Fellow serving in the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, Division of Graduate Education at the National Science Foundation. Dr. Natalizio is formally trained as a biomedical research scientist with a background in cell and developmental biology, having completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. During her time there, she became invested in finding creative ways to support the integration of the arts and humanities in STEM and as such, she has been actively engaged with the Cultivating Ensembles in STEM Education and Research (CESTEMER) conference since 2014 and will be co-chair for the 2021 conference. These collective experiences have provided her with a comprehensive understanding of effective evaluation, assessment, and policy that enables her continued support of science communication initiatives. Dr. Natalizio earned her B.S. in biochemistry and history from Montclair State University and her Ph.D. in molecular genetics and microbiology from Duke University.
Dr. Jim Martinez is the Chair of the Interdisciplinary Studies Program, at the New York Institute of Technology. His active research interests include STEAM/STEM learning, service-learning pedagogy, teacher development, and collaborative Vygotskian approaches to community development and learning. Dr. Martinez is a graduate of City University of New York Graduate Center with a Ph.D. in Urban Education. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from Hunter College and a Master of Science in Education from Lehman College. He is also a permanently certified grades 1 – 6 New York City public school teacher. Before teaching, Dr. Martinez was a managing director for an internet security start-up firm and a corporate information technology manager. He has published two books, A Performatory Approach to Teaching, Learning and Technology and recently, The Search for Method in STEAM Education. He is the co-chair of the Cultivating Ensembles Conference in Chicago in 2021.
Evelyn Valdez-Ward (she/ella) is a fourth year, undocumented, PhD Candidate and co-creator of Reclaiming STEM, a workshop centering science communication and science policy training specifically for marginalized scientists. As a Ford Fellow, her work focuses on the effects of climate change on the interactions between plants and their soil microbes. Her strong advocacy for undocumented scientists has led her to be published in Science and Scientific American, invited to speak at the national 2018 March for Science, and featured in several other publications.
Gaius J. Augustus started creating art as a child to animate his fiction stories. After attending fine arts schools for middle and high school, he attended a fine arts university for film & television production. He returned to school for science, receiving his BSc in Integrative Studies with a focus on Chemistry & Biology in 2014 and his PhD in Cancer Biology in 2019. Gaius believes that science should be communicated through as many modes as possible, and uses his understanding of the visual arts to help others develop the skills necessary to make science more visual. Gaius is also a queer, trans* person who is open about sharing his struggles with gender identity, mental illness, and physical disability. More than anything, Gaius loves learning through stories, so don’t be shy to share yours, but don’t be surprised if he asks you a lot of questions.
Natalie Bennett serves as Adaptation and Assessment Analyst for the US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP). In her role, she provides support for activates and engagement related to the National Climate Assessment, and coordinates efforts to help prepare communities for the impacts of climate change. Natalie has a B.A. in Environmental Biology from Colgate University.
Liz Neeley is the Executive Director of The Story Collider. In live shows across the country, a weekly podcast, and intensive workshops, The Story Collider is dedicated to producing true, personal stories about science. She comes to the field of storytelling after a decade of work in ocean conservation and science communication. From 2008 to 2015, she worked as the Assistant Director of Science Outreach for COMPASS, and was affiliate staff at The University of Washington. Before that, she worked on locally-managed marine conservation in Fiji and Papua New Guinea, and on international trade policies for deep-sea corals for SeaWeb. Her approach to communication is influenced by her graduate research at Boston University on the evolution of visual communication in tropical reef fishes. She was on the advisory board of the CommLab at MIT 2015-2017, and on the advisory council of Ensia magazine from 2016-2018. In 2018, she commissioned and edited the peer-reviewed “Stories from the Frontlines of Conservation” series at PLOS Biology. She sat on the organizing committee of the 2019 National Academies of Science’s Sackler Colloquium on the science of science communication. She currently holds a Lecturer appointment at Yale University through the National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative. Find her on twitter at @LizNeeley.
Ariel Zych is the Education Director at The Science Friday Initiative, the 501c3 non-profit organization that produces the public radio program Science Friday along with a variety of other multimedia channels including video, web, and social media. She leads educational programming and evaluation at Science Friday that serves students, teachers, parents, and lifelong learners through educational multimedia, citizen science, professional development, classroom materials, and more. A mom and former teacher, camp counselor, and biologist, Ariel can relate to the thrill of kayaking with alligators, capturing dragonflies on the wing, sifting through tidepools, and relating to hundreds of intelligent teenagers a day. Her work at Science Friday has found her sailing aboard the E/V Nautilus as it explored deep ocean hydrothermal vents, driving through the Mojave Desert in search of extremophile algae, and flying in helicopters around the Dry Valleys of Antarctica.
Jory Weintraub, has a PhD in Immunology and over 20 years of experience in science outreach and communication. Diversity, equity and inclusivity in STEM have been constant themes of his work throughout his career. Currently, his two primary areas of focus are science communication and broader impacts. He is a faculty member at Duke University, where he teaches courses and runs trainings in science communication. He also serves as the founding director of Duke’s Broader Impacts Resource Center, is a member of the NABI (National Alliance for Broader Impacts) Steering Committee and is a co-PI and Training Director of the NSF-funded ARIS (Advancing Research Impacts in Society) Center.
Heather Mannix as Assistant Director of Policy Engagement for COMPASS, Heather works to facilitate constructive discussion and interaction between scientists and decision makers. Before coming to COMPASS, she spent seven+ years at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in Washington D.C. working with large ocean research programs such as the Census of Marine Life and the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative. She also managed the Ocean Research Advisory Panel, a science advisory body to the Federal Government. Heather received her B.A. from Hood College in Environmental Science and Policy and her M.A. from American University in Global Environmental Policy.
Mohamed Yakub is the Scientific Outreach Manager at SciLine. Mohamed is a biologist with a background in evolutionary ecology and plant genetics, and a deep commitment to science outreach and education. For three years before joining SciLine, Mohamed was the science outreach and education coordinator at the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Minnesota, where he oversaw the formation of the Plant Education Group (UMN PlantEd), an interdisciplinary research and outreach group focused on plant sciences. At UMN, he also led the Minnesota Youth Institute, a program partnered with the World Food Prize that challenges high school students to research solutions to global hunger issues. He enjoys innovating novel approaches to science education and communication and, while in graduate school, created and launched Market Science, an outreach initiative through which graduate students host hands-on booths at local farmers markets to share their scientific expertise with market-goers.
Vijay Limaye is an environmental health scientist working as a Climate Change and Health Science Fellow at the Natural Resources Defense Council in New York City. He is broadly interested in quantifying, communicating, and mitigating the health risks associated with climate change, with a focus on the public health burden of global air pollution and extreme heat events. Prior to his role at NRDC, Vijay worked for three years as a scientist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regional offices in San Francisco and Chicago, focusing on issues such as Clean Air Act regulatory implementation, risk communication, citizen science, and air-quality monitoring policy. Vijay holds a B.A. from the University of California-Berkeley and a Ph.D. in environmental epidemiology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For his dissertation, Vijay has conducted interdisciplinary research quantifying the health impacts of climate change–triggered air pollution and heat waves for populations in the United States and India.
Danielle Fox is a campaign manager and manager of the Science Network for the Center for Science and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists. As campaign manager, Danielle develops and implements campaigns for advocates, partners, and scientists to protect and promote the role of science in democratic dialogue, and the policy making process. She also manages the UCS Science Network, which offers scientists and technical experts training, resources, and engagement opportunities to grow as advocates and put their expertise to work for public good. With more than a decade of experience in both policy-making and policy advocacy, Danielle’s passion is in building networks and opportunities that harness people’s talents to affect change. Prior to joining UCS, she worked as the research director for the Massachusetts State Legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Service, which spearheaded substantive policy reforms for pension and healthcare coverage. Danielle was also the national student program coordinator for Physicians for Human Rights, where she built a network of more than 75 medical and public health student chapters and coordinated campaigns for students and medical residents to advocate for health and human rights policy. She earned a master’s in public affairs from the University of Massachusetts Boston and a B.A. in international development and social change from Clark University.
Bryan M. Dewsbury is an Assistant Professor of Biology. His research program (SEAS | Science Education And Society) focuses on the social context of learning. He also conducts faculty development nationwide on inclusive teaching in curriculum design and higher education pedagogies. He teaches introductory biology courses, whose products and approaches have been featured in The Chronicle, EdSurge and Scientific American.
Laura Kiesel is an independent researcher and reporter living with chronic illness who resides in the Boston metro area. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous reputable outlets, including The Atlantic, The Guardian, Salon, the Washington Post, The Fix, Vice, Al-Jazeera, Healthline, Health Union and many others. She is a frequent contributor to Harvard Health blog and Relief News–a media vertical of Harvard Medical School. You can visit her website at www.laurakiesel.com
Ananya Jain “I am a class tenth student from India who is an avid film maker and loves science and math as subject and as way of life. Having participated in various national and international film festivals as child delegate and child jury I have developed a special interest in making short science videos and films. My various films have been shortlisted , nominated, screened or awarded at various national and international science film festivals. I started with screening of audio described films at local blind school and our close interactions with students over there made us realized the issue of science and math education for visually impaired. I have been two time finalist in Village to raise a child (VTRAC) project of Harvard university and our this project was a semifinalist at diamond challenge for high school entrepreneurs at university of Delaware, USA. Recently my film ‘ Accessible Light’ has won prestigious bronze beaver ( an official national award) at ninth national science film festival of India. This film explains the principles of light ( reflection, refraction and rectilinear propagation of light) to visually impaired. My another film on ‘ Diffraction’ has also won first prize at prestigious IISc.I like playing guitar and basketball and I have cleared three levels of french language exam as external student. I am also the member of cyber security committee in my school. I intend to make a career in technology and harness the benefits of technology for specially abled people specially in the fields of STEM education.”
Alberto I. Roca, Ph.D. is Executive Director of the non-profit, DiverseScholar, whose mission is to diversify the doctoral (STEM) workforce, tech industry, and the science communication profession. Dr. Roca received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. While conducting postdoctoral research, he created the portal MinorityPostdoc.org, founded the Postdoc Committee of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), and co-founded the Diversity Committee of the National Postdoctoral Association. Dr. Roca works with Ph.D. trainees directly as a career coach and also connects institutional diversity stakeholders to job candidates especially for tenure-track faculty positions. Since 2011 as Editor, Dr. Roca has been publishing/overseeing original written works for his DiverseScholar magazine on the issues of diversity, STEM, and higher education. In the journalism sector, his activities encourage minority reporters to learn about STEM/health news stories as well as educates minority scientists about science communication skills/careers. His expertise in this area led to the chapter on “Using Social Media to Diversify Science” for the book Science Blogging: The Essential Guide. These #SciComm activities have been facilitated by a grant from the National Association of Science Writers that created the DiverseScholar travel awards to attend the ScienceWriters conference. In recognition of his achievements, Dr. Roca has received the University of California-Irvine Chancellor’s Living Our Values Award, the SACNAS Presidential Service Award, and the top NCWIT Flash Tank prize for his pitch on the topic of diversity in tech journalism.
Heather Miceli is an adjunct professor at Roger Williams University teaching in the general education CORE curriculum. She has a B.S. in Marine Biology, and M.O. in Oceanography, and her Ph.D. in Education, all from the University of Rhode Island. Her research interests include the incorporation of Open Education Resources and Open Pedagogy into science course, especially general education, as well as the inclusion of adjunct faculty in professional development opportunities on campus and how it develops their sense of community on campus. She is also an adjunct science professor at Johnson & Wales University.
Deena Gould is a research associate in the School of Molecular Sciences at Arizona State University. Her research focuses on the design and study of expansive learning opportunities for youth and communities spanning across formal, informal, face-to-face, and digital spaces. Taking an ecological perspective, and using decolonizing methodologies, she studies how youth navigate boundary crossings in complex STEM ecosystems.
Megan Hamilton is a doctoral scholar research fellow, graduate research assistant, and Indigenous researcher in the department of Instructional Technology & Learning Sciences at Utah State University. Her research interests include K-12 STEM education, broadening participation in STEM, and developing STEM partnerships between informal and formal learning environments. She is an enrolled member of the Minnesota Chippewa tribe. She is a student researcher in the LearnExploreDesign (LED) lab directed by Dr. Breanne Litts. She currently works with multiple LED projects to co-develop culturally-responsive making activities, especially culturally-responsive video game design, with Indigenous youth and their communities.
Dr. Anique Olivier-Mason launched the Brandeis Science Communication Lab in the Fall of 2017 and is its program director in addition to her role as the Director of Education, Outreach and Diversity of the Brandeis Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC). Anique attended the 2017 MIT Communication Lab Summer Institute and was inspired to bring their model of a discipline-specific peer-coaching program to Brandeis. Anique’s dedication to science communication stems from her drive to improve scientific literacy by lowering unnecessary barriers that prevent people from engaging in science and engineering. As a bench-trained scientist, she has taught many courses including Responsible Conduct of Research ethics, the MIT Kaufman Teaching Certificate Program (KTCP) course, and undergraduate genetics. She believes in the power of peer-coaching as a method of improving an entire community’s ability to communicate effectively.
Jesse Shanahan is a data scientist at Booz Allen Hamilton, specializing in AI for humanitarian use and science ethics. Currently, she is also working with Dr. Brooke Simmons at the University of California, San Diego where she analyzes the multiwavelength photometry and spectroscopy of bulgeless galaxies. Formerly, she was graduate researcher in astrophysics, an accessibility coordinator, and a science communicator with a focus on public speaking, outreach, and consulting. In her first year of graduate school, she founded an astronomy outreach program for kids, which has received attention from press and remains a popular bi-monthly event at Van Vleck Observatory. In addition to teaching classes for the public at local museums and schools, she gives talks on improving accessibility for disabled scientists and writes for Forbes Magazine as a contributor specializing in astronomy and linguistics. Throughout her career, Jesse has advocated staunchly for intersectional equity and is a founding member of the Astronomy Anti-Racism Group (AARG!). She continues to be a dedicated disability rights activist and was a co-founder of the Working Group in Accessibility and Disability in the American Astronomical Society. She is also serving on the Society’s Early Career Advisory Board and on the leadership board of 500 Women Scientists.
Robert Ulrich is a 2nd year Ph.D. biogeochemistry Ph.D. student whose research revolves biomineralization, which is how living things make functional, mineralized structures. He is also the founding president of Queers in STEM, writing consultant, an NSF Graduate Research Fellow, and a Center for Diverse Leadership in Science Fellow. He is also a part of the CDLS student/postdoc leadership, an organizer for International LGBTQ+ STEM Day, and an organizer for Reclaiming STEM, the first science communication and science policy workshop by and for underrepresented minorities in STEM. Rob recently received the UCLA Curtis Shepard LGBT Leadership award for his leadership and outreach to the LGBTQ+ community at UCLA and abroad, and under his leadership, Queers in STEM won the UCLA Organization of the Year award. Rob is also passionate about communicating his research and outreach, focusing on writing, social media posts, and videos. He has been invited onto the popular podcasts Science Sucks!, Her STEM Story, and Talk Nerdy;to give an AGU Centennial Webinar for LGBTQ+ STEM Day;to be a panelist on community organizing & activation at the National Organization of Gay & Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals’ Out-to-Innovate summit and the Dr. Lucy Jones Center for Science and Society National Science Activation Symposium; and to interview for the American Geophysical Union’s science publication, Eos, as well as the American Chemical Society’s Chemistry & Engineering News (or C&EN).
Michael Winikoff is Communications Director at the University of Minnesota BioTechnology Institute and Director of the Science Communication Lab, an internship program that engages artists, writers, and scientists in telling science stories in novel formats like animated shorts, children’s books, traveling exhibits, and live performance. He is the founder of the Science is a Visual Medium speakers series, which focuses on the intersection between science, art, and design.
A visual artist, writer, and graphic designer. Michael’s play the Botanist’s Wife appeared at the Minnesota Fringe Festival. He was a guest instructor at Alfred University School of Art and Design, where he taught Freshman Foundation Studio. His graphic design work has focused on the not-for-profit sector, including the Cedar Cultural Center, the Aspen Institute, the Soros Foundation’s Open Society Institute, and the Treatment Action Group.
Michael presented his work teaching written and visual storytelling at the 4th Biennial Writing Enriched Curriculum Symposium. He has a research interest in the use of storytelling as a communications tool and a vehicle to enhance engagement and understanding of research in the sciences, humanities, and public policy.
Disan Davis is a scientist and educator who combines her love of food and a quest for understanding the world around her to make science captivating and relevant for others. A native Minnesotan, Disan studied chemistry at Carleton College, and then was drawn to New York for graduate school where she received her PhD in biochemistry from The Rockefeller University. She then taught science at Hunter College High School before returning to The Rockefeller University as the Program Manager for RockEDU Science Outreach. In this role, Disan blends her experiences in the lab and the classroom to better engage students, support teachers, and include interested scientists in STEM education.
Virginia Schutte I am an award-winning science communicator who has both a PhD and 5+ years of extremely broad science media experience. I have worked with Springer Nature to deliver training workshops; I experimented with social media techniques for brands while I was the media department for a marine science lab; and my photography, videography, and website-building skills have been used by scientific institutions on 2 continents.
Jeanne Garbarino is the Director of RockEDU Science Outreach at The Rockefeller University. Along with the awesome RockEDU team, she works to promote and support science outreach within the scientific community, open channels for community members to develop an appreciation for science as a human endeavor, and to provide equitable access to scientific resources and opportunities that genuinely reflect the process of science. She is deeply interested in how to build meaningful professional connections within the science outreach and engagement professional space, and to promote the continued professionalization of the science outreach field. Before becoming a practitioner of science outreach, Jeanne kicked off her scientific career as a lipid biochemist, earning her PhD in metabolic biology from Columbia University, then conducting postdoctoral studies on cholesterol transport at Rockefeller.
Ana Maria Porras is a biomedical engineer and Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow at Cornell University. Ana’s research interests encompass a wide variety of topics including biomaterials, cardiovascular disease, and the human microbiome. Her current research lies at the intersection of the gut microbiome and global health. Originally from Colombia, Dr. Porras arrived in the U.S. 13 years ago to pursue her BS in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin followed by a MS/PhD at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. At UW, she also completed a Delta Certificate in Teaching and Learning with a particular emphasis on inclusive pedagogy. Over time, Ana grew tired of her inability to communicate her research in her native language and started a science communication initiative in both English and Spanish on social media. You can find her as @AnaMaPorras and @anaerobias, where every #MicrobeMonday and #MicroMartes, respectively, Ana teaches microbiology using crocheted microbes designed by herself. She takes diversity and inclusion in STEM very seriously and for this reason, Colombian scientists are often profiled on her accounts. She has also been featured in campaigns to increase the representation of women in STEM in both the United States and Colombia. Outside of all that, Ana loves to travel, bake, swim, dance, read, and above all, eat ice cream.
Catalina Martinez is the Regional Program Manager for the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER), with an office on the URI Graduate School of Oceanography (GSO) Campus. A certified diversity professional with three graduate degrees from URI (MS Oceanography, MMA Marine Affairs, MBA), Ms. Martinez began her ocean science career with NOAA in 2002 working on ship operations and logistics, as well as education and outreach initiatives associated with expeditions to explore little known and unknown ocean areas. Ms. Martinez spent many years sailing on research vessels as Expedition Coordinator for NOAA OER, and currently spends most of her time managing the joint efforts associated with multiple important collaborations at URI, and as regional liaison for the program.
Ms. Martinez also works on a variety of local, regional, and national efforts to face the barriers to entry for underrepresented individuals into STEM fields, and was honored with the URI Diversity Award for Staff/Administrator Excellence in Leadership and Service in 2010 for this work. She consistently seeks to increase potential for life success for individuals born to challenging circumstances, and was recognized by the YWCA as one of their 2015 Women of Achievement in Rhode Island for promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity. Ms. Martinez also received the 2016 NOAA Oceanic and Atmospheric Research EEO/Diversity Award for Exemplary Service for dedication to improving the representation of women and minorities in STEM. Most recently, Ms. Martinez was honored with the 2019 Women of Color in STEM Diversity Leadership in Government Award for demonstrating sustained leadership in creating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive Federal workforce.
Dr. Michael Cacciatore’s research examines the communication of science topics ranging from vaccinations to nanotechnology. A significant portion of this research has tracked media depictions of science issues, paying particular attention to the role of social media in the communication process. His work also examines the interplay between media, values and risk in public opinion formation. Currently, he is focused on the potential for humor to be used as a tool for public engagement in science.
Mani Garcia: Current positions: (1) doctoral student in clinical psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice; (2) adjunct instructor of statistics and quantitative reasoning at Guttman Community College; (3) freelance certified sign language interpreter; (4) certified holistic yoga teacher ??♂️
Xochitl Garcia, a Science Friday’s K-12 Education Program Manager works on creating educational resources and educator programs/trainings. She earned her BA in politics from Occidental College (2006), an MA in leadership and special education from City College of New York (2011), and was a Lehman College Teacher Education for Advanced Science Preparation in Biology Fellow (2012). Xochitl taught special education and science in the New York City Department of Education for seven years before leaving to work at Science Friday. She has facilitated professional development for teachers and school leaders, including leading year-long professional developments for teachers in with Columbia Teacher’s College Inclusive Classrooms Project (TCICP), presenting her work at the National Association for Multicultural Education conference, working with teams in New England on community responsive school design, and leading Science Friday’s Educator Collaborative. Xochitl has dedicated her career to teacher learning communities and creating engaging and thoughtful science curriculum.
Persephone Hooper Lewis is a PhD student in Education Studies at UC San Diego and the tribal liaison and a professor of practice in the Ethnic Studies department at the University of San Diego. She is a citizen of the Yomba Band of Shoshone Indians, but has been a guest on the traditional territory of the Kumeyaay Nation for two decades. Committed to the principle of self-determination, she has worked with a number of Native American tribal nations and Indian-serving nonprofit organizations to ensure greater effectiveness and control of operations and affairs, especially in the areas of tribal education and youth development. Currently, she is working on a research project to better understand the intersections between Indigenous technoscience and western science within a Southern California context. The project findings will inform the development of a STEAM curriculum that fits the needs and experiences of local indigenous students.
Dr. Hollie Smith is an Assistant Professor of Science and Environmental Communication at the University of Oregon. She is an interdisciplinary social scientist who works primarily in the UO’s Media Center for Science and Technology, studying the intersections between scientific and social institutions, with a focus on applied research. She has a PhD from the University of Maine and her work has been supported by such agencies as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, National Science Foundation, and American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Sehoya Cotner earned her PhD in Conservation Biology, but has turned her research focus to undergraduate biology education. She is particularly interested in barriers to equity in STEM fields, focusing much of her work on performance and retention gaps that arise in introductory-level courses. Sehoya is PI of several NSF-funded initiatives emphasizing inclusive teaching, training teaching assistants to facilitate inquiry, and course-based research experiences. She has most recently published on the effect of class size on gender-biased performance gaps, participation gaps in biology and chemistry courses, the role of high-stakes tests in observed performance gaps (between men and women, and between first-generation college students and their continuing-generation counterparts), and how gender ratios impact in-class group dynamics. Current work highlights the role of hidden identities in active-learning settings. Sehoya has proposed, and continues to explore, the “Course Deficit Model,” whereby instructional choices can either increase or lower barriers to equity.
Sunshine Menezes (she/her) is executive director of the University of Rhode Island’s Metcalf Institute and Clinical Associate Professor of Environmental Communication in the URI Department of Natural Resources Science. Her professional expertise spans oceanography, estuarine ecology, environmental and energy policy, inclusive science communication and engagement, and promoting societal participation in science through boundary-spanning graduate education and professional development for journalists and scientists. As a teacher, she aims to empower students with science communication skills through interdisciplinary explorations of communication and public engagement scholarship and practice. Menezes earned a Ph.D. in oceanography from the URI Graduate School of Oceanography in 2005.
Shayle Benjamin Matsuda is a science storyteller and PhD candidate at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and the University of Hawaii Manoa, where his research focuses on what will happen to corals under future climate conditions. His work centers around coral symbioses – the complex partnerships between corals and the algae and bacteria that live within their tissues. Shayle is an avid science communicator and advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion in science. He was the creator and host of the popular San Francisco science happy hour series, “Science, Neat”, and has presented on the Story Collider and Ologies podcasts, at Nerd Nite, NASA FameLab, and at the California Academy of Sciences’ Earth Update in the Morrison Planetarium. Shayle demonstrates his passion for helping others develop their #scicomm voice through is Sketchnotes Workshops and visual watercolor notes (@wrong_whale), and as a member of the leadership team for ComSciCon.com, the National Communicating Science Workshop for STEM graduate students. He is a Research Associate in the Department of Invertebrate Zoology at the California Academy of Sciences, a member of the Diversity and Inclusion team at oSTEM, and an Ambassador at The Hydrous.
Kendall Moore, PhD, is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and a Full Professor in the departments of Journalism and Film Media. Before joining the faculty at URI in 2003, she worked as a television journalist focusing on medical, health, race, and environmental issues.
Moore has produced numerous independent documentaries that have aired on PBS, in film festivals, and at conferences including: Charm City (1996), Song in the Crisis (2004), Sovereign Nation/Sovereign Neighbor (2006), The Good Radical (2009), Sick Building (2014), Philosophy of the Encounter (fiction, 2016), and Jalen and Joanna: A Lead Paint Story (2017). Her most recent film is Can We Talk? Difficult Conversations with Underrepresented People of Color: Sense of Belonging and Obstacles to STEM Fields (2019).
She has received several grants and awards for her work, including two Fulbright Scholar Awards: Tanzania (2001) and Jamaica (Specialist, 2004); The Rhode Island Film Fellowship for Outstanding Filmmaking (2007); and, the Metcalf Award for excellence in reporting the underreported in 2015 and 2019. In 2016, she was commended by Crain’s magazine as a professor of merit in the field of journalism.
She serves on the boards of The Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting as well as The Story Board at Salve Regina University. She also enjoys mentoring women of color interested in documentary film production.
She earned her B.A. from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School in Latin American Studies and an M.A. in Media Studies and documentary film, from The New School for Social Research. Her PhD is in Philosophy focusing on Black Philosophy, racism, and aesthetics, from the European Graduate School for Media and Communication.
Dr. Lisette E. Torres-Gerald is a trained scientist and disabled scholar-activist who runs a writing center and coordinates two National Science Foundation (NSF) grants – LSAMP and S-STEM – focused on the broader participation of marginalized students at Nebraska Wesleyan University. Her academic research focuses on addressing racial and gender inequity and disability in science and higher education, with her recent dissertation exploring how scientist of color use blogs as a means to speak truth to power and to the people. Lisette is an active member of Science for the People, serving as the Accessibility Editor for Science for the People Magazine. She is also a co-founder and executive board member of the National Coalition for Latinxs with Disabilities (CNLD) and an advisory board member of the Invisible Disability Project (IDP).
Alycia Mosley Austin, Ph.D., is Assistant Dean of Graduate Recruitment and Diversity Initiatives and Associate Director of the Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program at the University of Rhode Island. She completed her undergraduate degree in neuroscience at Brown University in 2001 and her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of California, San Diego in 2010. Immediately following graduate school, Alycia began her administrative career in Graduate Recruitment and Diversity Initiatives at URI. Her responsibilities include overseeing graduate admissions operations, planning and implementing recruitment and retention initiatives that will attract and provide support for a diverse population of graduate students, advising faculty and staff on best practices in recruitment, collecting and analyzing data on graduate admissions and enrollment, and making recommendations to improve Graduate School policy. In 2011, she took on an additional role with the recently established Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program (INP) at URI, which offers MS and Ph.D. degrees, as well as post-baccalaureate certificates. Alycia provides leadership at all levels including instruction, curricular affairs, admissions, advising, and managing the activities of the Executive Committee that oversees the program.