Program Faculty

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Michael Brown

He received a BA in science of earth systems from Cornell University, where his honor’s thesis was focused on using satellites to study Hawaiian ocean eddies. He later received an MSc in oceanography from Dalhousie University, where his thesis was focused on assessing the optical impact of wind-generated bubbles on remote-sensing estimates of calcifying phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean. For his PhD dissertation at Rutgers University, he is determining drivers of changes in phytoplankton dynamics along the West Antarctic Peninsula (WAP), and the impacts of these changes on the global carbon cycle. The WAP is currently experiencing some of the most rapid climate change on Earth. For his PhD, Michael has spent nearly nine months conducting fieldwork at Palmer Station, the U.S. research facility on the WAP. In his free time, he enjoys playing a variety of instruments in multiple bands.

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Christopher Carmean

Christopher’s research focuses on the diabetogenic effects of environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals with a specific focus on arsenic. He employs pancreatic β-cell lines, human primary tissues, and mice as model systems in the study of how arsenic impairs glucose control and insulin secretion. It’s ultimately his goal to use endocrine disrupting chemicals as tools in these models to identify opportunities for intervention that may treat or prevent diabetes. Christopher earned his BS in biochemistry from Eastern Connecticut State University and his PhD in molecular metabolism and nutrition from the University of Chicago. After his PhD, he initiated his postgraduate research projects as a postdoctoral research fellow at Kobe University in Japan. Since then, he has returned to the United States to continue his postdoctoral studies at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

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Andrea Corcoran

Andrea completed her BS in ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of British Columbia. She remained at UBC, where she earned her MS in zoology, focusing on the comparative aspects of the control of breathing. Andrea received her PhD in biological sciences from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, having done a large portion of her doctoral research at Yale University. Her interests remained in the field of respiration and central control of breathing for her postdoctorate in the Department of Physiology and Neurobiology at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, where she received a fellowship from the Parker B. Francis Foundation to investigate physiological mechanisms underlying sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Andrea also spent time teaching respiratory physiology to first-year medical students. She has been an assistant professor in biology at Southern Vermont College. She is excited to be returning to Citizen Science in 2020 for the fourth time.

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Erin Delker

Erin Delker received her B.A. in Psychology, M.P.H in Sociomedical Sciences, and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate in Epidemiology at the University of California, San Diego. Her research examines the social and economic determinants of health across the life course, with a focus on perinatal and pediatric stages. For her doctoral research, she is using nationally representative data to evaluate racial disparities in preconception cardiometabolic health and incidence of adverse birth outcomes among US women. Erin has a growing interest in the application of epidemiologic and causal inference methods to study effects of specific public health interventions and policies using observational data.
In her future career, Erin is most excited about teaching epidemiology and biostatistical methods as well as bridging the gap between academic research and citizens with use of community based participatory research. In her free time, Erin enjoys going to the beach, hiking, and trying new restaurants around San Diego.  She is very excited to join the Citizen Science program this year!

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Rebecca Delker

Rebecca Delker is a molecular and cell biologist who explores how the genome—the most fundamental code for life—is regulated to give rise to the enormous diversity of cells and organisms that exist in our world. She received her BS in biochemistry at University of California, San Diego, and her PhD in molecular immunology at Rockefeller University in New York. She is currently a Postdoctoral Scientist at Columbia University where she studies how the organization of DNA and proteins in the nucleus of the cell affect how gene expression is regulated during development. Rebecca’s passions extend beyond the boundaries of the cell; in fact, she approaches her work with a broad lens, understanding science as an expression of who we are as people. For this reason, her more recent explorations have expanded beyond the cell to include questions of why and how we do science, using the answers to guide the future of science. Her writing on these topics can be found at ScizzleBlog and On Being. When not diving head first into these questions, she can be found outside—running, hiking, and capturing the beauty around her with photography.

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Matteo Farinella

Matteo received a PhD in neuroscience from University College London in 2013. Since then he has been combining his scientific expertise with a life-long passion for drawing, producing educational comics, illustrations, and animations. In 2016, Matteo joined Columbia University as a Presidential Scholar in Society and Neuroscience, where he investigates the role of “visual narratives” in science communication. Working with science journalists, educators, and cognitive neuroscientists, he aims to understand how these tools may affect the public perception of science and increase scientific literacy.

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Madison Fletcher ’12

Madison is a proud Bard alumna (Class of 2012) who majored in chemistry. She went on to earn her PhD in chemistry at Temple University, followed by a postdoctoral research position in molecular biology at University of California, Irvine. She has taught Citizen Science at both the main campus and the newly established Bard Microcollege in Brooklyn. Madison was first involved with Citizen Science during her junior year, when she helped to coordinate outreach projects between the first-years and local schools. Madison is also passionate about translating science for students of all ages, working to improve representation in chemistry and STEM fields. She is excited to return again as a faculty member for the Citizen Science program in 2020.

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Melinda Fried

Mindi received a BS in biology from Gordon College in 1993. She went on to earn her Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree from Life University in 2000, and an MS in human anatomy and physiology instruction from NYCC in 2016. She has taught A&P at the college level since 2008, most recently as part of the biology faculty at Southern Vermont College. She has given workshops on anatomy and physiology at continuing education seminars for Chiropractors in 2017 and 2019, and on teaching and learning the central nervous system at the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society annual conference in Portland, Ore., in 2019.

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Maggie Gaddis

Maggie earned a BA in environmental studies from Mount Holyoke College, an MS in biology (restoration ecology) from the University of Denver, and her PhD in education (citizen science training) from the University of the Rockies. Maggie currently teaches biology at the University of Colorado–Colorado Springs and Colorado Mountain College. Her research involves citizen science and two research streams. In the education realm, Maggie investigates the relationship between citizen science training and data reliability. In the science realm, she investigates the ecological success of restoration efforts in public lands. Her blog can be found here: http://ecocity.partners/.

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Emily Grumbling ’04

Emily Grumbling earned her PhD in physical chemistry from the University of Arizona and her BA as a double 
major in chemistry and film from Bard College. Her doctoral research in negative ion photoelectron imaging entailed taking pictures of electrons, and extracting from their symmetries clues about quantum-mechanical behavior and the nature of chemical bonds. To explore the broader role of science in society, Emily served as an American Chemical Society Congressional Fellow at the U.S. House of Representatives and as an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the National Science Foundation. She is now a program officer at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., directing projects on topics such as cybersecurity, privacy, and automation. Outside of work, Emily enjoys reading (mostly fiction), yoga, live music, making art, and being outside. She is excited to return to her alma mater and join in the explorations of Citizen Science.

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Raed Ibraheim ’13

Raed received his BA in biology from Bard College and is currently a PhD candidate at the RNA Therapeutics Institute at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. At Bard, he performed research in areas including biochemistry and microbiology in the labs of Dr. Swapan Jain and Dr. Brooke Jude respectively. His current thesis research focuses on developing new CRISPR-Cas9 variants and engineering adeno-associated viral vectors for therapeutic in vivo genome editing. Outside the lab, Raed is actively involved with UMass Medical School Graduate Student Body Committee and the Industry Exploration Program, where he has served in leadership roles related to improving career development opportunities for graduate students.

In his free time, Raed enjoys playing and watching soccer, kayaking, listening to podcasts and hiking.

Raed was first involved with Citizen Science in his junior year as an office assistant where he helped prepare lectures and printouts, and organize science outreach projects between the freshmen and local schools. Raed is excited to return to Bard to share his appreciation of his alma mater with the students and inspire them to be self-aware of the many environmentally-pressing issues like clean water, climate change and air pollution.

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Scott Kellogg

Scott received his MS in environmental science and policy from Johns Hopkins University and PhD in science and technology studies from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He is the cofounder and educational director of the Radix Ecological Sustainability Center, an urban environmental education nonprofit in Albany, N.Y., that maintains a demonstration site of regenerative tools and technologies designed to teach ecological literacy to youth.  Scott’s research is centered on the idea of “urban ecosystem justice”—examining through a pedagogical lens how questions of equity, access, and justice pertain to urban ecosystems. He is chair of Urban Agriculture on Albany’s Sustainability Advisory Committee.

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Deborah Keszenman

Deborah Keszenman earned her MD from the Universidad de la Republica’s School of Medicine in Montevideo, Uruguay. Following her curiosity and desire of exploration of new areas, at an early stage of her medical studies she joined the Biophysics Department at the Medical School of the Universidad de la Republica and started to do research in the area of DNA damage and repair.  While working as a physician and teaching Biophysics at the Medical School, Deborah earned a MS and then a PhD in biophysics in the area of Radiation Biology from the Universidad de la Republica–PEDECIBA. Deborah worked at the Universidad de la Republica School of Medicine as a professor for 30 years, beginning there as an honorary lecturer. She also worked as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Sciences, a research member of the Project for Development of Basic Sciences PEDECIBA, Uruguay, and as a general physician in clinical practice in Uruguay. In 2005, she moved with her family to the United States to continue her scientific career at the Biosciences Department at Brookhaven National Laboratory and in 2006 she became a Beam Line Scientist of the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL). In 2015, she joined the Group of Biophysical Chemistry as professor of biophysics at CENUR Noroeste in Salto, Uruguay. She focused her scientific research towards problems of radiation biology with potential application in clinical Medicine. Deborah has specialized in the study of cellular responses to oxidative and thermal stress. At present she is investigating the cellular and molecular responses to genomic damage induced by photon radiation as well as high and low linear energy transfer charge particle radiations. Her research expertise includes human tissue and cell systems as well as yeast models for survival and cell transformation/mutational assays and quantitative biochemical mechanistic studies for assessing DNA damage, damage processing and DNA repair in cells and tissues exposed to ionizing radiation. Deborah is returning to Citizen Science as a third-year veteran.

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Alexis Lainoff

Alexis Lainoff earned her PhD in oral and craniofacial science from the University of California, San Francisco, this year. Her dissertation research aimed to uncover developmental and molecular mechanisms underlying holoprosencephaly, a human craniofacial disorder in which the midline of the face is underdeveloped. Before graduate school, her research focused on the development and evolution of the face and teeth in reptiles. Alexis is from the Pacific Northwest and enjoys reading history and memoirs, organizing film screenings, and visiting anywhere humid.

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Sonny Lee

Sonny is an assistant professor in the Division of Biology at Kansas State University. After receiving his PhD in environmental science from the University of Auckland in New Zealand, he was a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Chicago Medicine. Sonny’s research has always been centered around understanding the interaction between the microbiome and its hosts, and how it is affected by the environment. His research extends from model systems in the ocean to terrestrial, and  from human gut to plants. He investigates shifts in the coral microbiome as a result of climate change, and its impact on the coral host. He is also working on understanding the human immune system and its response to diseases, and how it can be mediated by the gut microbiome. Besides coral and human, Sonny is also keen to understand the influence of severe climate changes on the interaction between the plant host and its microbiome. He uses both laboratory work to investigate the mechanistic explanation of microbe-host cross talk and bioinformatics to analyze huge OMICs datasets. Sonny is always eager to share his experience and knowledge with others, and enjoys the opportunity to make science more approachable. During his free time you can find Sonny scuba diving and discovering the wonders of the underwater world, or trail running in the woods.

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Camila Lopez-Anido

Camila received her BA in biochemistry, as well as gender and women’s studies, from Bowdoin College. She completed her PhD in comparative biomedical sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. During her graduate research, Camila studied gene expression control in the mammalian nervous system. She used molecular biology and genomics to study new aspects of control that define cells of the nervous system. Camila also engaged with teaching and mentoring through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Wisconsin Program for Scientific Teaching.
Camila’s interest in cell fate and identity led her to explore stem cell biology during her current position as a postdoctoral scholar in the biology department at Stanford University. When not in the lab, Camila enjoys reading, cooking, and exploring the outdoors.

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Jennifer Manganello

Jen is a Professor at the University at Albany School of Public Health. She is a health communication scholar who uses theories, concepts, and methods from the fields of public health and communication. Her main area of expertise is health communication. Jen’s work in this area has primarily focused on the effects of media and/or technology use on health attitudes, knowledge, and behavior, health information seeking among youth and parents, and identifying best practices for the dissemination of health information to the general public, including through news and social media. This includes how to best develop messages about research, data, and science. She also studies health literacy, media literacy, and science literacy, and examine the use of digital technology for health information and health interventions, also known as eHealth. Before starting at UAlbany, Jen was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania. She earned my Ph.D. from the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.  

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Daniel Newsome ’02

For the past several years Dan has been teaching Citizen Science along with history of science and mathematics courses for the Bard Prison Initiative. He has also taught at Stephens Institute of Technology, John Jay College, NYU's Gallatin School, and Columbia University.  On paper I am  a medievalist with a Ph.D. in the history of science from the CUNY Graduate Center, but in reality is a little of everything. Dan went to art school, has a BA in physics, is a professional woodworker, and an amateur mycologist. His scholarly research focuses on the medieval quadrivium (arithmetic, music theory, astronomy/astrology, and geometry), Greek, Latin and Arabic natural philosophy, Renaissance anatomy and physiology, Darwinian studies, premodern optics, and atomic theories. His nonscholarly research includes preindustrial woodworking tools and techniques, drawing, and picture framing. However, it should be noted that Dan has a tough time distinguishing the scholarly from the nonscholarly activities. They all bleed together. For example, his interest in optics led him to make his own lenses for simple microscopes and his interest in Renaissance physiology and anatomy led him to dissect pig and lamb hearts with handmade instruments. Dan loves teaching and is looking forward to this year's Citizen Science! It is always lots of fun. 

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Rebecca Pollet

Rebecca Pollet is a biochemist and microbiologist currently working as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University VI of Michigan. She received her BS in biochemistry from the University of Tulsa and her PhD in Biochemistry from the University of North Carolina. She is interested in better understanding the molecular processes through which bacteria function and towards this; her current research focuses on characterizing the proteins involved in fiber utilization by the gut microbiota. Rebecca enjoys traveling, exploring new coffee shops, and all performing arts. She is excited to help relate science to the lives of all Bard students through Citizen Science this year!

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Jennifer Reiman

Jennifer earned her BA in biology from St. Catherine University and her PhD in biomedical sciences–mmunology from the Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. After her PhD she worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at Griffith University in Southport, Queensland, Australia on malaria vaccine research. In 2015, Jennifer joined Integrated Science Education Outreach (InSciEd Out). She is based at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota where she is currently a Senior Research Fellow. Her work with InSciEd Out involves rebuilding science education where she works in close partnership with classroom teachers (pre-K – 8th grade), their students, and undergraduates at Winona State University–Rochester (preservice teachers). Jennifer also conducts research to investigate humidification as a nonpharmaceutical intervention to reduce influenza A virus survival and spread and conducted a study in preschool classrooms. More recently she has been developing new transgenic zebrafish lines as sensors of stress, environmental contaminants, and pollutants for understanding and visualizing stress biology that are robust enough for school classroom use. Jennifer serves as copresident of the Mayo Clinic’s Women in Science and Engineering Research (WiSER) group and is a strong advocate for women and improving the diversity of individuals involved in science and engineering. She is passionate about science education for students of all ages and looks forward to sharing this excitement for science with Bard students. Outside of work, Jennifer enjoys reading, gardening, traveling, and exploring the outdoors.
 

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Emily Sahadeo

Her doctoral research focuses on alternative battery chemistries to replace lithium-ion batteries, specifically studying fundamental electrochemical processes at electrode interfaces in magnesium battery systems to help improve their performance. After contributing articles to the Department of Energy’s Energy Frontier Research Center Newsletter, Emily became increasingly invested in the importance of science communication and disseminating scientific discoveries for the general community. Outside of research, she enjoys reading, baking, rowing, and coaching high school rowers on the Anacostia River just outside of Washington, D.C. 

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Marta Shocket ’09

Marta earned her PhD in ecology, evolution, and behavior from Indiana University, and completed postdoctoral work at Stanford University. Her research explores how temperature and other environmental drivers affect disease transmission, combining field observations, lab experiments, and mathematical modeling. Her PhD focused on a fungal pathogen that infects Daphnia zooplankton in Midwestern lakes, while her postdoctoral work focuses on mosquito-borne pathogens that infect humans across the globe. She is also interested in science communication and art. While in graduate school, she coorganized a monthly Science Cafe, and commissioned a dramatic digital drawing inspired by the lab’s research. Aside from research, Marta loves playing Ultimate Frisbee (a shock to her past teammates from the Bard rugby team) and watching popular TV shows several years after everyone else. 

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Robert Todd

Rob earned his BS in biology from Iowa State University and an MS in integrated biology from the University of Iowa, and is in the final stages of earning his PhD in medical microbiology and immunology at Creighton University. His current research focuses on genome instability and adaptation in the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans. Specifically, he uses in vitro evolution coupled with next-generation sequencing technologies to better understand how an organism can rapidly alter its genetic code in response to stress. Rob has previously worked with the National Center for Science Education to establish science outreach programs in communities across the United States. He is passionate about science outreach, particularly in underserved communities. Outside of the lab, Rob enjoys camping, cooking, and going to soccer games. He is very excited to be joining the Citizen Science program!

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Nykia Walker

Nyki earned her bachelor’s degree in cell biology, immunology, and infectious diseases from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to starting graduate school, she worked for Merck and Co. Research Laboratories in the biomarker discoveries group. She earned a PhD degree in stem cell and cancer biology from Rutgers University. As a graduate student, she was involved in stem cell education society, where they sponsored bone marrow drives and educational seminars to teach the public about stem cells. Nyki is currently a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Chicago where she investigates breast cancer cell (BCC) invasion. She specifically studies the cellular signaling transduction cascade between BCCs and macrophages through the release of soluble factors such as exosomes. Her overall goal is to stand up to cancer by developing novel cell based approaches to prevent breast cancer invasion. Besides research, she loves music, dancing, laughing, and teaching kids at church. From September to February, you can find Nyki every Sunday afternoon watching NFL and cheering for her beloved 2017 Super Bowl Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. She has a 16-year-old poodle named Toby who loves the outdoors, French fries, and ice cream.

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Joanna Wardwell-Ozgo

Joanna Wardwell-Ozgo earned her BS in Biology from the University of Texas at San Antonio and her PhD in cancer biology from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.  Currently Joanna is a postdoctoral fellow at Emory University School of Medicine. Scientifically, Joanna is interested in understanding internal and external messages that cause changes to the way cells grow. Joanna is the recipient of a NIH K12 IRACDA fellowship and is an active member of Emory’s FIRST, Fellowship in Research and Science Teaching program as well as an American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship. She is passionate about science education and engaging her students in the wonders of biology.  Joanna lives in Atlanta with her husband, two daughters, her cat, Evenrude, and a bunch of cactus she brought with her from her home state of Texas. She enjoys reading, cooking and baking, gardening, and DIY home improvements projects.

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Erin Weber

Erin received her BA from Reed College and her PhD from Yale University. Her dissertation focused on the human innate immune response to HIV-1 at the molecular level. She is currently a postdoctoral research associate in the lab of Dr. Paul Bethke at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where her research focuses on the impact of potato virus Y on postharvest tuber quality.

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Renata van der Weijden

Renata is a senior researcher at Wageningen University and Wetsus and also supervises PhD students. She earned her PhD from Utrecht University and continued as a postdoc/assistant professor at Delft Universtiy of Technology. Her interest in environmental research was triggered by visits to the U.S. National Parks while living in Pennsylvania. Renata worked as a research associate at the Department of Oceanography at Florida State after receiving her MSc from Utrecht University. Her research area involves water quality and treatment, water-rock interaction, and resource recovery. In 2019, she joined a multidisciplinary team in the Netherlands involved in citizen science focused on rivers and water scarcity.

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Emily White

As part of the Bard Water Lab and the Saw Kill Watershed Community, Emily is involved in ongoing efforts to monitor water quality in the Saw Kill. She is currently working on the Annandale Dam Micro-Hydropower Project, using her broad training as an environmental scientist to consider the impacts of small hydropower on the Saw Kill. Emily received her BS in chemistry and environmental studies from Tufts University, her MS in environmental science from the Ohio State University, and her PhD in environmental chemistry from the State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. She is interested in the natural and anthropogenically influenced processes that impact water quality. While at SUNY-ESF, Emily received a NASA Earth System Science fellowship to investigate estuarine carbon cycling. She participated in several oceanographic research cruises, traveling all the way to Antarctica. As a postdoctoral scientist, she studied recreational beach water quality at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In addition to Citizen Science, Emily teaches lab science courses for nonscience majors focusing on drinking water treatment and methods of environmental analysis. Before coming to Bard, Emily taught introductory and environmental chemistry at Sewanee: The University of the South and conducted research on the occurrence and fate of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in treated wastewater.