About cSw
Each year, curiousSCIENCEwriters selects a group of high school students through a highly competitive application process to participate in an intensive extracurricular training program. Key elements include mentoring by scientists and science communications professionals through remote and onsite sessions. This collaborative process, which includes student writers, editors, graphic designers and social media coordinators results in credible, engaging science stories that are disseminated through a variety of traditional and trending media outlets.
Founded in 2010 by Jayne Mackta, past president of the New Jersey Association for Biomedical Research, cSw operated under the auspices of States United for Biomedical Research from 2013 to 2018. The program is now hosted by Americans for Medical Progress which has expanded the initiative. AMP continued to run cSw both before and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 and 2021 summer Boot Camps were held virtually for safety reasons. The current program feattures a week-long online summer boot camp with in-person opportunities in some areas.
Do you have the drive and passion for science communication?
Past student Chief Editor Shivani Patel, discusses the training program for exceptional high school students with a passion for science and writing. Created to “advance the art of science communication,” cSw is an innovative, extracurricular program that prepares highly motivated high school communicators to bring complex biomedical science to the general public through the power of story.
Program Team
Paula Clifford
Program Director
Paula Clifford serves as the executive director for Americans for Medical Progress (AMP), a non-profit organization that provides innovative programs to provide information to the public about biomedical research and the important role animals have in advancing medicine and science. Previously, she worked for the Pennsylvania Society for Biomedical Research (PSBR) where she led efforts to provide educational programs about biomedical research for K-12 students. Her past professional roles include; Co-founder and Vice President of Operations for Animal Care Training Services (ACTS); and Veterinary Technician and then Training Manager at the University of Pennsylvania.
Paula received a Master of Liberal Arts from the University of Pennsylvania, a Bachelor of Arts from Rutgers University, and an Associate of Applied Science in Veterinary Technology from Camden County College. She is a Pennsylvania Licensed Veterinary Technician (CVT) and is certified by the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS) as a Registered Laboratory Animal Technologist (RLATG
Laura Stephenson Carter
Senior Editor and Mentor
Laura recently retired as the Editor-in-Chief of The NIH Catalyst, a publication about the research conducted at the National Institutes of Health. But she just couldn’t leave NIH behind and is now a Special Volunteer for the Office of NIH History and Stetten Museum, editing and conducting oral history interviews with all sorts of interesting people. She’ll write an occasional article about NIH history, too. And, after her retirement, she also became a news correspondent for the Gettysburg Times, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where she enjoys getting to tell the stories of wonderful people in the community.
Laura holds a master’s degree in science journalism from New York University’s Science, Health, and Environmental Reporting Program. Before joining NIH in 2009, she was a public affairs specialist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire; an associate editor at Dartmouth Medicine Magazine, a publication of the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth; and the author of the children’s book, How on Earth Do We Recycle Plastic?
Alisa Zapp Machalek
Science Writer Consultant
Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She creates a variety of products—feature articles, profiles, social media posts, videos, quizzes, posters, and crossword puzzles—to explain cutting-edge biomedical research. She aims to make the science understandable and interesting to the public (which, after all, is paying for it). Occasionally, she gets juicy projects such as creating an exhibit of stunning microscopy photos for display in an art gallery inside Washington Dulles International Airport. Alisa earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in biochemistry and conducted research in 10 different laboratories before she realized she liked explaining science more than actually doing it. She received formal training through the science writing program at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Manasi Apte, Ph.D
Program Faculty
Manasi is a Scientist+Communicator, currently based at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, USA (www.highlight-communications.org). Manasi is now an accomplished science researcher, communicator, and public engagement practitioner, working with several initiatives in the United States and India for more than a decade. She recently got featured as one of the #WomeninSTEM role models. Born in India, she immigrated to the United States for her graduate training from Wayne State University. Upon receiving her Ph.D., Manasi pursued her interests in science as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) where she quickly realized her passion for science communication and public engagement alongside research. Manasi believes in building connections via communications and for her, impactful storytelling is the way for connecting any two ideas, data points, and even people. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key to effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy for diverse publics. She has been associated with CsW program as a communications mentor since 2019 and in 2021, she came on board as a faculty running a multi-session workshop series “SciComm Workouts” for our participants where they learned and practiced hands-on activities for becoming a better, clearer, and more productive science communicators. Find out more about Manasi– www.highlight-communications.org
Jayne Mackta
Founder
Jayne has devoted her adult life to advocating for families affected by genetic disorders and promoting public understanding of biomedical research. Since her first job out of college with the Encyclopedia Americana where she reduced lengthy articles to single paragraphs, she has searched for the secret of saying more in fewer words. A fierce enemy of jargon, Jayne delights in coaching young editors in the art of deleting words that obscure meaning.
Educator Fellowship
Karla Chavez-Smith
2024-25 cSw Educator Fellow
As 2024’s CSW Educator Fellow, Karla Chavez-Smith, brings over 20 years of experience as a science teacher and department chair at Maxine L. Silva Health Magnet High School in El Paso, Texas. A proud graduate of the Universidad Autonoma de Cd. Juarez in Mexico, where she earned a Doctor of Medicine degree, Karla transitioned into education to dedicate more time to her family. With certifications in Composite Science for grades 4-8 and 8-12, Karla has demonstrated her commitment to creating optimal conditions for students to thrive and develop their understanding of scientific inquiry.
Maitê Ghazaleh Bucher, Ph.D.
2023-24 cSw Educator Fellow
Maitê Ghazaleh Bucher, Ph.D., was the Curious Science Writers Inaugural Educator Fellow in 2023.
Maitê is an Instructor of Biology at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, North Carolina, which was named the 2023 #1 Best Public High School in America. There, she develops the curriculum for and teaches molecular genetics, molecular and cellular biology, and evolution.
Maitê is a trained marine biologist and environmental microbiologist. As an undergraduate earning her bachelor’s degree at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, she studied the effects of environmental change on coral biology and Vibrio bacteria. She earned her doctoral degree at the University of Georgia, where she studied coral disease and coral-associated bacterial communities. Maitê also managed a laboratory as a post-doctoral researcher at UNC – Chapel Hill. Most recently she worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency investigating anthropogenic impact on aquatic ecosystems in Puerto Rico.
Maitê is passionate about science communication and outreach. She enjoys writing science articles for the public. She participates in the Scientific Research and Education Network (SciREN) to provide local K-12 educators with lesson plans based on cutting-edge research. She is also enthusiastic about mentoring the next generation. As a Brazilian immigrant, Maitê is a strong advocate for diversity, inclusivity, and equality. For more information about Maitê’s expertise, visit https://maitebucher.com.
Fellowship Opportunity for Teachers:
The CSW Fellow will help to increase the effectiveness of the program by bringing their expertise to inform updates to the program format, lessons, materials and activities while optimally engaging and educating high school students.
APPLICATION PERIOD WILL OPEN IN JANUARY
