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Miriam Bahagijo graduated with a degree in English Literature from the University of Indonesia and has been a content writer for several years, working on issues from waste management to energy transition. Since discovering her passion for science journalism, she has also been a freelance contributor to a local conservation site, Garda Animalia, in Jakarta. Miriam is most interested in the intersectionality of climate change, human-wildlife conflict, and zoonosis. On days off, she enjoys being by the sea (or in it) and playing games.
Tom Brown is an environmental journalist freelancing for Al Jazeera, The Guardian and New Lines Magazine. His investigations into oil and gas pollution in Africa and the Middle East won the runner-up Fetisov Journalism Award for Excellence in Environmental Journalism, NASA’s Data Visualization Award, as well as grant awards from the Fund for Investigative Journalism and the European Journalism Centre. He published his debut novel, The Oblivious Pool, with Austin Macauley Publishers in 2022.
Gaea Katreena Cabico is a journalist from the farming province of Nueva Ecija in the Philippines. Since 2019, she has been telling stories about climate change and environmental issues through the lenses of human rights and social justice. Gaea studied journalism at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, where she served as the editor-in-chief of her college paper. Gaea spends her free time solving crossword puzzles.
Kate Callaway is a writer and editor from Norfolk, Virginia. She has always loved science and writing, but didn’t put these passions together until college, working for science-focused publications both on and off campus. Kate attended the University of Virginia, where she majored in classics and minored in astronomy and English. In her free time, Kate likes painting, writing poetry, stargazing, and putting her classics degree to use by bringing up ancient Greece in everyday conversation.
Marta Hill is a Minnesota girl at heart but has found herself on the East Coast the past few years. She is coming to SHERP after studying journalism at Northeastern University. She fell in love with reporting at 15 and has spent years happily immersed in scholastic journalism. She worked at Boston.com and then as a science communication intern with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope program, which confirmed that science journalism is the place for her.
Leslie Zhen Liang has been a reporter for 10 years. He started with medicine and pharma, then health and disease. Gender and reproductive rights, aging and elderly care are his recent focuses; environmental disruptions will be the next. Leslie is from China and his work has been in that country. His passion lies in covering the intersection of policy and people. He aims to grow through SHERP and go as far as he can.
Pragathi Ravi is an independent journalist covering climate justice, energy transitions and natural resource governance in India. She is a grantee of the Pulitzer Center, and her reportage has also been supported by the Earth Journalism Network and Thomson Reuters Foundation. When not working, she enjoys ’80s rock and long walks. Her work can be found here.
Lina Savage graduated from UCLA in 2022 with a degree in environmental science and a concentration in atmospheric and oceanic sciences. Along with working for a paleoclimatology lab, she wrote for a few student-run organizations: a feminist magazine, a music industry blog, and a pop-culture website. After graduating, she worked for an environmental litigation consulting firm but always planned to combine her love for writing and the environment. In her free time, she practices Jeet Kune Do.
Lauren Schneider majored in neuroscience at The University of Texas at Austin and brings years of undergraduate and professional research experience in fields ranging from cognitive development to vascular dementia. Prior to SHERP, she served as a marketing content writer for the clinical practices at UT Austin’s Dell Medical School. In her spare time, you can find Lauren watching movies, swimming, editing Wikipedia, or spending time with Lucy, her impossibly cute black cat.
Rambo Talabong joins SHERP after seven years as a multimedia journalist in Manila. As part of the Nobel Prize-winning newsroom Rappler, Rambo produced award-winning reports and documentaries on online disinformation and the Philippine drug war. Rambo is an advocate of meeting audiences where they are. Through his social media channels, he stands as a one-man research and production team explaining the news to his community of over 800,000. Outside work, Rambo enjoys baking, video games, and language learning.
Perri Thaler is thrilled to be attending SHERP! She studied astronomy and economics at Cornell University before working in space policy and technology at NASA, and then researching paleomagnetism at Harvard University. She is most passionate about space, but also profoundly curious about other scientific topics, including renewable energy, quantum computing, and climate change. She’s particularly captivated by secondary problems that modern technologies inadvertently cause. Perri loves a gripping movie and a greasy pizza!
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Dawn Attride is from Ireland and studied microbiology at Trinity College Dublin, where she researched antimicrobial resistance and was the magazine editor of her college paper. She spent a term at McGill University studying immunomodulation, which led to her being shortlisted as the Irish Female Undergraduate of the Year. Her passion for writing stems from her scientific curiosity and dislike of misinformation! Otherwise, Dawn is painting or reading National Geographic (and sometimes Vogue!).
Humberto Basilio grew up between a volcano and a forest in Mexico. He’s now a journalist covering science and environmental stories with a focus on vulnerable communities around the world. His work has been published in SciDev.Net, World Wildlife Magazine, The Open Notebook, and Eos Magazine, where he leads the Mexico City bureau. He’s a member of the Mexican Network of Science Journalists and the Oxford Climate Journalism Network. Coffee and dim light are all he needs to be happy.
Olivia Gieger comes to SHERP after two years writing about climate change and coastal resilience for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. She’s fascinated with understanding and explaining why things work the way they do. A Massachusetts girl, she majored in environmental studies and.English at Amherst College, where she also led the college newspaper, The Student. Olivia is a voracious eater and reader — of novels and of New York magazine. Talk to her about cool new restaurants.
Sara Hashemi is a writer and fact-checker from Montreal, Canada. She graduated with a degree in environment and development from McGill University, where she was an editor for her student paper and ran a feminist art magazine. She writes about environmental justice, sustainability, and culture. You can probably find her watching cat videos or buying weird earrings online.
Jenaye Johnson grew up in Philadelphia and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in neuroscience and discovered her passion for creatively communicating STEM innovations. After graduating, she worked for a translational epilepsy research center and interned at NASA as a science communicator. At SHERP, Jenaye is most excited about finding her voice as a multimedia science writer and building her scicomm brand glue&glia. To wind down, she enjoys gaming, art, and playing bass.
Carrie Klein joins SHERP after three years of writing about geothermal boreholes, methane emissions, and how to achieve a just energy transition as director of communications at the Boston nonprofit HEET. Carrie majored in environmental studies and English at Oberlin College and is thrilled to be a part of SHERP’s next class, where she looks forward to creative multimedia storytelling. In her free time, she can be found playing frisbee, salsa dancing, or listening to podcasts.
Gayoung Lee is indebted to science journalism for being one of two institutions to welcome her strange and trivial questions (the other was the philosophy department at NYU Abu Dhabi). A self-declared Pyrrhonist, her interests lie in uncovering and writing about the unlikely connections between the world and various scientific phenomena. Her SHERPie goal is to explore how different storytelling techniques can make science stories more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.
Kohava Mendelsohn has a degree in robotics engineering from the University of Toronto. She loves explaining math, science, and technology concepts to everyone, and believes anyone can learn anything if it’s taught well. She is excited to dive headfirst into telling stories about science at SHERP. In her spare time, Kohava loves playing board games and RPGs, reading fantasy novels, baking, and solving logic puzzles.
Nana Mohammed is a Nigerian journalist with a degree in language and communication arts from the Modibbo Adama University of Technology Yola in Adamawa, She writes about human rights violations and gender discrimination. Her documentary on the devastating impact of flooding on Nigerian farmers sparked her interest in SHERP. She is excited to be one of the program’s first African journalists!
Avery Orrall is from the Boston area and studied English and American literature, psychology, and medicine at New York University, where she was editor-in-chief of the science newsletter, Caduceus, and did research on antibiotic resistance and gut health. Transitioning out of her career in healthcare, she is determined to make medical information accessible to all and is especially interested in health equity and education. She spends her free time knitting, hoarding books, and traveling.
Alexa Robles-Gil Luna grew up in Mexico and studied biology at Universidad de las Américas Puebla. Her work in conservation has taken her to South Africa’s Western Cape and a remote island off Mexico’s Pacific coast. Her writing has been published in the Chile-based magazine, Endémico, where she reflects on this century’s environmental questions. As a fiction writer, she’s currently working on her second novel. Alexa lives for outdoor adventures and dark chocolate.
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Timmy Broderick writes about energy and the environment with a particular focus on the local-level impacts of climate change. Most recently, they covered politics and renewable energy for the Christian Science Monitor as their Sperling Fellow. Their work has also appeared in Belt Magazine, Washington Monthly, and more. An Ohio native, Timmy spends their free time eating ice cream and plotting bike trips.
Emily Driehaus is from Cincinnati and studied journalism and anthropology at Loyola University Chicago. Her love for science communication has led her to explore different forms of storytelling, from researching objects for museum exhibits to making TikToks about water quality. She’s excited to sharpen her skills at SHERP and continue experimenting with new ways to tell stories. When she’s not working, she’s probably baking, running, or eating vegetarian sushi.
Anna Gibbs grew up in the coastal town of Ipswich, Massachusetts, and studied poetry at Harvard University. When she discovered she could combine language and storytelling with science, she knew that’s what she wanted to do. Now she writes about nature, ecology, and climate change, with the goal of making others love salt marshes as much as she does. Her hobbies include bothering her cats and drinking chai lattes.
Madison Goldberg grew up in northern California and attended Harvard University, where she studied earth and planetary sciences and education. She fell in love with journalism while reporting on issues like abandoned mines and stormwater infrastructure at the NPR affiliate in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. At SHERP, she aims to keep telling environmental stories and the human stories that intertwine with them. When she’s not writing, she enjoys hiking, doing crossword puzzles, and fawning over her cat.
Georgina Jimenez grew up in Mexico and studied political science at the Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE). She used to work at Data Cívica, a Mexican NGO that uses data and technology to advance human rights causes. There she oversaw the data journalism products the organization publishes in national media. Georgina enjoys reading, cooking, practicing yoga, and looking for the best breakfast food.
Ellyn Lapointe caught the journalism bug at thirteen, when she published her very first climate story in her local newspaper. Ever since, she has sought to merge her passions for writing and the sciences. She attended the University of Vermont, where she earned dual degrees in English and environmental science while writing and editing for the university’s environmental magazine. Ellyn is interested in studying the effects of politics and socioeconomics on science communication in rural communities.
Calli McMurray grew up in Texas (yeehaw!) and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in neuroscience and a minor in English. Before SHERP, she wrote about the brain at a nonprofit in Washington, D.C. and worked as a bookseller on the weekends. When she’s not writing about science, she enjoys reading fiction, cooking fun vegetarian recipes, hanging out with her cat Carl Sagan, and spending time outside.
Kiley Price is originally from Philadelphia and graduated from Wake Forest University, where she majored in biology. She then moved to Washington, D.C., and became a staff writer and editor for Conversation International, reporting stories about climate change, forests and (her personal favorite) wildlife. Science journalism has already sent her from tiny towns in North Carolina to the forests of Thailand — and she can’t wait to see where it takes her next during her time at SHERP.
Gwendolyn Rak recently graduated from Swarthmore College, where she studied astrophysics and history. As an undergraduate, she did x-ray astronomy research, interned for the NASA History Division, and edited Swarthmore’s history journal. While her scientific interests have mostly been among the stars, here on Earth she also enjoys baking, streaming the latest Netflix shows, and going on long walks with her family’s dog.
Marlowe Starling grew up in Miami writing short stories about animals, a precursor to her passion for environmental journalism. She combined her interests in science and storytelling at the University of Florida with a journalism degree and wildlife ecology minor. A study abroad trip to Tanzania cemented her desire to tell stories about people and their environments around the world. Marlowe enjoys meandering through bookstores, going for nature walks, and spending time with family.
Alice Sun grew up in the forests and estuaries of Vancouver, Canada. She majored in wildlife biology at McGill University. After graduating, she studied and freelanced in visual communications, hoping to bridge the disconnect between science and the public. Now at SHERP, she’s setting her sights on writing and is looking to tell stories of wildlife, ecology, conservation, and more. Outside of work, Alice enjoys a variety of hobbies, including birdwatching, photography, baking, and dance.
Lori Youmshajekian is an award-winning video journalist and producer from Sydney, Australia. After studying finance and communications at the University of New South Wales, she decided to jump ship and get into journalism. Now, she makes videos that explain the key stories of the day. She loves finding where science intersects with people’s emotions and lived experiences. When she’s not at her desk, you can find her at the beach, trying new food, or running late to something.
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Lyric Aquino is from Lorain, Ohio and attended Kent State University, where she double-majored in anthropology and journalism. She currently works at The Morning Journal in her hometown as a multimedia reporter. Lyric is devoted to telling the stories of people and their cultures. Her work has been published in Indian Country Today, The Morning Journal, Ohio Magazine and other publications. Her dream is to earn her PhD in Anthropology and write for National Geographic.
Deborah Balthazar grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Caldwell University, studying biology as a premed and minoring in English and chemistry. She has researched the reduction of food waste and bacteria on toothbrushes. Her love of writing and communication inspired her to work as a local government reporter and a substitute teacher in her hometown. When not writing, she enjoys reading, crocheting, and watching TV with her parents.
Delaney Dryfoos graduated in 2019 from Duke University, where she studied biology, global health, policy journalism and media studies. She discovered her passion for science storytelling while running an environmental epidemiology study in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. She then moved to NYC to work for the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. She grew up along the East Coast and, while not reading or writing about science, enjoys fiction, cooking, music and taking care of her wily dog Wesley.
Maiya Focht grew up outside of Kansas City and graduated from Syracuse University with dual degrees in neuroscience and television, radio and film. She has a lifelong passion for writing and spent her time as an undergraduate producing health and wellness stories for Syracuse’s local NPR affiliate. At SHERP, she hopes to sharpen her science and journalism skills while make lifelong connections. Her interests outside of work include poetry, dance and film.
Emily Harris majored in chemistry at Williams College, where she also deepened her interests in neuroscience and psychology. Over the past two years, she has worked as a research assistant for a longitudinal study on aging. At SHERP, Emily looks forward to making health and medical information accessible and relevant by combining storytelling with the translation of scientific concepts. Raised in New Hampshire, she enjoys trail running and hiking.
Kharishar Kahfi was born and raised in Indonesia’s capital of Jakarta and has been interested in science and journalism since he was a boy. After graduating with a degree in communications from University of Indonesia, he combined those interests by reporting on environment and science issues for The Jakarta Post. He’s coming to SHERP because he wants to learn more about how to tell compelling science stories on various platforms. When not on deadline, he spends time with comics, video games and laundry.
Daniel Leonard recently obtained his joint degree in the history of science and philosophy from Harvard University. While an undergrad, he wrote for The Harvard Crimson, did some freelance writing, and started a small YouTube channel called The Young Futurist. Daniel loves studying the intersection between technology and society in the human past, present, and future. Naturally, he’s a big fan of science fiction — movies more so than books.
Hannah Loss grew up wading through wetlands in Southwest Florida before going to college at Tufts University where she slogged through snowbanks. She studied English and environmental studies, surprising her 11-year-old self who had pledged to become an astronaut. Hannah is interested in communicating science and environmental stories through multimedia; before SHERP, she worked in documentary research and production, radio podcasting, and scientific conferences. She still finds time to ponder the mathematical mysteries of space.
Tatum McConnell recently graduated from Columbia University where she studied environmental biology. She’s always loved nature but working with nonprofit Vital Ground as their “bear blogger extraordinaire” helped her discover her passion for writing about it. She’s thrilled to launch a career telling Earth’s stories and has a particular interest in wildlife and conservation. When she’s not writing you can find Tatum running, enjoying a good book, or attempting to befriend Morningside Park’s feral cats.
Allison Parshall has always felt torn between her loves for science and writing. She studied psychology and cognitive science at Georgetown University before pursuing her passion for storytelling as a documentary filmmaker. Now she is eager to combine her interests as a science journalist-in-training at SHERP to tell stories about neuroscience, health, and their interactions with the world around us. Besides writing, she enjoys creating music, learning languages, and ballroom dancing.
Niranjana Rajalakshmi is a veterinarian from South India. After a master’s in veterinary microbiology, she has combined her subject matter expertise with her fervor for storytelling and writes for news outlets in India. From the three seasons of her city – summer, summerer, and summerest – she thinks moving to NYC will add at least one more season to her life and more flavor to her writing. Niranjana enjoys cooking, singing, and feeling nostalgic about her furry patients.
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Jackie Appel studied astronomy at The Ohio State University, where she spent most of her undergraduate years preparing for a career in astronomical research before deciding to shift her attention to science journalism. She loves sharing the weird wonders of the world with anyone who wants to listen. Outside of academia, she enjoys reading, traveling, and climbing, and will always be a theatre kid at heart.
Casey Crownhart grew up in Alabama and graduated from MIT, where she majored in chemical engineering and literature. After graduating, she joined a startup and did research in biomaterials before joining SHERP to combine her passion for science with her love of writing. Her interests include climate science, sustainable materials, and public health. If she’s not reading or writing, you can find Casey tending to her small army of houseplants, running, or watching college football.
Delger Erdenesanaa grew up exploring New England’s forests, rivers and coast. She studied earth and oceanographic science at Bowdoin College, and still can’t think of anything she’d rather learn about. But being much better at writing than at designing experiments, Delger has thankfully found her way to science journalism. She previously worked in communications at World Resources Institute in D.C. and volunteered with AmeriCorps in Utah.
Ethan Freedman studied biology and environmental studies at Tufts University and the School for Field Studies. This took him to field work in the grasslands of Tanzania, rainforests of Costa Rica, swamps of Massachusetts and islands of California, mainly studying birds. But it also reminded him how much he likes telling stories, so that’s what he does now. Other than that, he likes cross-country skiing, live music and cooking with friends.
Anna Goshua is a medical student at Stanford University interested in the impacts of climate change on human health. Born in Moscow and raised in Toronto, she completed her Bachelor of Health Sciences at McMaster University. In combining medicine and journalism, she aims to give a platform to issues faced by patients and health care providers. She enjoys writing fiction, dance, and is a lifelong fan of the Toronto Raptors.
Karen Kwon recently earned her Ph.D. in chemistry from Columbia University. She mainly grew up in Seoul, South Korea, but lived in Cyril, Oklahoma and Brighton, U.K. as well. As one of the 2020 AAAS Mass Media Fellows, she will intern at Scientific American before joining SHERP in the fall. At SHERP, she hopes to explore topics intersecting science and culture. When she’s not working, she enjoys reading nonfiction books, listening to podcasts, and watching sitcoms.
Lauren Leffer studied biology and creative writing at the University of Maryland. She has researched vampire bat behavior, parasitoid wasp taxonomy, and aquatic macroinvertebrate communities. She’s been a STEM educator, park naturalist, laboratory manager, program coordinator, and surrogate opossum parent. Finally, after all that, Lauren hopes to have found her professional niche at SHERP. She is most interested in reporting at the intersection of ecology, environmental justice, and human narrative.
Niko McCarty’s first article was about insecticides, dwindling bee populations, and the scientists working to save them. When the article sparked conversations in Iowa City, he became hooked on advocacy through storytelling. He holds a master’s in synthetic biology from Imperial College London and spent the last two years engineering microbes at Caltech, but never stopped writing about science, the environment, and people. In his free time, he likes to read about Roman history and play tennis.
Abe Musselman studied biology at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also worked in an evolutionary ecology lab. He’s a lifelong learner and as a journalist hopes to probe the mysteries of Earth, deep time, and the uneasy partnership between nature and the human species. His interests include natural history, astronomy, ecology, conservation, and urbanization. When he’s not writing, he’s playing guitar and singing sea shanties in the woods.
Elana Spivack studied literature at Kenyon College, where she underwent an identity crisis upon realizing she loved physics. She also was an editor of the student newspaper and continued freelancing after graduation. Between her writing experience and tenure as both a middle-grade science teacher and biotech PR professional, she found her way to science journalism and SHERP. When not on deadline, she bikes, salsa dances, and writes satire.
Joanna Thompson is a medium-sized, mostly hairless bipedal mammal. She graduated from North Carolina State University in 2015 with degrees in zoology and creative writing, which she promptly shelved to become a professional long distance runner. For the last five years, she has lived, trained, and occasionally hunted for salamanders with her teammates in the mountains of North Carolina. Now, she hopes to apply that same focused determination to fighting climate change through journalism.
Huanjia Zhang never thought he would become a journalist in a foreign country. He grew up in Yantai, a cozy city on China’s northeast coast. As a biology major at Gettysburg College, he studied salamanders. Wading through frigid ponds to hunt for salamander eggs, he unfolded a passion for science storytelling. After college, Huanjia worked at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia researching the human microbiome. In his spare time, he reads and cooks, then repeats.
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Anushree Dave spent several years in academia as a researcher prior to shifting her focus to journalism. She holds a master’s in bioethics from McGill University where her thesis focused on the ethics of publishing disaster research. She loves solo traveling and meeting new people along the way, creating zines, watching documentaries with her family, and baking cupcakes. Her last name is pronounced “duh-vay” (rhymes with “the way”).
MK Manoylov ate their first cricket during their sophomore year of college. After that, they caught the bug for science journalism by telling people how eating insects will save the world. MK studied ecology and English at the University of Georgia and worked as opinion editor for The Red & Black. They’ve written plays, short stories and long-form fiction, and have also drawn comics and made podcasts. MK hopes to combine these multimedia elements during their time at SHERP.
Jonathan Moens recently graduated from University College London with an MSc in brain and mind sciences. He is Belgian-Eritrean, but was raised in Rome. He is fascinated by the mysteries of the mind, and has worked in several research centers, including the Neurospin laboratory in Paris and the Institute of Philosophy in London. In his spare time, Jonathan dabbles on the guitar, slow-cooks aubergines, and goes rock climbing.
Lili Pike was fortuitously given a first name that works in Chinese. She followed her fate to Beijing where she covered climate change as a staff writer for Chinadialogue, produced the podcast Environment China, and worked for the Natural Resources Defense Council. Lili graduated from Harvard with a B.A. in social studies, a minor in energy and environment, and a citation in Mandarin Chinese. She enjoys long train rides in China and backpacking in the Sierra Nevada.
Rahul Rao recently graduated with majors in physics and English from Vanderbilt University, where he wrote a space-related column for the student newspaper. He became interested in science journalism because he couldn’t decide between his love of science and his love of writing. He is a massive Doctor Who fan, and in his spare time enjoys writing fiction and reading pretty much anything he can get his hands on.
María Paula Rubiano never shared the passion her fellow students felt for crime and political stories while majoring in journalism at Universidad de Antioquia in Colombia. Instead, she loved explaining why being a vegetarian had anything to do with climate change. In a sense, as a science and environmental reporter for El Espectador, she never stopped doing that. She has travelled on helicopters, boats and canoes to write stories about Colombia’s water resources and deforestation.
Leto Sapunar is a complex arrangement of stellar dust who studied physics at Oregon State University. He’s interested in stories involving physics, culture, Roman history and most things in between. He has experience in science outreach and spent time in a nanoelectronics lab. Inspired by the intersection of science and society and motivated to work for the public interest, Leto spends his little free time climbing things, drinking tea, playing violin and reading science fiction.
Curtis Segarra is a photographer and science journalist who focuses on global ecology. Growing up in New Mexico, his life was centered around nature—hiking, biking, and exploring. When he wasn’t outdoors, he was reading (he loves travelogues). Later, while studying geology at Trinity University, he realized he could combine these passions by becoming a science journalist. Now, he uses his words and photos to help others see practical beauty in ecology.
Hannah Seo graduated from McGill University with majors in anatomy and cell biology and a minor in English. She’s fascinated by the intersection of science and culture, and sees journalism as a way to stay a life-long learner. As an ethnically Korean Canadian raised in the Middle East, she considers herself an international nomad. Besides reading and writing, Hannah enjoys musical theater (to escape the bleakness of reality), podcasts, comedy, and watching RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Rebecca Sohn studied English and minored in music at Skidmore College, where she tried to take every introductory science class offered. Some of her favorites include acoustics, ecology, neuroscience, and astronomy. Rebecca also enjoys writing poetry, and recently completed a collection about science entitled Stay in Motion. When she isn’t reading or writing, Rebecca can be found playing the fiddle, contra dancing, singing, or getting distracted by starry skies.
Corryn Wetzel grew up in the Pacific Northwest, which sparked her love of the outdoors, wildlife and environmental advocacy. After graduating from Colgate University with a major in English, she was thrilled to join the Smithsonian’s National Zoo where she discovered her passion for communicating science stories to public audiences. Corryn spends her free time running, cooking and forcing people to look at photos of her golden retriever.
Taylor White graduated from Suffolk University with a major in biology and minor in journalism. She has worked in labs on everything from horseshoe crabs to breast cancer cells, written and talked about science through her school’s newspaper and radio station, and interned at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and NOVA WGBH. When she’s not writing about science, she enjoys spending time with friends, dancing ballet, and watching psychological thriller movies.
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Marcus Banks is a librarian-turned-journalist, who in fact spent a lot of time writing as a librarian. He once worked at the NYU Ehrman Medical Library and is thrilled to be returning to New York City. He holds degrees in English and in library science, from Northwestern University and Dominican University respectively. His work has appeared in Slate, Undark and American Libraries. He enjoys karaoke, invariably singing songs written before he was born.
Donavyn Coffey has a B.Sc. in Biotechnology and a M.Sc. in Molecular Nutrition and Food Technology, but it wasn’t until she began working for a biotech firm that she realized her passion for sharing scientific discovery. She recently transitioned from scientist to storyteller, writing about nutrigenomic and epigenetic breakthroughs. Partial to traveling, coffee, and experimenting in the kitchen, Donavyn is excited about entering the world of science journalism.
Dani Leviss studied at Drew University, spending time in the newspaper office, chemistry labs, and art studios. After receiving a B.A. in chemistry with minors in writing and art, she wrote for IEEE Earthzine, launched a science podcast, and volunteered with the Sierra Club. A Central New Jersey native, she passionately asserts her region is neither North nor South Jersey. When not reading or writing about science, she likes to watch sitcoms, garden, and make art.
Dana Najjar has had some trouble deciding what to do with her life. Since graduating from MIT with a physics degree, she’s been a management consultant, pastry chef and, most recently, software developer. Along the way, she picked up an M.S. in physics from the University of Chicago. She’s always written about science on the side, but it only just occurred to her to make a career out of it! She grew up in Lebanon and loves neuroscience, cosmology, food and the circus.
Polina Porotsky was born and raised in Russia and then Latvia. She studied neuroscience at Columbia University and has since been working at a venture capital firm with a focus on biotechnologies. Her interest in journalism stems from a belief that current technologies put traditional modes of information in danger (and because she is a nerd). She enjoys playing piano, riding horses, reading about fashion and watching psychological thrillers like The Departed.
Nina Pullano was first drawn to science journalism at Binghamton University, where she majored in environmental studies and was the editor-in-chief of the student newspaper. Before SHERP, she worked as an editorial assistant at Spectrum, an autism research magazine based in Manhattan. When she needs a break from bustling New York City, she enjoys going camping upstate in the Adirondacks or near her hometown of Rochester.
Passant Rabie is an award-winning journalist from Cairo, Egypt. After graduating from the American University in Cairo in 2008 with a degree in journalism, Rabie pursued her passion for reporting at local, independent media outlets. Early in her career, Rabie developed an interest in covering science and health topics. Having shifted her focus to politics in the Middle East for the past few years, she is eager to redirect her attention to issues that concern her the most.
Marion Renault’s first name rhymes with ‘carry on,’ and her last name rhymes with ‘to-go’. She wrote about creepy crawlies, pipeline spills, outer space and garbage as the Columbus Dispatch’s science and environment reporter. A journalism and Spanish major at the University of Minnesota, she interned at the Chicago Tribune, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Minneapolis Star Tribune. If she’s not answering her phone, she’s either rock climbing or making ratatouille.
Jessica Romeo graduated from Fairfield University with majors in biology and English literature, and a minor in Film, Television and Media Studies. She enjoys writing about ecology, conservation, and the intersection of science and art. She loves reading fiction, but even more loves discovering things in the real world that feel truly magical. Outside of science writing, Jess enjoys the Muppets and stop-motion animation. She can recite The Princess Bride from memory.
Tara Santora is a recent graduate of Oberlin College with a bachelor’s in biology. At Oberlin, she enjoyed managing and writing for the intercollegiate science magazine The Synapse, tutoring biology and chemistry, and playing real-world quidditch. When she can find spare time, she enjoys juggling, listening to podcasts, and playing board games (but only when she wins).
Isobel Whitcomb studied Biology at Scripps College. During her undergraduate years, you could find her counting baby plants at the site of a recent wildfire or waist deep in a waterfall, chasing tadpoles with her dipnet. When she wasn’t in the field, she wrote a science column for her college newspaper, The Scripps Voice. Her hobbies include road cycling and spouting science trivia to anyone who will listen – often at the same time.
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Brianna Abbott recently graduated from Providence College with degrees in chemistry and English. When she wasn’t in the campus newsroom, she was in the chemistry lab, blogging about plastic nanoparticles and naming the analytical instruments. She’s thrilled to have found a home at SHERP where she can obsess over punctuation and protons simultaneously. Any free time she has is spent running, talking too loudly about her current Netflix binge, or tap dancing.
Jessica Boddy graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a B.S. in biology and minors in creative writing and chemistry. After graduating, she interned for Science and NPR, where she covered topics ranging from health to astrobiology to neuroscience. In her spare time, she enjoys cheering on Chicago sports teams, listening to music, and flipping rocks in search of salamanders.
Nell Durfee has left the high-stakes world of teaching high school science to return to covering diverse topics like food sustainability, public health, and technology. Her interest in science journalism began as a child catching frogs and newts in upstate New York, which has helped her maintain a love for the outdoors and a perpetual Chaco tan. In her spare time, she likes to read just about everything and snicker inappropriately at New York’s fine art.
Lucy Hicks graduated from Duke University with a B.S. in biology and a minor in Spanish. She discovered her love for science journalism while covering a new immunotherapy for brain cancer. Since this epiphany, Lucy has been an avid consumer of science writing, resulting in piles of books and magazines around her apartment. Outside of reading and writing, Lucy’s hobbies include playing piano, exploring outdoors, and making Seinfeld references.
Lexi Krupp is thrilled to be moving back to her home state after working in experiential education for the past two years asking big questions about the environment, ecology and systems of power with young people on the coast of Maine and in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. She graduated from Dartmouth College where she studied biology and developed a love of long bike rides and making pottery.
Emiliano Rodríguez Mega never planned to be a journalist, but shortly after graduating from the National Autonomous University of Mexico with a degree in biology it became clear that he would not be spending the rest of his days as a scientist. Since then, he has focused on covering research and science policy from Latin America. His work has been published in Science, Scientific American, SciDev.Net, WWF, Nature, and elsewhere. Emiliano lives for good tacos.
Jillian Mock grew up in Dallas, Texas, before attending Middlebury College, where she majored in environmental studies, history, and wearing warm socks. After graduation, she spent three years back in Dallas working for an environmental nonprofit, writing for a large medical center, and freelancing for a regional hunting and fishing newspaper. In her spare time, Jillian enjoys waterskiing, reading fiction, and eating tacos.
Jen Monnier grew up in rural Washington State, clam digging along the coast and wearing a rain jacket every day. She studied philosophy at Western Washington University after discovering she enjoyed writing about bioethics more than she enjoyed practicing biology in a lab. A yearning to uncover underrepresented voices and a tendency to follow environmental and health news led her to science journalism — a career in which she can spend her days learning.
Matthew Phelan has worked as a lithium-ion battery research chemist and a science cartoonist for Current Science magazine. His writing has appeared in InsideClimate News, Chemical Engineering, Jacobin, The New Republic, and The Onion. Matthew comes to SHERP with a sense of wonder about the big questions in scientific inquiry—from astrobiology to quantum computing. He holds a dual B.A./B.S. in history and chemical engineering from Rutgers. And now you know.
Chloe Williams graduated from the University of British Columbia with a B.Sc. in Natural Resources Conservation. Growing up in Calgary, she spent her spare time exploring the mountains and reading National Geographic. She hopes to focus her journalism studies on the interactions between communities and the natural environment, all while pursuing her love for adventure and exploration. She likes skiing, running, growing vegetables, and foraging for edible plants.
Shoshana Wodinsky graduated Queens College (CUNY) with a bachelor’s in neuroscience and a handful of rats adopted from her years working as a researcher. After falling in love with the works of Oliver Sacks, she decided to leave the pipettes behind and pursue a career in science communication – first with her college paper, and then as a freelance journalist. If not writing, she’s probably binging nature documentaries on Netflix.
Charlie Wood studied physics at Brown University before embarking on an education career that saw him teach Mozambican students to calculate the speed of light and Japanese students to write English science presentations. After five years abroad in rural villages, he’s excited for the opposite experience at SHERP, where he looks forward to honing his endless curiosity about all things science into a craft, and not killing chickens or singing in public (unless by choice).
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Ellen Airhart recently graduated from the University of Texas with degrees in biology and rhetoric and writing. In her undergraduate years, she worked as an office manager, EMT, and finally as the founder and editor of the student newspaper’s science and technology department. While in New York, she plans to run her fifth marathon and visit the Strand Bookstore several hundred times.
Eleanor Cummins is a writer focusing on the intersection of science and culture. Trained in medical anthropology at the University of Washington, she has conducted research on a variety of topics including scientific misconduct in the context of evolutionary theory and adolescent health in the digital age. Her free time has been dedicated almost exclusively to newsrooms, including work as a staff reporter for the Tri-City Herald and an editor at The Daily of UW.
Abigail Fagan graduated from the University of Rochester with a major in brain and cognitive science and a minor in English literature. After graduating, she worked for the publishing company Macmillan Learning, helping to develop their science textbooks. She’s also worked as a freelance writer for the World Science Festival and Weill Cornell Medicine. In her spare time, she loves reading, playing board games, and consuming Nutella.
Mark Kaufman, a bona fide Los Angelino, studied neuroscience at the University of California, San Diego and is terrified of earthquakes. A true respect for the natural world led him to become a ranger and educator for the National Park Service. This experience was rife with close encounters with fat brown bears and steaming volcanoes. When not using writing to provoke others on topics of planetary science, Mark uses his drum set to provoke his neighbors.
Ashley Lyles graduated from Michigan State University, majoring in professional writing with a concentration in digital and technical writing. Ashley also did pre-medical coursework. As a scholar in the Research Education Program to Increase Diversity in Health-Related Research, she conducted biomedical research funded by the National Institutes of Health. Passionate about global health, Ashley has traveled to Honduras to participate in a medical and dental brigade.
Leslie Nemo just completed her B.S. in anthropology and human physiology and a minor in dance at the University of Iowa. When she realized she was spending more time talking about her anthropology research than she was actually spending in the lab, she concluded science writing would be a better career choice. If she isn’t reading (or talking about what she’s reading), she’s probably dancing, trying new food, or running to catch a bus.
Dan Robitzski graduated from Lafayette College with a B.S. in neuroscience and a minor in creative writing. Passionate about accessible information, Dan hopes to use science journalism as a way to bridge the communication gap among researchers, medical professionals, and the public. In his spare time, you can find him competing at fencing tournaments, pretending to understand pop culture references, and looking at cute rodents on the internet.
Marissa Shieh graduated from Williams College with a B.A. in chemistry. She was a National Association of Science Writers Travel Fellow and a Jeffrey Owen Jones Fellow in Journalism. In hindsight, she realizes this was the only logical career after a childhood filled with National Geographic, Scientific American, and The New York Times. She loves Quantum Leap, Shakespeare in the Park, and MasterChef Junior. Her favorite punctuation mark is the em dash.
Harrison Tasoff grew up in sunny Southern California watching science shows and exploring tide pools. Having graduated from Swarthmore College with a degree in mathematics and philosophy, his dynamic interests and sense of social responsibility drew him into the world of science communication. When he’s not trawling the web for science news, you can find him tending to his bonsai, developing his carving skills, or dragging his friends off to find interesting rocks.
Nicole Wetsman recently graduated from Bowdoin College with a major in neuroscience. After four years as one of the only science majors on her college paper, she’s excited to get to SHERP and hang out with other people who like talking about both molecules and em dashes. She plays soccer and ultimate frisbee, loves to cook, and is a (not so) secret musical theater geek.
Cici Zhang grew up in China and studied neuroscience at Swarthmore College and (for her M.S.) Washington University. While she came to America for endless possibilities, she’s still surprised her blogging could start a journey towards being a science journalist in NYC. Combining meeting people, traveling,and her love for science and words, this career seems like a dream in reality. Cici enjoys Instagram, movies and beautiful things that satisfy her curiosity.
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Meghan Bartels graduated from Georgetown University with a major in classics and a minor in biology. After college, she worked at a small environmental book publisher, where she learned that writing about science is fun when you get to use sentences that include both nouns and verbs. She also enjoys learning about history, drinking tea, and cheering on the Georgetown men’s basketball team.
Sara Chodosh is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where she received a B.A. in neurobiology and philosophy of science. Perhaps the majority of her sentences begin excitedly with “did you know…” and the majority of her days end with a fond goodnight to her cat. Sara originally pursued cancer research as an undergrad, but now prefers teaching her friends about science and medicine while she bakes cupcakes.
Jeanette Ferrara hails from the suburbs of Houston, Texas. She is a recent graduate of Princeton University, where she majored in English literature with a concentration in Environmental Studies. She then combined her two loves into an ecocritical thesis on Shakespeare. When she isn’t reading or writing about the Bard and nature, she enjoys musical theatre, dancing, and all things Jane Austen.
Peter Hess recently graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he received his B.A. in environmental studies. Originally a student of British and American literature, his sense of social responsibility pulled him in a different direction. Peter aspires to harness the power of the written word to explore important issues of human and environmental health, such as fracking and biosolids. In his free time, he likes to propagate houseplants and make curries.
Kelsey Kennedy grew up on a tree farm in Oregon’s Coast Range, roaming through the forest and reading everything about science she could find. She took the scenic route through undergrad, switching schools and majors, and ended up with a B.S. in economics and a minor in actuarial science from Oregon State University. When she’s not reading or writing about science, she’s probably wearing hiking boots, tinkering with a camera and planning her next adventure.
Ellie Kincaid graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a B.A. in English and minors in writing and biology. She’s worked on research projects ranging from multiple sclerosis to Jane Austen, and has written about medicine, health care, and animals for The Dodo and Business Insider.
Michael Koziol is a recent graduate of Seattle University, having earned a B.A. in both English and physics. After years of being unable to answer the question “Well, what do you want to do after you graduate?” he finally stumbled upon science journalism as the perfect opportunity to combine his love of storytelling with his desire to inform others. In his spare time, he enjoys video games, Ultimate, and rock climbing.
Ryan Mandelbaum makes his triumphant return to New York after spending two years battling flight delays, polar vortices and indigestion while implementing healthcare software for Epic Systems in Madison, Wisconsin. Ryan earned his B.A. in physics and mathematics at Columbia University and studied heavy ion collisions at CERN during the summer of 2012 (spot him in Particle Fever wearing his CERN basketball jersey). Ryan will be the first Billboard Hot 100 artist to rap about supersymmetry.
Sandy Ong completed a B.S. in life sciences in Singapore and an M.S. in forensic science in London before deciding she much preferred writing about science than actually doing it. Away from working as a medical writer, you can find her playing tennis or planning her next trip to satisfy her eternal wanderlust. She’s excited to be moving across the pond to New York to further her love for science and show tunes.
Shira Polan graduated from Cornell University in 2015 with a B.S. in animal science and a minor in communication. She was a staff writer for the Cornell Daily Sun science section, covering topics ranging from tiger beetles to red algae invasions to gluten intolerance. When not running, singing, horseback riding, or training in karate, Shira can be found rehearsing for her numerous theatrical performances in the copious amount of free time left to her.
Dyani Sabin spent her undergraduate career at Oberlin College chasing crayfish through streams, stage-managing musicals, and reading Russian literature. Upon graduating with her biology degree in 2014, she stalled going into research and became the evening supervisor at a library instead. There, she discovered science journalism, and fell in love with exploring the relationship between science and people. Thrilled to be a SHERPie, she loves horseback riding, exclaiming about cool birds, and knitting.
Knvul Sheikh grew up surrounded by the beauty of the Himalayas and sustained by Pakistani cuisine. A fascination for the natural world and travel brought her to the University of California, San Diego for a B.S. in molecular biology. She spent a few years doing research there and then in Singapore before stumbling into freelancing for the Singapore Scientist. When not planning her next big trip, Knvul enjoys running and experimenting with green smoothies.
Greg Uyeno was born and raised in the penumbra of the University of California, Berkeley, from which he received a B.A. in cognitive science with an emphasis in linguistics. Since transplanted to New York, he’s taken to local pastimes, like speed walking and standing around waiting. Greg also enjoys home cooking, playing ‘ukulele, and doing things with words.
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Lydia Anderson just graduated with a B.A. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University. She thought she was going to be a research scientist until she realized she enjoyed cornering people to tell them about science more than actually doing it. Now her experimenting will be confined to the kitchen, while she instead learns how to articulate her excitement about the natural world more convincingly than “THIS IS SO COOL!”
Chelsey B. Coombs graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology and too many bee stings to count (having researched honey bee aggression for three years). At UIUC, she wrote articles and created multimedia presentations about science for the News Bureau and the School of MCB. When she’s not writing, she’s almost certainly on Twitter.
Katherine Foley proudly hails from Wilmington, Delaware. She holds a B.S. in Science, Technology and International Affairs from Georgetown University. When she’s not following her favorite science writers in print or podcasts, Katherine enjoys long-distance running, spicy Korean BBQ, and swing dancing. Her journalistic interests include genetically modified foods, space exploration, and everything in between.
Jeni Hackett is a graduate of the College of William and Mary, where she attained a B.A. in History and a minor in Physics. She’s always been fascinated by science but writing and communication have been her specialty; combining the two by pursuing science journalism seemed like the logical (and fun) thing to do. When not writing about things like space probes or weird particles, she enjoys sewing, video games, and anything involving atomic culture.
Shannon Hall is hooked on three things: the smell of freshly ground coffee beans, the feeling of enthrallment while traveling solo, and the wonders of the Universe. She earned her B.A. from Whitman College in physics-astronomy and philosophy, and her M.S. from the University of Wyoming in astronomy. A compulsion to share the stories strung throughout the Universe has led her 3,000 miles from the forests to the mountains and now to the city.
Rebecca Harrington graduated from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities with a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Journalism. She worked at the U’s student newspaper the Minnesota Daily, where she discovered her passion for explaining the complexities and bizarre aspects of science to non-scientists. You can often find her cooking without recipes, discussing scientific explanations for everything around her, and laughing at the little surprises in life.
JoAnna Klein is a scientist and writer from North Carolina, currently based in Brooklyn. She has a master’s in Psychology from Appalachian State University and worked four years in Dr. Joseph LeDoux’s world-renowned neuroscience lab. Currently, JoAnna is working with Blue Chalk Media on Ochre, a new blog on visual journalism. She is excited about chartering a new journalism landscape. She aspires to humanize science through solid storyline, compelling visuals and immersive multimedia experiences.
Nicole Lou is a native New Yorker and a graduate of Williams College with majors in Spanish and Biology. She has worked with plants, bacteria, birds, and mice during her times in various labs and is excited to learn how basic science can better reach humans. You might run into her on one of her quests for dim sum and a good trivia game in town.
Hanneke Weitering is a lifelong physics fanatic from Knoxville, Tennessee. While pursuing a B.S. in Physics at the University of Tennessee, she discovered her passion for science communication and dove into the world of journalism. First, she began writing stories for the Sci/Tech column at Tennessee Journalist. Afterwards she joined the Joint Institute for Computational Sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where she wrote features about research being performed on the Kraken and Nautilus supercomputers.
Steph Yin spent her undergraduate career at Brown University chasing research opportunities—leading her to a remote island in Indonesia, a Marine Corps Base in North Carolina and salt marshes across Cape Cod—before she realized she preferred the stories to the academic interpretations of these experiences. Armed with an Environmental Science degree and two decades of science media consumption (she read all her Kids Discovers), she’s making the move from dreamy Providence to NYC.
Lauren Young is passionate for both science and writing, as she majored in Biology and minored in English at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Between bug hunting and wielding micropipettes, Lauren created an academic journal for scientists-in-training and wrote stories for her university library’s blog. She also loves traveling, show tunes and strong coffee. Lauren can’t wait to begin her adventures as a SHERPie in New York City.
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Becca Cudmore grew up in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. A curiosity for all things living has led her to study anthropology and biology at the University of Oregon, chase howler monkeys through the Costa Rican rainforest, and design and conduct research on orangutan gestural communication in Indonesia. Now, she leaves the woods for the city, in hopes of learning how to convey the wonder of our natural world to the public.
Kathryn Free worked in New York as a TV producer before enrolling in SHERP. She enjoyed the storytelling aspect of her job, but she longed for the love affair with science that had sparked when she obtained her B.S. in geobiology at Caltech. When she’s not reading or writing about fossil discoveries, you can find her rock climbing, cooking Tex-Mex or jamming to Willie Nelson classics.
Chelsea Harvey is a recent graduate of Auburn University, where she received a B.S. in zoology, as well as minors in English and Spanish. Unable to choose between her love of science and her love of writing, she spent most of her free time as an undergrad working for her campus newspaper. Her other interests include playing music with friends, traveling, and keeping up with international affairs.
Josh Krisch came to SHERP the frenzied product of ambulance nightshifts, aviation emergencies, long hours in the laboratory, and a burning desire to write about them. While earning his B.A. in biology at Yeshiva University and completing graduate work in health sciences at Cornell, Josh was routinely exposed to the excitement of science and medicine. When not deciphering medical jargon, Josh enjoys bad science fiction, decent coffee and excellent company.
Sarah Lewin enjoys explaining things. She recently graduated from Brown University with an A.B. in mathematics. Her achievements, aside from winning a Pokemon tournament in second grade, center generally around explaining math and science with WGBH’s NOVA and Johns Hopkins Hospital as well as through assorted freelance work.
Jillian Lim graduated from the University of Toronto with a B.A. in professional writing and communication. She discovered that she wanted to become a science journalist after writing a story about the stress-resilient impact of physical affection on a rat pup’s genes, based on a McGill University study. Inspired, Jillian wrote on mental health and neuroplasticity for her campus paper and in her book, Resilience and the Brain. Jillian loves to read novels and run.
Claire Maldarelli recently graduated from the University of California, Davis with a degree in neurobiology, physiology and behavior. Originally an animal science major with ambitions of becoming a veterinarian, she quickly learned she and large animals would never be friends. Instead, she spent her time in college studying science, writing for The California Aggie, and working with military children in Japan, Germany, and Hawaii for Camp Adventure Youth Services.
Liz Newbern hails from the southern climes of Little Rock, Arkansas. Though she earned her B.A. in geology at Bryn Mawr College, she spent the past year exploring her inner writer by working at an independent bookstore and interning at the Oxford American magazine. Now ready to combine her love of rocks and writing, Liz is excited to see what SHERP and New York City have to offer.
Hannah Newman grew up playing board games in her basement on Saturday mornings and running to soccer practices. She just earned her B.A. in neuroscience at Middlebury College, where she played varsity soccer and created an independent project simplifying science’s puzzles through writing. She loves being active and can often be found running while listening to Radiolab. She cannot wait to embrace all that SHERP and the Big Apple have to offer.
Amy Nordrum is a freelance writer previously based in Alaska. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Ohio University with a specialization in science and the environment. Amy has contributed writing and photography to Alaska, American Cowboy, FairbanksAlaska.com, and the Alaska App. She worked as a communications professional and on-air personality while living in the 49th state. Amy loves to hike, bike, and paddle in the great outdoors.
Alex Ossola earned her B.A. from Hamilton College with a concentration in comp lit and a minor in geoscience. Since graduating, she has served as a tutor and mentor at City Year in Washington, D.C. and imbued high schoolers with the transformative power of travel at Putney Student Travel. A lifelong lover of good communication, Alex’s scientific interests range from string theory to Proustian neuroscience. She is thrilled to continue geeking out at SHERP.
Neel Patel recently graduated from Virginia Tech, where he earned his B.S. in biology. Writing has always been his fiercest passion in life, and it was during a brief stint working in an immunology lab that he decided to pursue science writing. Since graduating, he has worked as an editorial intern for The American Horticultural Society. His other interests include metaphysics, pop culture, and everything in between.
Krystnell Storr discovered her passion for science writing after concluding that her conservation biology professor was a human embodiment of “The Lorax”. Inspired by this realization and the science in the class, she started writing a weekly column called “The Starving Scientist” at Earlham College, where she also earned a B.A. in biology and journalism. Hailing from the Bahamas, she enjoys baking, zumba, and all element related chemistry jokes. HeHe.
Manasi Vaidya had an early inclination towards writing about life and unraveling the complexities of the biological world. After getting her masters in biotechnology from Dr. D.Y. Patil University in Mumbai, she was pleasantly surprised to learn she could combine both and pursue a career in science writing at BioSpectrum, an Indiabased biosciences magazine. Always up for new experiences, she loves to travel and looks forward to the SHERP adventure.
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Kate Baggaley is a recent graduate of Vassar College, where she received a B.A. in Biology and a minor in English. She spent most of her undergraduate years thinking she wanted to be a research scientist, and bounced around field stations in Mexico and the Isles of Shoals until she realized that her favorite part of science is writing about it. When not writing and science-ing, she enjoys black tea, sketching, and playing the clarinet.
Caitlin Davis is a recent graduate of Simmons College, where she received a B.A in English and a minor in biology. Despite her often-hilarious fear of needles, Caitlin has managed to become interested in medicine and reading about its biological properties. She is looking forward to learning more about all aspects of science journalism during her time at SHERP.
Rachel Feltman recently graduated from Bard College at Simon’s Rock, where she majored in environmental studies and fell into each pond on campus at least once. She sometimes blogs, often about falling into ponds in the name of science. Originally from southern New Jersey, she’s always loved science and looks forward to helping others appreciate it through her writing at SHERP and beyond. She enjoys martial arts, mushroom hunting, dance, drama, music, and general geekery.
Jocelyn Fong worked most recently as the energy/environment editor for Media Matters for America, where she scrutinized news coverage of climate change, energy development and related issues. When not attempting to read every word on the Internet, she is making art, eating fruit or talking to her mother on the phone. She holds a B.A. in peace, justice and conflict studies from Goshen College.
Benjamin Guarino holds a B.S. in bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania. After graduation he joined Penn’s Spine Pain Research Lab, where he studied the motion of artificial intervertebral discs and the painful effects of whole-body vibration. Upon discovering that engineering journals discourage metaphor, Ben decided to shuck his lab coat and don a press badge at SHERP. He’s fond of long runs and bad science fiction, and his Erdos–Bacon number is seven.
Andy Han studied astronomy and the history of science at Dartmouth College, but his main interests have expanded to include evolutionary biology and genetics as well. Having preferred non-fiction to fiction since the age of six, he is on a mission to find out as much as he can about the Universe. An avid athlete and eater, he’s excited for all New York has to offer, especially SHERP.
William Herkewitz is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Cruz, where he earned his B.A. in English literature. A lifelong lover of science, he is coming to NYU after a year of writing and working for two Philadelphia-based science museums, The Academy of Natural Sciences and the Chemical Heritage Foundation. At SHERP, William hopes to somehow combine his compulsive need to write with his interests in science, humor, history, and international affairs.
Katie Hiler moved to New York in 2009 to become an editorial assistant for Springer Science + Business Media after getting degrees in brain and cognitive science and English from the University of Rochester. When academic publishing didn’t provide the thrill that writing about science did, she discovered SHERP at NYU and, with it, a field that finally feels made for her. She is excited to discover where her passion for science and writing takes her next.
Roni Jacobson graduated from Emory University with a B.A. in psychology. Following a stint teaching Arabic in Minnesota, she started work as a behavior therapist at the Marcus Autism Center, where she learned about research methodology and gathered material for some gripping stories. Roni has worked in mental health policy at The Carter Center for the past year, and is excited to have found an outlet for her experiences at SHERP.
Sarah Jacoby grew up in Tucson, Arizona, as the daughter of two astronomers. She recently graduated from Reed College where she studied behavioral neuroscience. Her work has appeared in a few alt-weeklies as well as Neuroscience Letters. Sarah spent her last year in Portland, Oregon, interning at OMSI, working on her science blog, and consuming British television. She loves Alan Partridge, the Eels, and the limbic system.
Alexa Kurzius has always loved to write. After receiving her B.A. in English and psychology from Johns Hopkins in 2006, she moved to New York and became a pharmaceutical advertising copywriter. It was a delightful awakening; she realized she loved writing about health and had a knack for translating medical jargon into easy-to-understand print and web content. She’s eager to share her experience and to learn all she can about science journalism at SHERP.
Lily Newman pretended she wanted to be a science writer so her college applications would be more convincing. Then she got sucked in. She double majored in writing and history of science and technology at Johns Hopkins University and was editor-in-chief of The Hopkins News-Letter. This led to internships at Metro New York and gizmodo.com as well as a totally genuine application to SHERP. She is fascinated by supernovae, colony collapse disorder and battery technology.
Arielle D. Ross discovered a passion for science writing while studying the territorial behaviors of the red-backed salamander at the University of Guelph, Ontario, where she received a B.Sc. honors degree in zoology. She spent the last year of her degree writing for the Ontarion, Guelph’s student-run newspaper, as well as for her science blog, Salamander Hours. Originally from Montreal, Arielle enjoys playing flag-football, cooking, and practicing classical guitar when she’s not reading about science.
Naveena Sadasivam recently graduated from the American University of Sharjah with a B.S. in chemical engineering and a minor in English literature. She has spent the last four years designing processes and modeling equations on simulation software, working at a natural gas refinery, freelancing for Climate Control ME, and tutoring students. Having always loved science and writing equally, she hopes that SHERP will help her unite both her passions.
Nick Stockton decided at the age of six that he wanted to be a paleontologist. Like many heartfelt decisions made at that age, he did not follow through. Instead, he filled the dinosaur-sized hole in his life with submarine rides, bicycle trips, and many fine days in the woods. He earned his degree in geography from Portland State University, and until recently has been a lifelong resident of various locales in the great Western states.
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Emma Bryce holds a degree in print journalism and environmental science from the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Eternally in love with the African landscape, she is nevertheless ready to chase after her passion for writing about environment, humans and health on a global scale. How to pursue a decidedly international career while remaining thoroughly African at heart is what Emma ponders most often late at night. SHERP appears to be the first, exciting step.
Jonathan Chang recently graduated from Johns Hopkins University with an M.A. in neuroscience, specializing in auditory processing. As a result, he’s obsessed with sounds, music, languages, and brains. In addition to stimulating his aural centers, he likes to mess around with the sense of taste through unusual cooking and eating excursions. He’s glad to be part of SHERP and looks forward to writing about how awesomely bizarre science can be.
Kathryn Doyle recently graduated from the College of the Holy Cross, having majored in biology and English. Undergraduate studies led her to a small field research station in Mexico for a few months in pursuit of whales and to a summer at Universita Ca’Foscari in Venice, Italy, in the more relaxing pursuit of travel writing. She is happy to let life take her back to New York, her home state, and to SHERP.
Laura Geggel has loved writing since her acrostic poetry days in elementary school. After working in two labs and studying English literature and psychology at Washington University in St. Louis, she combined her passion of writing with science. She interned at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer health desk and then at Harvard Medical School’s Focus. For the past three years, Laura has worked at two newspapers near Seattle, covering education, news, community and health stories.
Justine Hausheer is a graduate of Princeton University, where she received a B.A. in English and a minor in environmental studies. As a varsity lightweight rower in both high school and college, Justine spent countless hours in the middle of a lake, wearing spandex and gripping a 12-foot oar. A native of Orlando, Florida, she enjoys cooking, traveling, and picking up strange rocks.
Miriam Kramer graduated with her B.S. in journalism from the University of Tennessee. Although she fully intended on majoring in English when first entering college, Miriam instead fell in love with the sciences. Not willing to give up writing, she combined her two passions, working as a science writing intern for the Department of Microbiology and later serving as the Editor-in-Chief for TNJN.com. She could not be more excited to call herself a “SHERPie.”
Taylor Kubota has always loved learning. She studied biological anthropology and health care/social issues at the University of California, San Diego, which allowed her to take classes in ten different departments. While an undergraduate, she also worked seven jobs, ranging from work in student affairs to a museum volunteer position. In the hopes of continuing (and sharing) her life of diverse learning, she is honored to be a part of SHERP’s 30th class.
Virat Markandeya has a B.A. in political science from Delhi University and a journalism post-grad from the Asian College of Journalism in Chennai. After working in business journalism for four years, he managed to bluff his way into starting up Scientific American’s India content. Two years on, he thinks he has found his calling. He still considers himself an amateur at telling science and wants to be trained at SHERP to become a real pro.
Susan Matthews is trading the hills of New Hampshire for New York City, as she comes to SHERP straight after graduating from Dartmouth College. As an environmental studies major, she worked in a biogeochemistry lab and traveled through southern Africa. She found her true passion, however, in writing for and ultimately being editor-in-chief of Dartmouth’s daily paper. SHERP provides a lovely solution to bridging her two interests, and she can’t wait to get back to the reporting side of journalism.
Allison McCann has a B.S. in science, technology and society from Stanford University, an interdisciplinary major that allowed her to combine a passion for environmental science with effective communication skills. As an undergraduate, she juggled her time between the varsity soccer team, classes, and writing for the student-run Stanford Scientific Magazine. A born and raised California girl, she’s a bit nervous about the New York winters but is very excited to continue writing about science at SHERP.
Benjamin Plackett is a graduate of Imperial College London with a B.Sc. honors degree in biology. While studying at SupAgro University in Montpellier, France, he discovered that his passion lay in scientific journalism. Having interned at The Times in London, he is eager to embrace the world of science writing. He has kept his links to Imperial as an Associate of the Royal College of Science.
Kelly Slivka finished up her B.A. in English and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado, after which she traded amber waves of grain for actual waves of water. The past three years, she’s been stalking endangered whales on the East Coast for various conservation and research institutions, a profession that has given her plenty of fodder for fascinating science writing, but no feasible outlet. And then there was SHERP.
Ashley Taylor holds a B.A. in biology from Oberlin College. Her first real lab job taught her that what she had liked about science all along was not working in a lab but thinking, asking questions, and writing. Since 2009, she has written for the Somerville News, a weekly newspaper in Somerville, Massachusetts. She looks forward to returning to science as a journalist. When not writing, she loves to take ballet classes.
Kate Yandell graduated from Williams College with a B.A. in English and biology. English took her to Oxford University her junior year to try her hand at Old English. Biology led her to the swamps of Cape Cod to research marine worm development, and also prompted journeys through the scientific literature to understand everything from why the giant sloths and saber tooth tigers died out to how microbes communicate. She likes to sing, run, and hang out in coffee shops and libraries.
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Joseph Castro has a B.S. in physics and a certificate in professional writing from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. As an undergraduate he hunted for extra-solar planets but found that research was not for him, leading him away from the telescope and to the pen. After writing about science for University of Hawai’i Sea Grant College Program for nine months, Joseph comes to SHERP with the desire to share his love of science with the world.
Francie Diep holds her B.A. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she edited the literary journal, worked in a functional genomics lab, and taught genetics to undergraduates. Her latest project involved tagging fruit fly brain cells with red and green fluorescence proteins. After two years at the bench and chalkboard, she is eager to put her English skills back to work finding and reporting science stories.
Rose Eveleth graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a B.S. in ecology and a minor in writing. She spent the last four years there poking around in labs, studying krill, climbing trees, riding bikes and perfecting her fish doodles. A sucker for being lost in strange places, she recently wandered her way through Costa Rica, Portugal, Tokyo and Bonaire and is excited to take her wandering to the epicenter of strange places, New York City.
Sarah Fecht has loved biology since the 7th grade, and only became more infatuated after discovering evolutionary theory during college. As a biology major at Binghamton University, she completed several research internships, including one in plant ecology and one in behavioral genetics, but found that the only thing she loves more than doing science is talking about science. She looks forward to sharing this passion with the rest of the world.
Mary Beth Griggs is a graduate of Tufts University with a B.S. in geology and archaeology. A native of Charlotte, North Carolina, she has a tendency to get unhealthily excited about volcanic eruptions, landslides, snow, and really weird physics concepts. As evidenced by her focus in her undergraduate career, she also finds old rocks of any kind utterly fascinating. She is looking forward to exploring these and many new scientific passions at SHERP.
Lena Groeger studied biology and philosophy at Brown University and is especially interested in the intersection of these two fields. After working as a graphic designer for Brown Health Education, she decided to think outside the poster and explore new means of communication, which led her to SHERP. She’s excited to write about the multidisciplinary questions of science and ethics for the general public.
Madeleine Johnson received her B.A. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania and her Ph.D. in neurobiology from Columbia. She was most recently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Her research has focused on the cellular basis of schizophrenia and drug addiction. When not using her brain to think about the brain, Madeleine can be found asking big questions and cobbling together grand scientific theories.
Ritchie King spent his undergraduate days at Dartmouth College, earning a Bachelor of Engineering, playing in the mountains, and chewing the (plant-based) fat with his eco-buddies. After two years of working at Mascoma Corporation, a cellulosic biofuels start-up, Ritchie realized that, quite strangely, writing reports was his favorite part of the job. He has spent the past year traveling, ski-bumming, cooking professionally, and brewing beer and is immensely excited about becoming a science journalist.
Doug Main has always loved the natural world and writing. He got a B.A. in English literature and environmental biology from Washington University in St. Louis. This led to employment as a science writer at Purdue University, where he stayed for two and a half years. Next he worked at a biofuels company in his hometown of Champaign, Illinois, researching a better way to extract algae oil for conversion into biodiesel. Doug is excited to return to writing and pursuing his passion for science journalism.
Rachel Nuwer grew up exploring the bayous and beaches of Mississippi. She majored in biology at nearby Loyola University, minoring in English literature and environmental studies. She also traveled to Laos to research Mekong River fishes, sparking a travel obsession that has taken her to 38 countries. Along the way, she picked up a master’s degree in applied ecology from the University of East Anglia. When not trekking through swamps, Rachel can be found taking photos, rehabilitating kittens and eating phò.
Katie Palmer graduated from Williams College with a B.A. in chemistry and a concentration in neuroscience, though her classmates knew her best as “that cellist.” Guided by interests in cognitive science and neuroscience, she has probed rat brains for hints of anxiety traits and attempted to reconcile consciousness with the reality of the nervous system. Katie hopes to follow these topics and more in the process of bringing science to the public.
Sabrina Richards majored in computational biology at Brown University and then earned her Ph.D. in immunology at the University of Washington, where she studied B lymphocyte responses to antigen. Just before her hand molded itself onto her pipette, she remembered that there is more to research than bench work. She has also worked knee-deep in pond water, attempting to monitor developing wetlands while avoiding bears. Sabrina is excited to help bring the joy of scientific discovery to the masses.
Madhumita Venkataramanan is fresh out of university, with a B.A. in biology and an M.S. in clinical immunology from Oxford University. While in school, she pursued her dream of becoming a journalist by working as a correspondent for a Singapore-based magazine and as an editor for The Oxford Student. Somehow, though, she could never quite tear herself away from life sciences. Madhu realized she had hit upon the perfect solution when she discovered SHERP, the ideal synthesis of her ambitions.
Stephanie Warren studied biological anthropology and English literature at the University of California, San Diego. She currently works as a freelance writer and editor and has covered everything from triathlon to entrepreneurship to wine, but she can’t wait to join SHERP and make her lifelong passion for science her career. When she’s not on her laptop, she loves to read, cook, and travel.
Amber Williams recently graduated from Boston College, majoring in biology and English. As a teaching assistant for introductory biology, she thoroughly learned how to cater to different science backgrounds. She also got a look at the technicalities of science while working in a lab on a thesis concerning endocrine disruption in shrimp. These came together in an “ah-ha!” moment that she wanted to pursue science journalism and she looks forward to doing so at SHERP.
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Ariel Bleicher earned a B.A. in mathematics and comparative world literature from Scripps College. In pursuit of adventure, she moved to Alaska, where she freelanced for the Arctic Regions Supercomputing Center, explored glacier caves for the Anchorage Press, and endured the long winters by climbing in the Alaska Range. Before joining SHERP, she spent six months in Oregon interning at Portland Monthly magazine and hanging out in coffee shops reading Nature and The New Yorker.
Michael Glenn Easter holds a B.A. from Wheaton College, where he created an independent major that investigated politics, economics, and science; he is particularly interested in writing about the intersection of those three topics. A Utah native, he spends spare time having fun with his friends, family, dog Benny, and mountain bike Janeen. Michael is excited to trade the mountains of Utah for skyscrapers of New York. However, he refuses to root for the Yankees.
Emily Elert graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English literature and earth sciences. After college, she taught those subjects as a New York City Teaching Fellow and got an M.S. in high school education. In 2008 she bicycled across the country, saw some amazing geology and met some amazing people. In the evenings, she wrote. When she got back to NYC, she started writing about science, and applied to SHERP.
Joanna Foster recently graduated from Princeton University with an A.B. in ecology and evolutionary biology. While at Princeton, she spent three months in Kenya learning field research techniques, including the best way to accurately age elephant dung. She has since returned to East Africa where she spent the last year traveling and working for various environmental organizations. Her primary intellectual interests include animal behavior and the ethics and economics of conservation.
Zach Gottlieb holds a B.A. in neuroscience from Skidmore College. He spent the past year working at the Rockefeller University, where he helped study the genetics of neurodegenerative disease. Seeking to analyze and understand science beyond the scope of bench work, Zach started writing for Natural Selections, an unofficial Rockefeller newsletter. He is excited to further his journalistic pursuit at SHERP, and hopes to help demystify science’s complex discoveries through his writing and reporting.
Mara Grunbaum grew up poking at tidepools in Seattle. She earned a B.A. in English with a minor in environmental science from NYU, and her first attempt at merging her interests – an honors thesis involving Virginia Woolf and Albert Einstein – hooked her on the idea of translating science into stories. After two years reporting local news for independent media in Portland, she’s excited to jump into the science beat at SHERP.
Ferris Jabr has a B.S. from Tufts University, where he double majored in psychology and English. As an undergraduate he worked at the Interpersonal Perception and Communication Laboratory, contributed to The Tufts Daily, and explored consciousness in fiction through a capstone writing project. He further pursued his interest in uniting science and the humanities with internships at Psychology Today and the PBS show NOVA. Ferris is excited to continue training in professional science communication.
Alyson Kenward completed her B.Sc. and Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of Calgary. While doing academic research at her bench, she found herself fascinated with how research is communicated and justified to the public. Wanting to couple her love of storytelling with her shameless delight in all things science-related, she has permanently traded her lab coat for her laptop. She is ecstatic that her transition into science journalism has led her to SHERP.
Olivia Koski joins SHERP from MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory, where she was a visiting researcher for a large defense contractor working on a laser program she can’t really talk about (or else, you know…). While she loves playing around with lasers, she is excited to pursue her passion for bringing science to the public. She holds a B.S. in physics and a B.A. in Germanic studies from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Alex Liu studied toxicology at the University of California at Berkeley and then spent three years developing oncology medication at Genentech. He also worked as an organizer in the San Francisco LGBT community. With his SHERP training, he hopes to bridge the gap between science and public policy. In his free time he enjoys powering through seasons of television shows, traveling, rooting for Oakland sports teams, and stepping out onto the dance floor.
Mike Orcutt’s fascination with life science is almost as old as he is. It started with dinosaur pop-up books, and by the time he collected his B.A. in biology from Whitman College it had evolved into a fundamental passion for scientific thought and discourse. After graduation, formative work experiences in healthcare and politics focused his attention on the media. He comes to NYU determined to learn how to make urgent scientific concepts resonate with non-scientists.
Kathryn Peek is a scientist by nature, an astronomer by training, and a recent convert to the creative power of journalism. She holds a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of California at Berkeley, where she investigated extrasolar planets and the Milky Way’s chemical evolution, but where writing and editing for the Berkeley Science Review magazine coaxed her away from the observatory. She enjoys applying the scientific method in unlikely places, like breakfast.
Valerie Ross has a B.A. in psychology from Stanford University, where she also completed a minor in poetry. She has worked as a research assistant in cognitive neuroscience labs at Stanford and the University of Illinois. Eager to keep up with new research but disappointed that alliteration goes largely unappreciated in academic journals, Valerie is looking forward to bringing together her scientific and syntactical interests at SHERP.
Anna Rothschild graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in biology. For the past two years she has worked in a comparative genomics lab at the American Museum of Natural History, where she conducted conservation research on caviar and humpback whales. Through her research experiences, Anna has learned that her passion for the story of science overshadows her fondness for pipetting. She once spent a summer lassoing lizards and testing their blood for malaria.
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Allison Bond, a recent graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, also completed four years of pre-medical coursework there. She has written for American Academy of Pediatrics News, U. Magazine and The Daily Northwestern. Allison founded and edited Northwestern’s student-run global health newsletter and has conducted research at the Mayo Clinic. She comes to SHERP hoping to eventually provide accurate, approachable health and medical information to the public.
Shelley DuBois graduated from the University of California at San Diego with a B.A. in biological anthropology. Her experience in Costa Rica her junior year — collecting insects, tagging plants, and chasing capuchin monkeys — solidified her love of science. As a senior, she discovered UCSD’s science writing curriculum and has pursued internships in the field ever since, most recently at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. She also volunteered for three months on a sustainable farm in Ghana.
Crystal Gammon comes to NYU from the California Institute of Technology with an M.S. in geobiology. After spending three years lost in the details of microbial ecology at the bottom of the ocean, atop the Montana Rockies, and in the Australian outback, she could no longer avoid the distraction of the big picture. Deciding it’s time for everyone else to see it too, she’s trading her lab coat for a laptop — but she’ll keep the hiking boots handy. Her B.A. is in earth science from Washington University in St. Louis.
Robert Goodier has lived in Latin America for most of the last seven years. That decision began as a bus trip into Mexico that ended a year and a half later in Peru. Afterwards, he reported for The Tico Times, a weekly in Costa Rica, and finally worked in communications for the Rainforest Alliance, a conservation organization in Costa Rica and Guatemala. He graduated from the University of Colorado with a B.A. in English.
Brett Israel graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.S. in biochemistry and molecular biology. He has an M.A. in biochemistry from Emory University and was pursuing a Ph.D. there when he started covering science for the Emory student newspaper and discovered a greater passion for writing about science than performing experiments. Brett joined SHERP with a particular interest in sustainability and transportation. In his free time, he is an avid Atlanta sports fan and a public transit advocate.
Frederik Jølving comes to SHERP with a passion for writing and a desire to constantly expand his horizon. He started out studying philosophy at the University of Salamanca, Spain, but then switched to biology at the University of Copenhagen. After spending sixteen months tinkering with macaque brains at Wake Forest University he graduated from Copenhagen with an M.S. in neurobiology. Since then, he has worked as a freelance science writer and medical writer.
Lindsey Konkel has a B.A. in biology from Holy Cross. As an undergraduate, she researched gap junction communication in a cell biology lab. She also took creative writing classes and completed an interdisciplinary honors thesis in which she explored natural history through creative writing. Since graduation, she has interned at the National Zoo and taught at the New Jersey School of Conservation. Lindsey grew up in Wisconsin and enjoys running, skiing, photography, and the Green Bay Packers.
David Levitan received a B.A. in English from Haverford College in 2003, and has spent most of his time since then as a freelance medical writer. He has written for medical newspapers such as Endocrine Today and Pain Medicine News, as well as for medical professional societies and continuing medical education programs. He hopes to shed the “medical” qualifier and write about all areas of science, especially physics and climate change.
Erik Ortlip embarked on his journey into science as a two year old fixing his own stroller. This acuity for all things mechanical never left him, and led to a course of study in physics and mechanical engineering at the University of Minnesota. Disillusioned by the corporate world, Erik joined the Peace Corps in Kenya. The experience awoke in him a passionate interest in issues of science and technology at the intersection between the developing world and the West.
Lynne Peeples received a M.S. in biostatistics from Harvard University and a B.A. in Mathematics from St. Olaf College. Most recently, she has been searching for the optimal HIV cocktail and any excuse to exercise the non-number-crunching side of her brain, including teaching a night course to non-statisticians. With childhood dreams of becoming a doctor, and days spent hiking in the Pacific Northwest, her passions continue to develop around the intersection of health and the environment.
Genevra Pittman has a B.A. in biology with a religion minor from Swarthmore College. Her studies focused on endocrinology and marine biology and she has spent many hours feeding hormone-juiced hamsters and tracking brine shrimp. She developed her love for journalism during two years as the sports editor of Swarthmore’s newspaper, The Phoenix. Genevra hopes that SHERP will help her educate the public on the many pressing issues facing our planet and our species.
Rachael Rettner holds a B.S. in molecular biology and an M.S. in biology from the University of California at San Diego. While at UCSD, she completed a two-year research project involving protein engineering. She was a teaching assistant in several biology courses and, briefly, a staff writer for the university paper. Along the way, she realized she loved writing about science more than anything else. She is excited to join SHERP and to help communicate science to the public.
Carina Storrs got her start in virology at the University of Florida. She was hooked, for a while. After many years pondering papillomavirus, she obtained her Ph.D. from Columbia University. Her post-doc in an HIV laboratory in Paris satisfied her love of speaking French, and made her an expert around a Biosafety Level 3 lab. But desire to write more than manuscripts, and on broad topics in science, finally moved Carina to trade in her pipettor for a pen.
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Molly Ashford comes to NYU via The University of Chicago. She is a writer, an amateur geologist, an illustrator, and a filmmaker, but received her undergraduate degree in philosophy. She plans to use her three semesters as a SHERP student to learn the skills and make the plans that will allow her to write about science professionally for the rest of her life. She has a lot to say.
Stuart Fox graduated with a B.A. in biology from the University of Chicago, where he specialized in vertebrate paleontology. He has done research on the paleoecology of Madagascar and the aerodynamics of Pterosaur flight. After graduation, Stuart worked at the Field Museum of Natural History for two years, before returning to New York where he worked at the American Museum of Natural History and the Museum of Sex. He has also written articles for Real Estate Weekly.
Andrew Grant has a B.S. in physics with a journalism minor from The College of New Jersey, where he served as editor-in-chief of his college newspaper. He is excited about the SHERP program because it allows him to combine his passions of science and journalism, and he hopes to especially explore the subject of global warming. A resident of Long Island, Andrew loves to travel and watch Mets and Islanders games.
Adam Hadhazy attended Boston College and majored in both English and Philosophy. After graduation, he worked in state government and the insurance industry. While growing up in Annapolis near the Chesapeake Bay, Adam witnessed how important the effective communication of scientific information is to the development of sound public policy. The prospect of writing about matters of scientific interest, for both societal benefit and personal delight, led him to SHERP.
Karina Hamalainen graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in astronomy and a minor in environmental science. Her fascination with the West led her to Colorado, where she assisted a journalist, a photographer and the curator of astrobiology at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. She has joined SHERP in order to begin a career that incorporates her favorite aspects of these three fields.
Monica Heger graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English and a minor in Biology. She began her journalism career in San Francisco, where she started writing for neighborhood newspapers. Since then she has written for the magazine Business 2.0 and covered San Jose City Hall for a weekly community newspaper. She is excited to unite at last, her two passions of science and journalism.
Christopher Intagliata graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a B.A. in integrative biology and an Italian minor. After several summers spent tracking down Mountain Yellow-Legged Frog populations in remote Sierra Nevada lake basins he volunteered in a lab studying the transmission of infectious diseases afflicting MYLFs. Pondering how to entwine his passions for language and science while avoiding perpetual pipetting and lonely mountain meandering, he stumbled upon SHERP.
Susannah Locke holds a B.S. from Haverford College, where she studied molecular biology and psychology and ran the college’s literary magazine. For two years following graduation she played with neurons as a research technician at the University of Pennsylvania and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. After using almost every type of test tube on the market for every conceivable purpose, she removed her gloves to join SHERP and improve the public’s understanding of science.
Rachel Mahan has a B.S. in biology and a B.A. in English (creative nonfiction writing) from the University of Missouri-Columbia, where she was also a freelance science writer. She has spent her summers picking through tree frog barf, chasing moths, and interning at The Missouri Review. Rachel finds food production and policy especially interesting because she grew up between Illinois cornfields; however, her backyard was a wildlife refuge. She enjoys bluegrass music and the resultant dancing.
Eric R. Olson holds a B.S. in biochemistry from the University of Washington in Seattle. Post-graduation, he worked for a non-profit research center examining the role that genetics play in breast cancer susceptibility. Believing that his talents would be better served communicating science rather than doing it, he dove head first into the world of science journalism. He is interested in multi-media approaches to increasing awareness and understanding of science in the public sphere.
Natalie Peretsman received a B.A. in biology from Brandeis University, alongside minors in journalism and environmental studies. Upon graduating, she unexpectedly became a teacher, first at an environmental education center and then in a 7th grade Atlanta science classroom. Most recently, Natalie taught English lessons to fund an adventurous year in Argentina. While there, she realized it was due time to combine her lifelong loves, science and writing, to educate the public about our world.
Greg Soltis followed a different trajectory than most with a B.S. in aerospace engineering. After life in Hooville (University of Virginia), oh the places he went. He ministered to youth and taught science in Mississippi, Rhode Island, and New Jersey before getting a masters degree in theology from Boston University. His recognition of the need for more thorough coverage of scientific issues with religious and ethical implications has motivated him to join SHERP.
Victoria Stern has a B.A. in chemistry with a minor in English literature from Swarthmore College. Post graduation, she tried her hand at laboratory work at the University of Pennsylvania, but soon after transitioned into the world of medical writing. She also briefly worked as a pastry chef for a four star restaurant in Philadelphia. She is excited about attending SHERP and bridging the gap between her love of science and writing.
Katherine Tweed has a B.A. in communications from Boston College, where she also threw herself into many science courses. She now lives in New York City, where she has spent the last three years as a writer and assistant producer for Fox News, and most recently as the health editor for FoxNews.com. She is eager to join SHERP so she can ignore the next season of American Idol and finally specialize in science writing.
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Andrea Anderson holds a B.S. in plant physiology from the University of Regina and a masters in cell biology from the University of Alberta, where she did research in the nuclear transport field. She subsequently worked in a Canadian National Research Council plant science lab. Exposure to great scientists and innovative research kindled her interest in science communication. She is pursuing science journalism to continue learning about science while contributing to a more science-savvy public. She is supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Lindsey Bewley graduated from Villanova University with a B.S. in chemistry. While attending graduate school at Tulane University, she engineered materials for NASA until Hurricane Katrina washed away her research and propelled her career from rocket science to journalism. She came to SHERP after seeing the impact science and media have on society, and because she would rather write about hurricanes than run from them.
Rachele Cooper has a B.S.E. in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan. Post graduation, she joined the Navy to become a fighter pilot. After receiving a medical discharge, she decided to concentrate on work as a civilian at the Naval Research Laboratory. While there, her research focused on satellite design, orbital analysis, mission planning and flight testing. The opportunity to share science research with a broad audience motivated her to join SHERP.
Emily Driscoll got her B.A. from George Washington University, where she studied economics and minored in psychology while also working at a law firm and playing badminton and volleyball. After graduation, she worked at a law firm for two years and then took a job at an art gallery. She also researched and wrote the text for a museum exhibition of antique frames. Emily is very excited about joining SHERP and pursuing her lifelong interest in science.
Jeremy Hsu has a B.A. in history and sociology of science from the University of Pennsylvania. His interest in the intersection between science and society grew through various internships, working on scientist immigrant petitions at a law firm, and an opportune stint as a science journalist with the Journal of Young Investigators. He comes to SHERP with the focus of writing for a lay audience, whether it consists of policymakers or the general public.
Meredith Knight has a B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in brain and cognitive science. She has done research in language and memory and edited scientific translations. Meredith is most interested in neuroscience and cognitive sciences, especially how they apply to higher order human characteristics such as language, aesthetics, and sexuality. Additionally, she is into baseball, literature, and traveling the world.
Ben Leach has a B.A. in journalism with a chemistry minor from The College of New Jersey. He started a science and health column at his college newspaper and has written several health stories professionally for The Daily Journal of Vineland, NJ. He has been waiting for a program like SHERP to prepare him for covering the pharmaceutical industry. He is also a certified pharmacy technician, a playwright, and a writer and correspondent for a toy collecting magazine.
Jennifer Moser was a science writer and copy editor for Oregon State University’s campus newspaper and was co-editor of the Honors College magazine. She earned her B.S. in microbiology with minors in philosophy and chemistry. These interests, combined, led her to SHERP. Jenny is eager to see journalism finally become the center of, rather than a distraction from, her academic program. While growing up in Medford, Oregon, Jenny was — and remains — an enthusiastic Girl Scout.
Morgen Peck has a B.A. in neuroscience and behavior from Columbia University, where she also acted in many stage productions. Since graduation, she has worked as a research technician in neurology and microbiology labs, first at a pharmaceutical company and then at Columbia. Morgen moonlights as an actor and stage manager in a non-profit Manhattan theater company where her roles have included portraying a sheep in a musical version of Animal Farm that features life-size puppets.
Kristin Phillips has a doctorate in biological anthropology from University College London and a B.S. from the University of California at Davis. Her experiences in the Amazon — from chasing monkeys up and down knife ridges to enduring the tickle of hundreds of sweat bees while counting canopy fruits — have led her to SHERP in order to educate others about the beauty of the natural world and the fascinating process of scientific discovery. Kristin most recently worked as director of an urban ecological organization.
Josh Romero graduated from the University of Arizona with a B.S. in astronomy and physics. His research focused on cosmology and galaxy clusters. He worked as the general manager of the student radio station where he hosted a weekly science news show. He also spent time transcribing and editing interviews for a book on astrobiology before coming to SHERP.
Peter Sergo earned a B.S. in biology with a concentration in neuroscience at McGill University in Montreal. After a two-year stint teaching English in Japan, he took a position at the National Institute of Mental Health’s neuropsychology laboratory. Recently, he has been investigating auditory memory involving Rhesus monkeys. The broad scope and significance of neuroscience is what motivated him to take part in the SHERP program.
Molly Webster received a B.S. in biology from John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. As an undergraduate enrolled in many entertaining yet arduous lab classes, she realized she was meant to explain scientific phenomena to others, not discover it herself. After a rejuvenating year out from academics — one she spent being an aunt, writing and living on futons from England to Kentucky — Molly decided it was time to begin becoming a science writer.
Erica Westly has a B.S. in biochemistry from Marlboro College and an M.S. in neuroscience from Case Western Reserve University. She originally planned to become a neuroscience professor and was working towards her Ph.D. when she realized she enjoyed reading and writing about science more than working in the lab. She thinks the SHERP program is an ideal way to make the transition from scientist-in- training to science journalist.
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Sabina Borza graduated from Clark University in Massachusetts with a B.A. in biology. While considering a Ph.D. in primatology, she studied primates in the forests of Nicaragua and South Caicos. After deciding not to devote her entire life only to monkey studies, she worked in a veterinary hospital for a year before joining SHERP.
Susan Cosier holds a B.A. in earth and environmental science from Wesleyan University in Connecticut. While in college, she did paleo- oceanographic research and studied other areas of the environmental field. After graduation she worked for the Federal Emergency Management Agency as an environmental specialist in Chicago. While there, she experienced how an informed public can enact change, which motivated her to come to SERP.
Ciara Curtin attended the University of California at Santa Barbara for an M.A. in cellular, molecular and developmental biology after receiving a B.S. in biology from Wake Forest University. While at UCSB, she spent six months working in a lab on a protein she couldn’t find while T.A.’ing. She came to SHERP to do science journalism so she can “teach … and not have to grade.”
Kristina Fiore holds a B.A. in journalism from The College of New Jersey. Most of her experience is in journalism, editing the college newspaper and freelancing for various papers. She was a research assistant to her geology professor for two years and decided to focus on science writing after reading Jon Franklin, John McPhee and others.
Bobby Grant is a “learning junkie.” Most recently, he has been teaching science at St. Louis University, where he enjoyed communicating scientific ideas to those who had no knowledge of them. He has an M.S. in marine biology from the University of Charleston and a B.S. in fish and wildlife biology from Montana State University.
Andrew Klein has been doing Alzheimer’s research through the Nathan Kline Institute, in the Center for Dementia Research at the Rockland Psychiatric Center. While a pre-med student at Cornell University, he concentrated, TA’ed and did research in psychology-based nutritional science. As shown by his academic record, he enjoys learning about a wide spectrum of sciences, one of his reasons for joining SHERP.
Julie Liebach received B.A.s in Biology and Spanish from Washington University in St. Louis. Post-graduation, she joined Americorps and worked as the Habitat for Humanity ReSale Center Coordinator in Gainesville, Fla., for a year, during which time she decided her background in science and affinity for writing might be useful skills to apply and hone at SHERP.
Melissa Mahony, originally from Washington Crossing, Penn., spent a year working for environmental policy lobbying groups in Washington, DC, after receiving a B.A. in English and environmental studies from Boston College. She has spent the last three years in philanthropy through the Weeden Foundation, raising awareness of logging problems in Chile and the Northwest U.S.
Karen Schrock is a rocket scientist and a brain surgeon. She has a B.S. in astronomy and a B.A. in music from University of Southern California, and did research in neuroscience at UCLA. She grew up in Green Bay, Wisc.
Alison Snyder received an M.S. in botany from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, after which she studied infectious diseases in labs in Colorado. Her B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is in chemical engineering. While in New Zealand, she attended a debate on genetic engineering and was struck by how important science communication is in influencing public attitudes and scientific progress. A few years later, she was SHERP-bound.
Andrea Thompson will receive an M.S. in atmospheric chemistry in December 2005 and has a B.S. in earth and atmospheric science, both from Georgia Tech. She has had some experience in journalism, working for her college yearbook as copy editor, section editor and editor-in-chief, and as an intern at CNN’s science and technology department.
Melinda Wenner has a B.S. in molecular and cellular biology and a B.M. in music composition from the University of Michigan. She just moved back from England, where she worked for three years in sales and marketing at a biotechnology company. She enjoyed writing press releases as well as articles for the company’s magazine more than the business aspects of the job.
Edyta Zielinska has an M.A. is in immunology and microbiology and a B.A. in biology. She worked for the pharmaceutical company Wyeth in Rockland County, doing mainly clinical research, but felt the pace of research was too slow. She considered teaching, but didn’t want to work through someone else’s curriculum, so instead found SHERP.