Mar-Apr 2025
Mohamed Yakub speaking to STPF fellows and alumni at the AAAS 2025 Annual Meeting.
Message from STPF
Hello, STPF alumni!
It was fantastic to see you at the AAAS 2025 Annual Meeting in Boston. I appreciated the multiple discussions about the role of STPF alumni in response to recent events and of the ideas proposed, three are worth revisiting immediately. Your thoughts on each are appreciated, as these ideas are not worth implementing without input from you. Thank you to those who have already expressed interest – we will reach out shortly.
An STPF alumni advisory board to provide advice and support on alumni programming, and potentially make public comments or statements that are separate from AAAS.
In a recent survey, alumni expressed interest in collective activities promoting the nexus of science, policy, and public service (contribution to society). An alumni advisory board will provide a dedicated body focused on fostering relationships, identifying goals for alumni engagement at large, and ensuring alumni voices are heard.
Potential next steps: establish objectives, seek volunteers, terms of service, structure and membership. What alumni objectives have been overlooked in the past that could be addressed now?
Space for STPF alumni to gather, share information, and discuss ideas via affinity groups.
Following the model of STPF affinity groups, we have established two new affinity groups to congeal ideas and create communities: Public Service and Policy Making and How That Can Adapt and International Aid and Global Security. Based on preliminary surveys after recent events, 29 people are already interested. These will be yours to organize and assemble, providing you the flexibility to speak away from AAAS.
Next Steps: If you have already expressed interest, look for an e-mail about a first meeting to bring you all together. During these first meetings, we will share some starting guidelines and details on the support we are able to provide (space, speaker fees, etc.) What do you need in terms of additional support?
Establishing an STPF mentorship program.
STPF mentors can help with navigating challenges, transitioning careers, working in the state and federal governments, thinking about broad connections to policy, and expanding networks. We launched a pilot mentorship program for the AI fellow cohort and with that framework, we would like to develop an optional mentoring program for alumni and incoming fellows. Time commitment from alumni would be minimal no more than an hour per month for 11 months.
Next steps: Refine the program structure and supporting platform. Answer questions like - What would a successful mentor program look like? What criteria should facilitate matches (academic background, scientific expertise, location, employment sectors, others?)
The STPF alumni network brings valuable professional experience, insights, and resources where the whole is more than the sum of its parts. The Alumni Engagement Team aims to continue acting on your wants. We appreciate your participation as we work to support the core fellowship and your fellow alumni.
Cheers,
Mohamed
Science Outreach Manager at SciLine
Alumni Engagement Sr. Project Manager at STPF | stpf-alumni@aaas.org
STPF and Mass Media Fellowship Alumni Come First in Global Rainforest Competition
STPF and MMF alums Ryan Bixenmann and Johanna Varner are part of Limelight Rainforest, the multidisciplinary team that won the biodiversity technology competition in the Brazilian Amazon in July 2024. Read more about their journey.
AAAS CEO Testifies Before House Science Committee
On February 5, AAAS CEO Sudip Parikh testified before the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology at a hearing, The State of U.S. Science and Technology: Ensuring U.S. Global Leadership. Dr. Parikh highlighted the importance of protecting the U.S. science and technology innovation ecosystem and the negative effects of the spending freeze on our community. Read Dr. Parikh’s testimony here.
STPF on LinkedIn
Posted by STPF Director Rashada Alexander: AAAS recently concluded its 191st annual meeting in Boston, Massachusetts where recent shifts and disruptions in the federal government frequently dominated sessions, informal chats, and all our minds....These changes are affecting our current fellows, incoming cohort, and alumni and will alter the longer-term future of how and where scientific and technical expertise inform policy. With all of this in mind, I want to share how STPF is rapidly responding and adapting. Read the full post.
All About Family
Three families where STPF became a shared experience across generations or between spouses. For many fellows, their time in Washington is an enlightening experience that informs the rest of their career. For some, the opportunity becomes a family affair where they can share insights, immerse in the same social and professional networks and support each other throughout their fellowships and beyond. Read more.
Neuroscience expert Marina Picciotto to lead AAAS as president-elect
Members of AAAS have elected Marina Picciotto, Ph.D., Deputy Chair for Basic Science in Psychiatry, Professor of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, and Director of the Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program at Yale at Yale University, to serve as the organization’s president-elect. Read more.
Only on AlumniEngage: STPF Resources Page
This resources page hosts a collection of resources, guidance, and support for our community. Open each section to view lists of relevant career resources, job boards, newsletters, and more. Help us keep this page up-to-date by emailing us at stpf-alumni@aaas.org. Password: STPFnetwk@
For individual job postings pulled from the STPF listservs, please go to the Careers page.
MOVING & SHAKING
MOVING & SHAKING
Kyle Niemeyer
Assoc. School Head for Undergraduate Programs & Assoc. Prof. Of Mechanical Engineering, Oregon State University
At OSU, Kyle Niemeyer (2022-24 DOE fellow) helped launch one of the country's first eCampus programs for students to complete degrees fully online. His main goals: increase retention/graduation rates, optimize enrollment, enhance the undergrad experience, and improve career outcomes. "My STPF experience at [DOE]...helped solidify my interests to make an impact through higher education administration."
Kyle also shared a fun fact: "I met my now-fiancée, Julia Diaz, through [STPF]! She is finishing up her second year...at DOE, before returning to her faculty position at UC San Diego."
Submit Your Stories to Science
Science's news department is interested in learning how new federal policies are affecting your work. Feel free to send stories and tips to science_news@aaas.org or use their encrypted email: NewsScience@proton.me
Carlo Quintanilla
Health Science Policy Analyst, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
What does sci-fi have to do with scicomm? For Carlo Quintanilla (2021-23 NIH fellow), sci-fi helped him become better at communicating - check out his article in Science! “[STPF] helped to reinvigorate my love and appreciation for science by serving as a stepping stone to a career in science policy analysis and science communications,” he said. At the NIH, Carlo continuously learns about newest developments in his field, applying them to the real world and “generating and communicating analyses to support evidence-based decision-making” at the institute.
Policy Pak, the Science Press Package
If you’re interested in staying on top of news at the science-policy interface, Science Magazine (part of the Science family of journals published by AAAS) has introduced Policy Pak. This Pak includes 250-word lay language summaries of research papers that clearly articulate how those studies advance their fields. An embargoed version goes to reporters only, but if you are interested in signing up for Policy Pak too, you can receive the post-embargo version, which goes out very close to when related papers are published. Please reach out to PolicyPak@aaas.org!