Dr. Manasi Apte

Dr. Manasi Apte is a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is currently trying to understand how some cancer cells evade all the pre-existing therapies by maintaining their DNA ends using an exciting but yet unexplored, alternate pathway in yeast cells named HAATI. She received her Ph.D. from Wayne State University, Detroit, studying how fruit flies determine their sex using a non-conventional mechanism.

Prior to her Graduate work, Manasi received her B.S and M.S in Microbiology from India. She has published several research articles and has won awards and recognition for presenting her work. All throughout her academic career, Manasi has been a passionate advocate for better science communication. For the past five years at the NIH, she has served as editor-in-chief for NCI Fellows newsletter where she introduced informational interview reports as an ongoing feature.

She is also involved in various science outreach programs at the NCI working closely with students and administrators for curriculum development and execution. Manasi also works as a course instructor for ASBMB’s Art of Science communications Online course. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key for effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy in the general public.

Brooke Dulka

Brooke Dulka, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) is an associate manager, medical writer, and science communicator at Cardinal Health Speciality Solutions. Here, she leads a team of writers/scientists as they strategize on content creation for summits, prepares newsletters covering recent research, and creates slide decks and data-driven reports for case insight programs and advisory boards. She also aids her team as they prepare abstracts, posters, and research papers using real-world data. As a manager and team leader, Brooke is committed to promoting diversity in communication, mentoring junior writers, protecting data integrity, and building awareness through education.

Prior to her career in medical writing, Brooke was a postdoctoral researcher who studied the link between aging, memory, and protein degradation within the brain. Before that, while I working on her doctorate, she studied resilience to traumatic stress and taught undergraduate courses in Research Methodology and Behavioral Neuroscience. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy and science fiction, drinking tea, and spending time with her dog.

Phoebe Hall

Phoebe Hall is the assistant director of biomedical communications at Brown University. She is the staff writer for Medicine@Brown magazine, covering health and science research and clinical work by faculty, alumni, and students. She earned her bachelor’s in ecology and evolutionary biology at UConn and her master’s from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. Before coming to Brown in 2013, Phoebe worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, the managing editor of the alumni magazine of Connecticut College, an environmental lab technician, and a zookeeper. She’s passionate about clear, balanced, and accurate science journalism, and the value of mentorship. She lives with her husband and their cat on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, where she can ride her bike to work and the beach.

Brandon Levy

Brandon Levy is a Science Communications Editor for the Intramural Research Program (IRP) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he works to increase the IRP’s public profile, inform the public about IRP research, and attract scientists and students to work in IRP labs. He particularly enjoys writing about the cutting-edge research performed at NIH, but he also produces videos and content for social media. Before joining the IRP, Brandon worked as a science writer in the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow in the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), spending his days putting people inside giant magnets and sending magnetic waves into their brains to shed light on the mysteries of learning and memory. He has a Master’s degree in Science Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. degree in neuroscience from Duke University. He is also a member of the National Association of Science Writing and the D.C. Science Writers Association.

Lisa Newbern

Lisa Newbern is Chief, Public Affairs, for Yerkes National Primate Research Center (NPRC) at Emory University. In this role, she provides strategic counsel, develops measurable action plans and leads teams in executing communication programs that include executive messaging, issues and risk management, media relations, internal communication, community, educational and collaborative outreach, social media, online presence, government relations, special events, sponsorship opportunities, fundraising and historical archiving. She also leads the collaborative public relations initiatives for the seven NPRCs, including NPRC.org and @NPRCnews. Among her service activities, she is a board member for Americans for Medical Progress; a member of the Georgia Department of Education Division of Special Education State Advisory Panel and a mentor to students in Emory University’s Genetics Counseling Program.

Michael Newman

Michael E. Newman is a seasoned science and medical communicator with 40-plus years of expertise in public affairs, journalism and broadcast media. He joined the Johns Hopkins Medicine media team as a senior media relations representative in March 2019. In this role, he communicates and promotes the research, clinical advances, service lines and related initiatives for a diverse group of the institute’s divisions. Michael came to Hopkins after 27 years at the federal government’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). At NIST, he served from 1991 to 2007 as director of media relations and then for the next 11 years as a senior communications officer.

Prior to NIST, Michael worked as a reporter for the Houston Chronicle, a medical TV writer/producer for the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, a features reporter at an NPR affiliate, an ABC-TV news producer, an audiovisual production manager and media officer for a Fortune 500 oil and gas company, and a press officer/science writer for the National Cancer Institute. He also has been a successful, award-winning freelance writer and editor for more than 35 years, primarily on medical and science topics.

Michael holds bachelor’s degrees in microbiology from Clemson University and communications from the University of Houston, and completed one year toward a Ph.D. in virology at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a member of the D.C. Science Writers Association, for which he serves on the Board of Directors, and the National Association of Science Writers, for which he served for nine years as co-chair of the Public Information Officers Committee.

Niba Nirmal

Model turned communicator, Niba Nirmal is a Digital Multimedia Content Creator, Her work, Notes By Niba, explores science in cosmetics, fashion, and skincare through YouTube videos and Instagram photos.  One of her top videos discusses the science of henna by blending her Indian heritage with her plant science training.  She studied plants, genetics, agriculture and development first at UC Davis (BS), then at Duke (MS). She is a proud fellow of the STEM Advocacy Institute and Yale Ciencia Academy.  Since 2013, she has been working toward equity both in the classroom and outside. She is both a visible and invisible minority – and thus strives to be inclusive of all minority statuses.

Amy Puffenberger

Amy Puffenberger holds a Bachelor of Science in Film and Video Production (2005) from Grand Valley State University and a Master of Arts Management (2010) from Carnegie Mellon University. While completing her master’s degree, Amy worked with both Pittsburgh Filmmakers and the Arts Education Collaborative, and later served as the Manager of Educational Outreach at WQED Multimedia, the PBS-affiliate in Pittsburgh, PA, and the nation’s first community-supported public broadcaster.

Rasika Vartak

Rasika Vartak, Ph.D., is a molecular biologist by training who stumbled into the amazing world of neuroscience five years ago. After completing her Ph.D. from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, she worked at Stanford University and Arizona State University, trying to dissect the pathways that cause neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. She has published extensively in both peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed journals. Throughout her career, Rasika has been extensively involved in mentoring high school and undergraduate students learn the scientific process through hands on experimentation and problem solving. She strongly believes that learning how to communicate science is an integral part of being a scientist.

Peggy Wang

Peggy Wang is the communications manager at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), where she works to inform researchers and the public about cancer genomics discoveries. She blogs, tweets, and occasionally creates podcasts. Prior to NCI, Peggy worked in bioinformatics to understand how DNA changes its shape and packaging to control gene expression. She earned her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering, imagining all the genes of the genome as a giant connected network.

Peggy loves stories–whether they are found in a children’s book or between the lines of a scientific paper! By telling researcher stories, she hopes to help people not only understand science, but also why science is important.

Dr. Manasi Apte

Dr. Manasi Apte is a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is currently trying to understand how some cancer cells evade all the pre-existing therapies by maintaining their DNA ends using an exciting but yet unexplored, alternate pathway in yeast cells named HAATI. She received her Ph.D. from Wayne State University, Detroit, studying how fruit flies determine their sex using a non-conventional mechanism.

Prior to her Graduate work, Manasi received her B.S and M.S in Microbiology from India. She has published several research articles and has won awards and recognition for presenting her work. All throughout her academic career, Manasi has been a passionate advocate for better science communication. For the past five years at the NIH, she has served as editor-in-chief for NCI Fellows newsletter where she introduced informational interview reports as an ongoing feature.

She is also involved in various science outreach programs at the NCI working closely with students and administrators for curriculum development and execution. Manasi also works as a course instructor for ASBMB’s Art of Science communications Online course. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key for effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy in the general public.

Sybil Walker Barnes

Working at the intersection of nonprofit communications, marketing, and technology, Sybil Walker Barnes, CAE, is a strategist. Her passion is helping organizations anticipate how they can make the best use of their communications channels to support their business goals and reach their targeted audiences. She is currently Director of Communications at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology in Bethesda, MD.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., with a major in Journalism, and earned the Certified Association Executive designation from the American Society of Association Executives. A returning student, she is currently pursuing an MBA at the University of Maryland Global College. When Sybil isn’t working or studying, you’ll find her reading a book, watching a classic movie, browsing interior design websites, or taking a long walk.

Francisco Barrera

Francisco Barrera is an Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Todd Bentsen

Todd Bentsen has held communications leadership positions at several health and science organizations – most recently the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology – and Georgetown University Medical Center, Society for Neuroscience, and American Society for Clinical Oncology. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Maryland and is passionate about communicating the wonders of science to a variety of audiences.

Amy Brundee

Amy Brundeen is a Communications Strategist for Research at the University of North Texas, in the Division of University Brand Strategy and Communications. She writes about cutting-edge research conducted at UNT for various publications, serves as editor of UNT Research magazine, manages content for research.unt.edu, and handles strategic communications in support of UNT’s research enterprise.

Amy spent the summer between high school and college at the Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation High School Summer Program in Biomedical Sciences at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, where she enjoyed writing the journal article and presenting results more than researching in the lab. She earned an English degree from Texas A&M University with a minor in journalism but maintained her interest in science. Her previous roles in publications and communications have been with the Texas Hospital Association, Texas A&M University System Technology Licensing Office, and the Ocean Drilling Program. She has also been a freelance technical editor, newspaper editor, and online writing tutor. Amy took a detour in 2007 to earn a master’s in education, focusing her research on writing instruction, and spent several years teaching reading and language arts in public school before returning to higher ed and communications. She loves that she’s able to once again write about science. She’s excited to combine her experience in teaching and science writing by mentoring for Curious Science Writers.

Monica Allard Cox

Monica Allard Cox is the communications director for Rhode Island Sea Grant and the editor of the twice-yearly magazine 41°N that is produced in partnership with the Coastal Institute at the University of Rhode Island. In addition to her work on the magazine, Allard Cox mentors communications and marketing interns and supports program communications through layout and design, photography, social media, event planning, writing, and public relations. She edited and designed the 2015 book, Rhode Island’s Shellfish Heritage: An Ecological History. Allard Cox previously taught composition at the Community College of Rhode Island. She has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from the University of Rhode Island and Brown University respectively.

Brooke Dulka

Brooke N. Dulka, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) is a postdoctoral research fellow in neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her research investigates the relationship between the reconsolidation of memory, synaptic plasticity, and protein degradation. She is currently a member of the NPR SciCommers community, is an organizer for ComSciCon-SciWri, and is the editor for Awake & Alive Mind. Brooke also does freelance science writing and has published articles in outlets such as Scientific American. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, drinking tea, and spending time with her dog.

Phoebe Hall

Phoebe Hall is the assistant director of biomedical communications at Brown University. She is the staff writer for Medicine@Brown magazine, covering health and science research and clinical work by faculty, alumni, and students. She earned her bachelor’s in ecology and evolutionary biology at UConn and her master’s from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. Before coming to Brown in 2013, Phoebe worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, the managing editor of the alumni magazine of Connecticut College, an environmental lab technician, and a zookeeper. She’s passionate about clear, balanced, and accurate science journalism, and the value of mentorship. She lives with her husband and their cat on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, where she can ride her bike to work and the beach.

Carol Haggans

Carol Haggans is a Scientific and Health Communications Consultant with the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) at the National Institutes of Health. In this role, she handles a variety of health communications activities including writing and updating the ODS dietary supplement fact sheets and the consumer-focused e-newsletter, The Scoop. She also leads the ODS public inquiry program, and researches and responds to questions from consumers, health professionals, and the media about dietary supplements. In addition, Carol is a member of the NIH Nutrition Education Subcommittee, a group that reviews federally developed nutrition education materials for the public to ensure that they are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Before becoming a consultant, Carol was a Program Analyst with ODS from 1999 to 2004. During that time, she coordinated the development and implementation of the CARDS database of federally funded research on dietary supplements and was involved with the design and maintenance of the ODS website. Carol is a member of the American Society for Nutrition and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. She received an M.S. in Nutrition from the University of Minnesota where she conducted clinical research on the effects of flaxseed consumption on estrogen metabolism and breast cancer risk in premenopausal and postmenopausal women. She is also a Registered Dietitian. Prior to becoming a nutritionist, Carol worked in the information technology field as a manufacturing and technical service engineer after receiving a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Brandon Levy

Brandon Levy is a Science Communications Editor for the Intramural Research Program (IRP) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he works to increase the IRP’s public profile, inform the public about IRP research, and attract scientists and students to work in IRP labs. He particularly enjoys writing about the cutting-edge research performed at NIH, but he also produces videos and content for social media. Before joining the IRP, Brandon worked as a science writer in the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow in the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), spending his days putting people inside giant magnets and sending magnetic waves into their brains to shed light on the mysteries of learning and memory. He has a Master’s degree in Science Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. degree in neuroscience from Duke University. He is also a member of the National Association of Science Writing and the D.C. Science Writers Association.

Alisa Zapp Machalek

Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She has created 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.

Katherine Moldave

Katherine (Cathy) Moldave has been a freelance science and technology writer; held several management positions at Merck AgVet and Merial Ltd.; cofounded the animal health consultancy and clinical CRO AlcheraBio LLC; and cofounded Turnstone Animal Health, a strategic communications and business-development support organization. She’s mentored Rutgers animal science grad students, served as a coach for companies presenting at the KC Animal Health Investment Forum, and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs. She’s also involved in creating new opera. She has an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and, like cSw participants, a great deal of curiosity.

Lisa Newbern

Lisa Newbern is Chief, Public Affairs, for Yerkes National Primate Research Center (NPRC) at Emory University. In this role, she provides strategic counsel, develops measurable action plans and leads teams in executing communication programs that include executive messaging, issues and risk management, media relations, internal communication, community, educational and collaborative outreach, social media, online presence, government relations, special events, sponsorship opportunities, fundraising and historical archiving. She also leads the collaborative public relations initiatives for the seven NPRCs, including NPRC.org and @NPRCnews. Among her service activities, she is a board member for Americans for Medical Progress; a member of the Georgia Department of Education Division of Special Education State Advisory Panel and a mentor to students in Emory University’s Genetics Counseling Program.

Michael Newman

Michael E. Newman is a seasoned science and medical communicator with 40 years of expertise in public affairs, journalism and broadcast media. He joined the Johns Hopkins Medicine media team as a senior media relations representative in March 2019. In this role, he communicates and promotes the research, clinical advances, service lines and related initiatives for a diverse group of the institute’s divisions. Michael came to Hopkins after 27 years at the federal government’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). At NIST, he served from 1991 to 2007 as director of media relations and then for the next 11 years as a senior communications officer.

Prior to NIST, Michael worked as a reporter for the Houston Chronicle, a medical TV writer/producer for the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, a features reporter at an NPR affiliate, an ABC-TV news producer, an audiovisual production manager and media officer for a Fortune 500 oil and gas company, and a press officer/science writer for the National Cancer Institute. He also has been a successful, award-winning freelance writer and editor for more than 35 years, primarily on medical and science topics.

Michael holds bachelor’s degrees in microbiology from Clemson University and communications from the University of Houston, and completed one year toward a Ph.D. in virology at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a member of the D.C. Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers, for which he serves as co-chair of the Public Information Officers Committee.

Niba Nirmal

Model turned communicator, Niba Nirmal is a Digital Multimedia Content Creator, Her work, Notes By Niba, explores science in cosmetics, fashion, and skincare through YouTube videos and Instagram photos.  One of her top videos discusses the science of henna by blending her Indian heritage with her plant science training.  She studied plants, genetics, agriculture and development first at UC Davis (BS), then at Duke (MS). She is a proud fellow of the STEM Advocacy Institute and Yale Ciencia Academy.  Since 2013, she has been working toward equity both in the classroom and outside. She is both a visible and invisible minority – and thus strives to be inclusive of all minority statuses.

Udo Onwubiko

Uno Onwubiko is a graduate student researcher/PEER and NSF graduate fellow, at the University of Tennesse, Knoxville. Her research focuses on uncovering the mechanistic details of cytokinetic events during cellular division. Using microscopy, genetics, protein chemistry, molecular biology, and mathematical models, we are able to learn how each step in cytokinesis is coordinated. More importantly, we observe unique roles of the conserved Rho-family signaling proteins.

Amy Puffenberger

Amy Puffenberger holds a Bachelor of Science in Film and Video Production (2005) from Grand Valley State University and a Master of Arts Management (2010) from Carnegie Mellon University. While completing her master’s degree, Amy worked with both Pittsburgh Filmmakers and the Arts Education Collaborative, and later served as the Manager of Educational Outreach at WQED Multimedia, the PBS-affiliate in Pittsburgh, PA, and the nation’s first community-supported public broadcaster.

Donald Schwartz

Donald Schwartz joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a manager of global marketing communications, rising to his current role as an executive director of Merial’s US Business Operations with responsibilities for business development, market research, regulatory, customer care, veterinary technical solutions, public affairs, communications and business analytical functions. Don has also been the head of a successful advertising and communications agency specializing in pharmaceutical and technical products. He has several books to his credit, including Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, the standard reference on the subject. He earned an undergraduate degree in biology from Union College in Schenectady, New York, did graduate work in biochemistry at Columbia University and CUNY, and has an MS in management from CUNY. Under duress, he will admit he also went to law school.

Morgan Sweeney

Morgan Sweeney graduated from McGill University in 2020 with a B.A.& Sc. in Cognitive Science. Her passion for creative forms of science communication propelled her to create Magic of the Mind, a podcast that communicates science through fantasy stories. Morgan currently works as a digital content creator for Splice Machine, where she produces the ML Minutes podcast and collaborates on customer-centric marketing materials. Morgan’s background in science communication honed her skill for making technical content engaging for a variety of audiences.

Rasika Vartak

Rasika Vartak, Ph.D is a molecular biologist by training who stumbled into the amazing world of neuroscience five years ago. After completing her Ph.D from UT Health Science Centre, San Antonio, she worked at Stanford University and Arizona State University trying to dissect the pathways that cause neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. She has published extensively in both peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed journals. Throughout her career, Rasika has been extensively involved in mentoring high school and undergraduate students learn the scientific process through hands on experimentation and problem solving.She strongly believes that learning how to communicate science is an integral part of being a scientist.

Peggy Wang

Peggy Wang is communications manager at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), where she works to inform researchers and the public about cancer genomics discoveries. She blogs, tweets, and occasionally creates podcasts. Prior to NCI, Peggy worked in bioinformatics to understand how DNA changes its shape and packaging to control gene expression. She earned her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering, imagining all the genes of the genome as a giant connected network.

Peggy loves stories–whether they are found in a children’s book or between the lines of a scientific paper! By telling researcher stories, she hopes to help people not only understand science, but also why science is important.

Dr. Manasi Apte

Dr. Manasi Apte is a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is currently trying to understand how some cancer cells evade all the pre-existing therapies by maintaining their DNA ends using an exciting but yet unexplored, alternate pathway in yeast cells named HAATI. She received her Ph.D. from Wayne State University, Detroit, studying how fruit flies determine their sex using a non-conventional mechanism.

Prior to her Graduate work, Manasi received her B.S and M.S in Microbiology from India. She has published several research articles and has won awards and recognition for presenting her work. All throughout her academic career, Manasi has been a passionate advocate for better science communication. For the past five years at the NIH, she has served as editor-in-chief for NCI Fellows newsletter where she introduced informational interview reports as an ongoing feature.

She is also involved in various science outreach programs at the NCI working closely with students and administrators for curriculum development and execution. Manasi also works as a course instructor for ASBMB’s Art of Science communications Online course. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key for effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy in the general public.

Sybil Walker Barnes

Working at the intersection of nonprofit communications, marketing, and technology, Sybil Walker Barnes, CAE, is a strategist. Her passion is helping organizations anticipate how they can make the best use of their communications channels to support their business goals and reach their targeted audiences. She is currently Director of Communications at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology in Bethesda, MD.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., with a major in Journalism, and earned the Certified Association Executive designation from the American Society of Association Executives. A returning student, she is currently pursuing an MBA at the University of Maryland Global College. When Sybil isn’t working or studying, you’ll find her reading a book, watching a classic movie, browsing interior design websites, or taking a long walk.

Francisco Barrera

Francisco Barrera is an Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Todd Bentsen

Todd Bentsen has held communications leadership positions at several health and science organizations – most recently the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology – and Georgetown University Medical Center, Society for Neuroscience, and American Society for Clinical Oncology. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Maryland and is passionate about communicating the wonders of science to a variety of audiences.

Amy Brundee

Amy Brundeen is a Communications Strategist for Research at the University of North Texas, in the Division of University Brand Strategy and Communications. She writes about cutting-edge research conducted at UNT for various publications, serves as editor of UNT Research magazine, manages content for research.unt.edu, and handles strategic communications in support of UNT’s research enterprise.

Amy spent the summer between high school and college at the Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation High School Summer Program in Biomedical Sciences at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, where she enjoyed writing the journal article and presenting results more than researching in the lab. She earned an English degree from Texas A&M University with a minor in journalism but maintained her interest in science. Her previous roles in publications and communications have been with the Texas Hospital Association, Texas A&M University System Technology Licensing Office, and the Ocean Drilling Program. She has also been a freelance technical editor, newspaper editor, and online writing tutor. Amy took a detour in 2007 to earn a master’s in education, focusing her research on writing instruction, and spent several years teaching reading and language arts in public school before returning to higher ed and communications. She loves that she’s able to once again write about science. She’s excited to combine her experience in teaching and science writing by mentoring for Curious Science Writers.

Monica Allard Cox

Monica Allard Cox is the communications director for Rhode Island Sea Grant and the editor of the twice-yearly magazine 41°N that is produced in partnership with the Coastal Institute at the University of Rhode Island. In addition to her work on the magazine, Allard Cox mentors communications and marketing interns and supports program communications through layout and design, photography, social media, event planning, writing, and public relations. She edited and designed the 2015 book, Rhode Island’s Shellfish Heritage: An Ecological History. Allard Cox previously taught composition at the Community College of Rhode Island. She has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from the University of Rhode Island and Brown University respectively.

Brooke Dulka

Brooke N. Dulka, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) is a postdoctoral research fellow in neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her research investigates the relationship between the reconsolidation of memory, synaptic plasticity, and protein degradation. She is currently a member of the NPR SciCommers community, is an organizer for ComSciCon-SciWri, and is the editor for Awake & Alive Mind. Brooke also does freelance science writing and has published articles in outlets such as Scientific American. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, drinking tea, and spending time with her dog.

Phoebe Hall

Phoebe Hall is the assistant director of biomedical communications at Brown University. She is the staff writer for Medicine@Brown magazine, covering health and science research and clinical work by faculty, alumni, and students. She earned her bachelor’s in ecology and evolutionary biology at UConn and her master’s from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. Before coming to Brown in 2013, Phoebe worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, the managing editor of the alumni magazine of Connecticut College, an environmental lab technician, and a zookeeper. She’s passionate about clear, balanced, and accurate science journalism, and the value of mentorship. She lives with her husband and their cat on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, where she can ride her bike to work and the beach.

Carol Haggans

Carol Haggans is a Scientific and Health Communications Consultant with the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) at the National Institutes of Health. In this role, she handles a variety of health communications activities including writing and updating the ODS dietary supplement fact sheets and the consumer-focused e-newsletter, The Scoop. She also leads the ODS public inquiry program, and researches and responds to questions from consumers, health professionals, and the media about dietary supplements. In addition, Carol is a member of the NIH Nutrition Education Subcommittee, a group that reviews federally developed nutrition education materials for the public to ensure that they are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Before becoming a consultant, Carol was a Program Analyst with ODS from 1999 to 2004. During that time, she coordinated the development and implementation of the CARDS database of federally funded research on dietary supplements and was involved with the design and maintenance of the ODS website. Carol is a member of the American Society for Nutrition and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. She received an M.S. in Nutrition from the University of Minnesota where she conducted clinical research on the effects of flaxseed consumption on estrogen metabolism and breast cancer risk in premenopausal and postmenopausal women. She is also a Registered Dietitian. Prior to becoming a nutritionist, Carol worked in the information technology field as a manufacturing and technical service engineer after receiving a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Brandon Levy

Brandon Levy is a Science Communications Editor for the Intramural Research Program (IRP) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he works to increase the IRP’s public profile, inform the public about IRP research, and attract scientists and students to work in IRP labs. He particularly enjoys writing about the cutting-edge research performed at NIH, but he also produces videos and content for social media. Before joining the IRP, Brandon worked as a science writer in the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow in the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), spending his days putting people inside giant magnets and sending magnetic waves into their brains to shed light on the mysteries of learning and memory. He has a Master’s degree in Science Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. degree in neuroscience from Duke University. He is also a member of the National Association of Science Writing and the D.C. Science Writers Association.

Alisa Zapp Machalek

Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She has created 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.

Katherine Moldave

Katherine (Cathy) Moldave has been a freelance science and technology writer; held several management positions at Merck AgVet and Merial Ltd.; cofounded the animal health consultancy and clinical CRO AlcheraBio LLC; and cofounded Turnstone Animal Health, a strategic communications and business-development support organization. She’s mentored Rutgers animal science grad students, served as a coach for companies presenting at the KC Animal Health Investment Forum, and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs. She’s also involved in creating new opera. She has an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and, like cSw participants, a great deal of curiosity.

Lisa Newbern

Lisa Newbern is Chief, Public Affairs, for Yerkes National Primate Research Center (NPRC) at Emory University. In this role, she provides strategic counsel, develops measurable action plans and leads teams in executing communication programs that include executive messaging, issues and risk management, media relations, internal communication, community, educational and collaborative outreach, social media, online presence, government relations, special events, sponsorship opportunities, fundraising and historical archiving. She also leads the collaborative public relations initiatives for the seven NPRCs, including NPRC.org and @NPRCnews. Among her service activities, she is a board member for Americans for Medical Progress; a member of the Georgia Department of Education Division of Special Education State Advisory Panel and a mentor to students in Emory University’s Genetics Counseling Program.

Michael Newman

Michael E. Newman is a seasoned science and medical communicator with 40 years of expertise in public affairs, journalism and broadcast media. He joined the Johns Hopkins Medicine media team as a senior media relations representative in March 2019. In this role, he communicates and promotes the research, clinical advances, service lines and related initiatives for a diverse group of the institute’s divisions. Michael came to Hopkins after 27 years at the federal government’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). At NIST, he served from 1991 to 2007 as director of media relations and then for the next 11 years as a senior communications officer.

Prior to NIST, Michael worked as a reporter for the Houston Chronicle, a medical TV writer/producer for the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, a features reporter at an NPR affiliate, an ABC-TV news producer, an audiovisual production manager and media officer for a Fortune 500 oil and gas company, and a press officer/science writer for the National Cancer Institute. He also has been a successful, award-winning freelance writer and editor for more than 35 years, primarily on medical and science topics.

Michael holds bachelor’s degrees in microbiology from Clemson University and communications from the University of Houston, and completed one year toward a Ph.D. in virology at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a member of the D.C. Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers, for which he serves as co-chair of the Public Information Officers Committee.

Niba Nirmal

Model turned communicator, Niba Nirmal is a Digital Multimedia Content Creator, Her work, Notes By Niba, explores science in cosmetics, fashion, and skincare through YouTube videos and Instagram photos.  One of her top videos discusses the science of henna by blending her Indian heritage with her plant science training.  She studied plants, genetics, agriculture and development first at UC Davis (BS), then at Duke (MS). She is a proud fellow of the STEM Advocacy Institute and Yale Ciencia Academy.  Since 2013, she has been working toward equity both in the classroom and outside. She is both a visible and invisible minority – and thus strives to be inclusive of all minority statuses.

Udo Onwubiko

Uno Onwubiko is a graduate student researcher/PEER and NSF graduate fellow, at the University of Tennesse, Knoxville. Her research focuses on uncovering the mechanistic details of cytokinetic events during cellular division. Using microscopy, genetics, protein chemistry, molecular biology, and mathematical models, we are able to learn how each step in cytokinesis is coordinated. More importantly, we observe unique roles of the conserved Rho-family signaling proteins.

Amy Puffenberger

Amy Puffenberger holds a Bachelor of Science in Film and Video Production (2005) from Grand Valley State University and a Master of Arts Management (2010) from Carnegie Mellon University. While completing her master’s degree, Amy worked with both Pittsburgh Filmmakers and the Arts Education Collaborative, and later served as the Manager of Educational Outreach at WQED Multimedia, the PBS-affiliate in Pittsburgh, PA, and the nation’s first community-supported public broadcaster.

Donald Schwartz

Donald Schwartz joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a manager of global marketing communications, rising to his current role as an executive director of Merial’s US Business Operations with responsibilities for business development, market research, regulatory, customer care, veterinary technical solutions, public affairs, communications and business analytical functions. Don has also been the head of a successful advertising and communications agency specializing in pharmaceutical and technical products. He has several books to his credit, including Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, the standard reference on the subject. He earned an undergraduate degree in biology from Union College in Schenectady, New York, did graduate work in biochemistry at Columbia University and CUNY, and has an MS in management from CUNY. Under duress, he will admit he also went to law school.

Morgan Sweeney

Morgan Sweeney graduated from McGill University in 2020 with a B.A.& Sc. in Cognitive Science. Her passion for creative forms of science communication propelled her to create Magic of the Mind, a podcast that communicates science through fantasy stories. Morgan currently works as a digital content creator for Splice Machine, where she produces the ML Minutes podcast and collaborates on customer-centric marketing materials. Morgan’s background in science communication honed her skill for making technical content engaging for a variety of audiences.

Rasika Vartak

Rasika Vartak, Ph.D is a molecular biologist by training who stumbled into the amazing world of neuroscience five years ago. After completing her Ph.D from UT Health Science Centre, San Antonio, she worked at Stanford University and Arizona State University trying to dissect the pathways that cause neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. She has published extensively in both peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed journals. Throughout her career, Rasika has been extensively involved in mentoring high school and undergraduate students learn the scientific process through hands on experimentation and problem solving.She strongly believes that learning how to communicate science is an integral part of being a scientist.

Peggy Wang

Peggy Wang is communications manager at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), where she works to inform researchers and the public about cancer genomics discoveries. She blogs, tweets, and occasionally creates podcasts. Prior to NCI, Peggy worked in bioinformatics to understand how DNA changes its shape and packaging to control gene expression. She earned her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering, imagining all the genes of the genome as a giant connected network.

Peggy loves stories–whether they are found in a children’s book or between the lines of a scientific paper! By telling researcher stories, she hopes to help people not only understand science, but also why science is important.

Dr. Manasi Apte

Dr. Manasi Apte is a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is currently trying to understand how some cancer cells evade all the pre-existing therapies by maintaining their DNA ends using an exciting but yet unexplored, alternate pathway in yeast cells named HAATI. She received her Ph.D. from Wayne State University, Detroit, studying how fruit flies determine their sex using a non-conventional mechanism.

Prior to her Graduate work, Manasi received her B.S and M.S in Microbiology from India. She has published several research articles and has won awards and recognition for presenting her work. All throughout her academic career, Manasi has been a passionate advocate for better science communication. For the past five years at the NIH, she has served as editor-in-chief for NCI Fellows newsletter where she introduced informational interview reports as an ongoing feature.

She is also involved in various science outreach programs at the NCI working closely with students and administrators for curriculum development and execution. Manasi also works as a course instructor for ASBMB’s Art of Science communications Online course. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key for effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy in the general public.

Sybil Walker Barnes

Working at the intersection of nonprofit communications, marketing, and technology, Sybil Walker Barnes, CAE, is a strategist. Her passion is helping organizations anticipate how they can make the best use of their communications channels to support their business goals and reach their targeted audiences. She is currently Assistant Director of Communications at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology in Bethesda, MD.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., with a major in Journalism, and earned the Certified Association Executive designation from the American Society of Association Executives. A returning student, she is currently pursuing an MBA at the University of Maryland Global College. When Sybil isn’t working or studying, you’ll find her reading a book, watching a classic movie, browsing interior design websites, or taking a long walk.

Todd Bentsen

Todd Bentsen has held communications leadership positions at several health and science organizations – most recently the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology – and Georgetown University Medical Center, Society for Neuroscience, and American Society for Clinical Oncology. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Maryland and is passionate about communicating the wonders of science to a variety of audiences.

Charles Blue

Charles Blue has more than 30 years of strategic communications experience in science, engineering, and technology. Charles has worked as the director of media services at the American Institute of Physics. He also served as the Writer/Editor for the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Engineering and the media relations specialist for the Thirty Meter Telescope Project. Charles also served as public information officer for the National Academy of Engineering and public information coordinator for the American Geophysical Union. He also worked on publicity for the ALMA telescope in Chile while working for the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. He currently is director of media relations for the Association for Psychological Science where he promotes fundamental research into human psychology and cognition.

He is a member of the National Association of Science Writers, the American Astronomical Society, and the American Geophysical Union. Charles also is an avid martial artist, sea chantey singer, and fitness instructor.

Stacy Brooks

Stacy Brooks is Director of Communications and Social Media at the American Physiological Society (APS) where she oversees content development, media relations, social media, the APS website, the award-winning I Spy Physiology blog and overall communications outreach for the nearly 9,000 member association. She is also editor-in-chief of The Physiologist Magazine, a member-focused publication which relaunched in 2019. She devotes much of her time at work helping APS members—who are primarily biomedical researchers with PhDs—learn how to better communicate their research to the media, the general public and other researchers. Prior to her time at APS, Stacy worked in the Communications Office at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and at Ogilvy Public Relations.

Stacy received her degree in Journalism, Public Relations and Advertising at Temple University in Philadelphia. She is a member of the board of Association Media and Publishing, currently serving on the Executive Committee in the role of Secretary. When not at work, you’ll find Stacy hanging out with her husband, two sons and extended family. She loves cooking, travel, flowers and a good workout—some of which she details on her blog.

Monica Allard Cox

Monica Allard Cox is the communications director for Rhode Island Sea Grant and the editor of the twice-yearly magazine 41°N that is produced in partnership with the Coastal Institute at the University of Rhode Island. In addition to her work on the magazine, Allard Cox mentors communications and marketing interns and supports program communications through layout and design, photography, social media, event planning, writing, and public relations. She edited and designed the 2015 book, Rhode Island’s Shellfish Heritage: An Ecological History. Allard Cox previously taught composition at the Community College of Rhode Island. She has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from the University of Rhode Island and Brown University respectively.

Liz Doughman

For the last 13 years, Elizabeth Doughman has covered biomedical, veterinary and pharmaceutical research for ALN Magazine. She has written about everything from vivarium design to methods of improving laboratory animal welfare. Elizabeth has a B.S. in Animal Science from the University of Kentucky and an M.A. in Journalism from Northeastern University. She loves her horse, Cherokee, and specializes in sharing weird science facts at cocktail parties.

Brooke Dulka

Brooke N. Dulka, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) is a postdoctoral research fellow in neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her research investigates the relationship between the reconsolidation of memory, synaptic plasticity, and protein degradation. She is currently a member of the NPR SciCommers community, is an organizer for ComSciCon-SciWri, and is the editor for Awake & Alive Mind. Brooke also does freelance science writing and has published articles in outlets such as Scientific American. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, drinking tea, and spending time with her dog.

Dani Gordon

Dani Gordon is a science writer at UT Health San Antonio. After 10 years as a pet groomer, she graduated with her Master’s in Public Health focusing on epidemiology. She has studied a variety of health research areas including HIV and epidemiological paradoxes. This sparked a hunger for learning more about the large and eclectic body of research and scientific knowledge-making science communication a perfect fit. Her favorite topics are understanding health disparities, translational science and how social networks and communication can inform health interventions. Currently, her work entails facilitating outreach for clinical trial recruitment, promoting awareness for the ethical use of animals in research and developing strategic content for social media, mostly Twitter. She is also the science outreach coordinator for taste of science San Antonio where the goal is to bring research into the community and bridge the divide between scientists and members of the public. In her spare time, she likes to read, spend time with her family, travel and play with her pets, 2 cats and a dog. She is also a huge fan of pet rats, but, sadly, does not have any at this time!

Phoebe Hall

Phoebe Hall is the assistant director of biomedical communications at Brown University. She is the staff writer for Medicine@Brown magazine, covering health and science research and clinical work by faculty, alumni, and students. She earned her bachelor’s in ecology and evolutionary biology at UConn and her master’s from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. Before coming to Brown in 2013, Phoebe worked as a newspaper reporter and editor, the managing editor of the alumni magazine of Connecticut College, an environmental lab technician, and a zookeeper. She’s passionate about clear, balanced, and accurate science journalism, and the value of mentorship. She lives with her husband and their cat on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, where she can ride her bike to work and the beach.

Joe Kays

Joe Kays has been director of research communications at the University of Florida and founding editor of the UF research magazine for 25 years. During that time he has written or edited hundreds of science stories from across one of the nation’s most comprehensive universities. Prior to that, he served as a senior writer and editor of the UF alumni magazine and as a daily newspaper reporter. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Penn State and a master’s in science and health communications from UF. He is immediate past president of the University Research Magazine Association and is active in the National Association of Science Writers.

Brandon Levy

Brandon Levy is a Science Communications Editor for the Intramural Research Program (IRP) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he works to increase the IRP’s public profile, inform the public about IRP research, and attract scientists and students to work in IRP labs. He particularly enjoys writing about the cutting-edge research performed at NIH, but he also produces videos and content for social media. Before joining the IRP, Brandon worked as a science writer in the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow in the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), spending his days putting people inside giant magnets and sending magnetic waves into their brains to shed light on the mysteries of learning and memory. He has a Master’s degree in Science Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. degree in neuroscience from Duke University. He is also a member of the National Association of Science Writing and the D.C. Science Writers Association.

Alisa Zapp Machalek

Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She has created 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.

Jessica Meade

Jessica Meade has worked as a science writer at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) at the National Institutes of Health for eight years. In addition to writing press releases and science features, she has taken a lead role in expanding the reach of NIBIB’s science communication through new media. In her time at NIBIB she has shot, edited, animated, and produced more than 20 videos, created dozens of infographics, and was instrumental in conceiving of and developing apps for the general public. She believes in meeting her audience where they are and making accurate, understandable medical information easily available to all. She has an undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and a Master’s degree from Sarah Lawarence College.

Katherine Moldave

Katherine (Cathy) Moldave has been a freelance science and technology writer; held several management positions at Merck AgVet and Merial Ltd.; cofounded the animal health consultancy and clinical CRO AlcheraBio LLC; and cofounded Turnstone Animal Health, a strategic communications and business-development support organization. She’s mentored Rutgers animal science grad students, serves as a coach for companies presenting at the KC Animal Health Investment Forum, and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs. She’s also involved in creating new opera. She has an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and, like cSw participants, a great deal of curiosity.

Lisa Newbern

Lisa Newbern is Chief, Public Affairs, for Yerkes National Primate Research Center (NPRC) at Emory University. In this role, she provides strategic counsel, develops measurable action plans and leads teams in executing communication programs that include executive messaging, issues and risk management, media relations, internal communication, community, educational and collaborative outreach, social media, online presence, government relations, special events, sponsorship opportunities, fundraising and historical archiving. She also leads the collaborative public relations initiatives for the seven NPRCs, including NPRC.org and @NPRCnews. Among her service activities, she is a board member for Americans for Medical Progress; a member of the Georgia Department of Education Division of Special Education State Advisory Panel and a mentor to students in Emory University’s Genetics Counseling Program.

Jim Newman

Jim Newman serves as director of strategic communications for Americans for Medical Progress, where he leads AMP’s media and communications. In the past, Jim was the director of external communications for The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the director of media relations for Oregon Health & Science University and OHSU’s Oregon National Primate Research Center. Jim has also worked as an account supervisor at KGBTexas Communications, a highly-regarded PR and marketing firm in Texas, with offices in San Antonio and Houston. Jim’s other professional experience includes nearly a decade of work as a television news producer in the following media markets: Portland, Oregon; Nashville, Tennessee; South Bend, Indiana; and Lansing, Michigan.

Michael Newman

Michael E. Newman is a seasoned science and medical communicator with 40 years of expertise in public affairs, journalism and broadcast media. He joined the Johns Hopkins Medicine media team as a senior media relations representative in March 2019. In this role, he communicates and promotes the research, clinical advances, service lines and related initiatives for a diverse group of the institute’s divisions. Michael came to Hopkins after 27 years at the federal government’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). At NIST, he served from 1991 to 2007 as director of media relations and then for the next 11 years as a senior communications officer.

Prior to NIST, Michael worked as a reporter for the Houston Chronicle, a medical TV writer/producer for the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, a features reporter at an NPR affiliate, an ABC-TV news producer, an audiovisual production manager and media officer for a Fortune 500 oil and gas company, and a press officer/science writer for the National Cancer Institute. He also has been a successful, award-winning freelance writer and editor for more than 35 years, primarily on medical and science topics.

Michael holds bachelor’s degrees in microbiology from Clemson University and communications from the University of Houston, and completed one year toward a Ph.D. in virology at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a member of the D.C. Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers, for which he serves as co-chair of the Public Information Officers Committee.

Niba Nirmal

Model turned communicator, Niba Nirmal is a Digital Multimedia Content Creator, Her work, Notes By Niba, explores science in cosmetics, fashion, and skincare through YouTube videos and Instagram photos.  One of her top videos discusses the science of henna by blending her Indian heritage with her plant science training.  She studied plants, genetics, agriculture and development first at UC Davis (BS), then at Duke (MS). She is a proud fellow of the STEM Advocacy Institute and Yale Ciencia Academy.  Since 2013, she has been working toward equity both in the classroom and outside. She is both a visible and invisible minority – and thus strives to be inclusive of all minority statuses.

Donald Schwartz

Donald Schwartz joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a manager of global marketing communications, rising to his current role as an executive director of Merial’s US Business Operations with responsibilities for business development, market research, regulatory, customer care, veterinary technical solutions, public affairs, communications and business analytical functions. Don has also been the head of a successful advertising and communications agency specializing in pharmaceutical and technical products. He has several books to his credit, including Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, the standard reference on the subject. He earned an undergraduate degree in biology from Union College in Schenectady, New York, did graduate work in biochemistry at Columbia University and CUNY, and has an MS in management from CUNY. Under duress, he will admit he also went to law school.

Peggy Wang

Peggy Wang is communications manager at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), where she works to inform researchers and the public about cancer genomics discoveries. She blogs, tweets, and occasionally creates podcasts. Prior to NCI, Peggy worked in bioinformatics to understand how DNA changes its shape and packaging to control gene expression. She earned her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering, imagining all the genes of the genome as a giant connected network.

Peggy loves stories–whether they are found in a children’s book or between the lines of a scientific paper! By telling researcher stories, she hopes to help people not only understand science, but also why science is important.

Sadie Witkowski

Sadie Witkowski is a recent PhD graduate from Northwestern University’s psychology department in the cognitive neuroscience lab. During her PhD, she studied how sleep alters and improves memory in humans.

She has been involved in the science communication world for about the last 4 years, starting with her attendance at ComSciCon-Chicago ’16. After attending, Sadie organized the ’17 and ’18 local workshops before moving on to lead the organization’s international ComSciCon-Flagship ’19. She has since transferred roles and now serves as the Chapter Liaison for the main leadership team. Besides ComSciCon, Sadie was also the program manager for SCOPE (science communication online programme) at Northwestern. SCOPE is an online training course for graduate students and postdocs focusing on the different modes of scicomm. The course is totally free, with the goal that underfunded programs or smaller institutions can use our training for their students. Finally, Sadie is also a freelance science writer. She was a 2019 AAAS mass media fellow with Voice of America and has written for NPR’s the Salt, Smithsonian Magazine, and others. She also created and hosts a podcast, called PhDrinking, where she interviews graduate researchers about their work.

Dr. Manasi Apte

Dr. Manasi Apte is a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is currently trying to understand how some cancer cells evade all the pre-existing therapies by maintaining their DNA ends using an exciting but yet unexplored, alternate pathway in yeast cells named HAATI. She received her Ph.D. from Wayne State University, Detroit, studying how fruit flies determine their sex using a non-conventional mechanism.

Prior to her Graduate work, Manasi received her B.S and M.S in Microbiology from India. She has published several research articles and has won awards and recognition for presenting her work. All throughout her academic career, Manasi has been a passionate advocate for better science communication. For the past five years at the NIH, she has served as editor-in-chief for NCI Fellows newsletter where she introduced informational interview reports as an ongoing feature.

She is also involved in various science outreach programs at the NCI working closely with students and administrators for curriculum development and execution. Manasi also works as a course instructor for ASBMB’s Art of Science communications Online course. She strongly believes that telling your story effectively is the key for effective communication and plans to use her expertise in science as well as communications to increase science literacy in the general public.

Sybil Walker Barnes, CAE

Working at the intersection of nonprofit communications, marketing, and technology, Sybil Walker Barnes, CAE, is a strategist. Her passion is helping organizations anticipate how they can make the best use of their communications channels to support their business goals and reach their targeted audiences. She is currently Assistant Director of Digital Communications at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology in Bethesda, MD. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., with a major in Journalism, and earned the Certified Association Executive designation from the American Society of Association Executives. A returning student, she is currently pursuing an MBA at University of Maryland University College alongside her two college-age sons. When Sybil isn’t working or studying, you’ll find her reading a book, watching a classic movie, browsing interior design websites, or taking a long walk.

Todd Bentsen

Todd Bentsen has held communications leadership positions at several health and science organizations – most recently the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology – and Georgetown University Medical Center, Society for Neuroscience, and American Society for Clinical Oncology. He has a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Maryland and is passionate about communicating the wonders of science to a variety of audiences.

Liz Doughman

For the last 13 years, Elizabeth Doughman has covered biomedical, veterinary and pharmaceutical research for ALN Magazine. She has written about everything from vivarium design to methods of improving laboratory animal welfare. Elizabeth has a B.S. in Animal Science from the University of Kentucky and an M.A. in Journalism from Northeastern University. She loves her horse, Cherokee, and specializes in sharing weird science facts at cocktail parties.

Dani Gordon

Dani Gordon is a science writer at UT Health San Antonio. After 10 years as a pet groomer, she graduated with her Master’s in Public Health focusing on epidemiology. She has studied a variety of health research areas including HIV and epidemiological paradoxes. This sparked a hunger for learning more about the large and eclectic body of research and scientific knowledge-making science communication a perfect fit. Her favorite topics are understanding health disparities, translational science and how social networks and communication can inform health interventions. Currently, her work entails facilitating outreach for clinical trial recruitment, promoting awareness for the ethical use of animals in research and developing strategic content for social media, mostly Twitter. She is also the science outreach coordinator for taste of science San Antonio where the goal is to bring research into the community and bridge the divide between scientists and members of the public. In her spare time, she likes to read, spend time with her family, travel and play with her pets, 2 cats and a dog. She is also a huge fan of pet rats, but, sadly, does not have any at this time!

Brandon Levy

Brandon Levy is a Science Communications Editor for the Intramural Research Program (IRP) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he works to increase the IRP’s public profile, inform the public about IRP research, and attract scientists and students to work in IRP labs. He particularly enjoys writing about the cutting-edge research performed at NIH, but he also produces videos and content for social media. Before joining the IRP, Brandon worked as a science writer in the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and as a postbaccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow in the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), spending his days putting people inside giant magnets and sending magnetic waves into their brains to shed light on the mysteries of learning and memory. He has a Master’s degree in Science Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. degree in neuroscience from Duke University. He is also a member of the National Association of Science Writing and the D.C. Science Writers Association.

Alisa Zapp Machalek

Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She has created 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.

Katherine Moldave

Katherine (Cathy) Moldave has been a freelance science and technology writer; held several management positions at Merck AgVet and Merial Ltd.; cofounded the animal health consultancy and clinical CRO AlcheraBio LLC; and cofounded Turnstone Animal Health, a strategic communications and business-development support organization. She’s mentored Rutgers animal science grad students, serves as a coach for companies presenting at the KC Animal Health Investment Forum, and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs. She’s also involved in creating new opera. She has an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and, like cSw participants, a great deal of curiosity.

Jim Newman

Jim Newman serves as director of strategic communications for Americans for Medical Progress, where he leads AMP’s media and communications. In the past, Jim was the director of external communications for The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the director of media relations for Oregon Health & Science University and OHSU’s Oregon National Primate Research Center. Jim has also worked as an account supervisor at KGBTexas Communications, a highly-regarded PR and marketing firm in Texas, with offices in San Antonio and Houston. Jim’s other professional experience includes nearly a decade of work as a television news producer in the following media markets: Portland, Oregon; Nashville, Tennessee; South Bend, Indiana; and Lansing, Michigan.

Donald Schwartz

Donald Schwartz joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a manager of global marketing communications, rising to his current role as an executive director of Merial’s US Business Operations with responsibilities for business development, market research, regulatory, customer care, veterinary technical solutions, public affairs, communications and business analytical functions. Don has also been the head of a successful advertising and communications agency specializing in pharmaceutical and technical products. He has several books to his credit, including Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, the standard reference on the subject. He earned an undergraduate degree in biology from Union College in Schenectady, New York, did graduate work in biochemistry at Columbia University and CUNY, and has an MS in management from CUNY. Under duress, he will admit he also went to law school.

Scott Sleek

Scott Sleek is the Director of News & Information at the Association for Psychological Science in Washington, D.C., where he oversees media outreach aimed at educating the public about behavioral research. His fundamental role is to translate the science into language that the public can understand. His department has helped the public understand the effects of stress on immune function, emotional factors that lead to obesity, and the use of animal models to learn about human behavior. Prior to joining APS, Scott held various editorial roles in a variety of organizations, and began his career as a newspaper reporter after graduating with a BS in journalism from Bowling Green State University. In his spare time, he is an avid traveler and photographer.

Carol Feinberg

Carol Feinberg is account director for Vitiello Communications Group, providing communications support to the pharmaceutical, manufacturing and financial services industries. Prior to joining VTLA, she managed clinical programs at Unilever Research and Development. She holds a patent for the invention of a novel skin-sampling device. She earned her BS in Chemistry from Fairleigh Dickinson University and is a member of the National Association of Science Writers where she has won several awards for her communications work.

Alisa Zapp Machalek

Alisa Zapp Machalek is a science communicator at the National Institutes of Health. She has created 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.

Katherine Moldave

Katherine (Cathy) Moldave has been a freelance science and technology writer; held several management positions at Merck AgVet and Merial Ltd.; cofounded the animal health consultancy and clinical CRO AlcheraBio LLC; and cofounded Turnstone Animal Health, a strategic communications and business-development support organization. She’s mentored Rutgers animal science grad students, serves as a coach for companies presenting at the KC Animal Health Investment Forum, and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs. She’s also involved in creating new opera. She has an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and, like cSw participants, a great deal of curiosity.

Ina Nikolaeva

Ina Nikolaeva is a senior medical writer for ClinicalThinking, a subsidiary of Nucleus-Global. She has also helped found/run multiple blogs, including one for a ballet school and another for the Rutgers Interdisciplinary Job Opportunities for Biomedical Scientists (iJOBS) program. Ina earned her BSc from University of Toronto, and her PhD from Rutgers University, studying traumatic brain injury and intractable pediatric epilepsy in mice. Through her current position, she has also gained extensive knowledge of the oncology field.

Donald Schwartz

Donald Schwartz joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a manager of global marketing communications, rising to his current role as an executive director of Merial’s US Business Operations with responsibilities for business development, market research, regulatory, customer care, veterinary technical solutions, public affairs, communications and business analytical functions. Don has also been the head of a successful advertising and communications agency specializing in pharmaceutical and technical products. He has several books to his credit, including Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, the standard reference on the subject. He earned an undergraduate degree in biology from Union College in Schenectady, New York, did graduate work in biochemistry at Columbia University and CUNY, and has an MS in management from CUNY. Under duress, he will admit he also went to law school.

Janet Torsney

Currently assistant director of the Montclair Public Library, Janet Torsney had an extensive communications career before she became a librarian. She was director of public affairs for Save the Children, director of information at the United Negro College Fund, and director of publications at the United Nations Association. As a consultant, her clients included UN agencies andnonprofits dedicated to children and families. Her specialties include speechwriting, annual reports, strategic plans, articles and online content. Early in her career when she was an assistant editor of Rolling Stone’s College Papers, she was part of a five-person team that created a new magazine for college students.