Episodes

98
Feb. 21, 2023

98. STEMSkills - Wellness, Wellbeing - Lennis Perez, Wellness Engineer

Lennis Perez is the founder and chief wellness engineer at Just Lennis, LLC, a wellness consulting company focusing on helping organizations and individuals implement stress management strategies to prevent burnout, improve efficiency, productivity, and overall well-being. She is a certified meditation teacher and coach and has a Masters in Chemical Engineering with over 16 years of experience in the chemical industry. What do we talk about in this episode? Lennis is passionate about wellness a...
97
Feb. 5, 2023

97. Saba Khalid; BS & MS Electrical Engineering; Utility Consulting Engineer

Saba Khalid is a Manager in Technical and Business Consulting focusing on Energy & Utilities. She has Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Electrical Engineering. What do we talk about in this episode? Saba and I talk about some challenges many of us face as women in STEM in STEM (or women in any career for that matter). Perfectionism and being people pleasers. Why do we feel the need to be liked by everyone? Navigating careers. How do you determine what's next? When do you bring in outside hel...
96
Jan. 4, 2023

96. Ashley McDonald - Agriculture; Bachelor's degree in Ag Econ; JD; VP of Sustainability, National Pork Board

Ashley McDonald is the Interim Vice President of Sustainability at National Pork Board. Ashley's passion for agriculture, farming, and STEM started at a very young age and she specializes in sustainability and policy. Ashley has a Bachelor's Degree in Agricultural Economics and a Doctor of Law (JD) from George Mason University. Episode Notes Ashley shares the close relationship between agriculture and STEM fields. She specializes in sustainability in the pork industry and she talks about the...
95
Nov. 29, 2022

95. Lois Melbourne - Author, former co-founder & CEO of tech company

Lois Melbourne is the co-author of the newly released science-fiction novel, "Moral Code", a book about ethical artificial intelligence. Lois has also written two children's books and is the former co-founder and CEO of Acquire, a global technology company which provides talent management solutions. Lois now calls herself the Chief Storytelling Officer - a great title! She has a Bachelor's Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. Episode Notes Lois Melbourne's book, "Moral Code" is a book abou...
94
Nov. 21, 2022

94. Dr. Patty Mechael - Author & Global Health Leader; PhD Public Health & Policy

Patty Mechael is a leader in digital transformation of global health in low-and middle-income countries. She is the Co-founder and Policy Lead of HealthEnabled. She has held numerous executive and leadership positions, traveled to over 40 countries, and spent more than 20 years improving public health throughout the world. She has served as Executive Director of the mHealth Alliance at the UN Foundation and Executive Vice President of the Personal Connected Health Alliance at HIMSS as well as Vi...
93
Nov. 7, 2022

93. Erin Twamley - Children's STEM book author, educator; Master's Degree in Education

Erin Twamley is an award-winning children’s book author, educator and lifetime Girl Scout. Erin's current children's book series, Everyday Superheroes, provides female role models in different STEM, energy, and engineering careers. Erin's background in psychology, education, and energy provide the foundation from which Erin creates this book series featuring real women in real careers in a format designed for children and educators. Erin has a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Master's De...
92
Nov. 2, 2022

92. Dr. Emilia Molimpakis - Co-founder and CEO of thymia; PhD Neuroscience & Linguistics

Dr. Emilia Molimpakis is the co-founder and CEO of thymia, a company that uses video games based on Neuropsychology along with analysis of speech and facial micro expressions to quickly, accurately, and objectively diagnosis mental health issues, including depression. In 2020/2021 she won the Young Innovators Award. Emilia has a PhD in Neuroscience and Linguistics, a Master's Degree in Language Sciences with specialisation in Linguistics with Neuroscience. Episode Notes Emilia shares how she ...
91
Oct. 18, 2022

91. Kimberly Moore - Founder and CEO of KDM Engineering; BS Elec Engineering; MS Engineering

Kimberly Moore is the founder and CEO of KDM Engineering, a consulting firm specializing in utilities and telecommunications. She is the founder and president of Calculated Genius, an organization dedicated to helping underrepresented youth explore and connect to STEM in an effort to inspire and support a brighter future. Kimberly serves on several boards of directors and has won several awards including 2021 Society of Women Engineers Entrepreneur Award, 2018 Engineering News Record (ENR) 20 Un...
90
Oct. 4, 2022

90. Adriana Talianová, 16 yo student, Research Assistant at Northwestern University & NASA Intern

Adriana Talianová is a 16 year old student in Slovakia. She recently completed an internship at NASA and is also working as a research assistant at Northwestern University. Episode Notes Adriana talks about her experience working at NASA SEES (Stem Enhancement in Earth Sciences) and as a Research Assistant at Northwestern University at such a young age. She talks about the importance of just going for it - applying for jobs, etc. even if you don't think you will be hired or accepted. She share...
89
Sept. 13, 2022

89. Madison Sidebottom - Civil Engineer specializing in surveying

Madison Sidebottom is a Civil Engineer currently working towards her Professional Surveyor License. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering from Western Kentucky University. Episode Notes Madison shares her experiences as a new civil engineer - her challenges starting out as one of the only women in her department in her company. How an internship helped her not only figure out what she wanted to do as a civil engineer, but also was such a positive job experience, that it helped when s...
88
Aug. 16, 2022

88. Dr. Monique Chism - Undersecretary of Education at Smithsonian Institute

Dr. Monique Chism is the Undersecretary for Education at the Smithsonian Institution. Dr. Chism is repsonsible for coordinating educational programming throughout all of the Smithsonian facilities. She has spent her life working in education including the Department of Education. She is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all facets of work and life. Dr. Chism has a PhD in American Studies. Episode Notes Dr. Monique Chism shares the fascinating history of the Smithsonian Institute ...
87
Aug. 2, 2022

87. STEMSkills - Mentoring & Networking; Erin Chapple & Jodi Boone

Jodi Boone is a Product Manager 2 for Microsoft's Azure platform, a cloud computing platform for application management via Microsoft-managed data centers. Jodi graduated graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science in 2020. Erin Chapple is a product and technology executive who delivers multibillion-dollar revenues through innovation, product leadership and technology acumen. She leads Microsoft Azure Core product and design. Erin has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Electric...
86
July 26, 2022

86. Museum of Mathematics & Cindy Lawrence, Executive Director of MoMath

Cindy Lawrence is the Executive Director and CEO of the Museum of Mathematics. The Museum of Mathematics began in 2008 with the mission of enhancing public understanding and perception of mathematics. Its dynamic exhibits and programs stimulate inquiry, spark curiosity, and reveal the wonders of mathematics. Episode Notes Cindy shares her joy of mathematics and the Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) and the importance of making mathematics accessible, joyful, and beautiful for all that visit MoMath...
85
July 11, 2022

85. Lisa Bowers - Master of Health Services Administration; CCO biotech, & reproductive health specialist

Lisa Bowers is a mission-driven, visionary, senior executive in the biopharmaceutical industry. She has extensive experience leading strategic, operational, field, program and product initiatives in healthcare. She is passionate about improving access to healthcare and healthcare products for underserved populations in businesses and nonprofits. Lisa has an Master of Health Services Administration and a bachelor's degree in English. Episode Notes With the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, ...
84
July 5, 2022

84. Cynthia Changyit Levin - Mechanical Engineer turned global health advocate

Cynthia Changyit Levin is the author of the newly released book "From Changing Diapers to Changing the World: Why Mom's Make Great Advocates and How to Get Started". Cynthia has been active in the advocacy world since her children were very small. She advocates on a number of bi-partisan issues, but her main focus is global health. Cynthia has bachelor's and master's degrees in Mechanical Engineering and shares how her STEM background helped her as she moved into her advocacy career. Episode...
83
June 29, 2022

83. Danica Bunnett - BS Product Design (Mechanical Engineering)

Danica Bunnett is the Chief Operating Officer of Bluon, a mobile app and technology platform that supports the HVAC technician community. Danica shares her passion for supporting a community that hasn’t traditionally received a lot of support and for making their lives easier and better. She has a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Product Design (Mechanical Engineering) from Stanford University where she was the president of Stanford Women in Design. She is an outdoor enthusiast and gets her energ...
82
June 21, 2022

82. Dr. Prineha Narang; Quantum Engineering; Assistant Professor at Harvard University

Dr. Prineha Narang is an Assistant Professor at the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. She leads an interdisciplinary group at Harvard SEAS at the intersection of computational science, phenomena away from equilibrium, and quantum dynamics in matter. She has won numerous awards, fellowships, and grants including Forbes "30 Under 30". She has a PhD and Master's Degree in Applied Physics from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and did her po...
81
June 14, 2022

81. Dr. Moira Gilchrist - PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences

Dr. Moira Gilchrist is the Vice President of Strategic and Scientific Communications at Philip Morris International (PMI). She has a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences and in 2006, came to PMI to help launch the company’s smoke-free products, which were developed as better alternatives to cigarettes for adult smokers who would otherwise continue to smoke. Her journey to PMI was as personal as it was professional: as a smoker, she understood the potential for these better alternatives to become a bre...
80
June 7, 2022

80. Dr. Claire Christensen - Senior Education Researcher

Dr. Claire Christensen is a Senior Education Researcher at SRI International. She is a principal investigator with expertise in educational media research. While she studies many areas of media and its impact on youth, the focus of our conversation was mostly around STEM media. Claire is extremely knowledgeable and passionate of educational media research. She has a PhD and MA in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has a BS in Mass Communications (Television Production). ...
79
May 11, 2022

79. Katherine Hamilton - "The Energy Gang" podcast former co-host; Clean energy lobbyist

Katherine Hamilton co-hosted "The Energy Gang" podcast for over eight years. She is the co-founder and Chair of 38 North Solutions, a public policy firm focused on clean energy and innovation. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Clean Electrification. She was the President of the GridWise Alliance, served as a policy advisor for Good Energies, Inc. She served as a federal and state policy advisor for a number of years for Energy Storage Asso...
78
May 3, 2022

78. Estefannie - Computer Scientist; Instagram and YouTube content creator

Estefannie is a Computer Scientist and Instagram and YouTube content creator. She shares her designs, experiments and prototypes on her Instagram and YouTube channels. Esteffanie was born in Mexico and moved to Houston for college. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science and a Mathematics Minor. Episode Notes Estefannie brings engineering and science to life through her fun and engaging videos. She brings her viewers along as she designs and prototypes a number of different experiments ...
77
April 25, 2022

77. Dr. Shelly Hagerman; PhD Engineering & Public Policy

Dr. Shelly Hagerman is a consultant in the energy & utility industry. She specializes in Distributed Energy Resources and Electric Vehicle Strategy & Data Analytics. She has a PhD in Engineering & Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University, a BS in Engineering and a BA in Music. Shelly is extremely passionate about both her career and piano. Episode Notes Shelly Hagerman provides insights into the career her PhD in Engineering & Public Policy has brought. It's a unique combination that brin...
76
April 18, 2022

76. Lauren Sato & Ada Developers Academy

Lauren Sato is the CEO of Ada Developers Academy, an organization which prepares women and gender expansive adults for careers in software development in addition to helping place them in internships setting them up for long-term career success. Lauren has deep experience in leadership and leading programs that empower women in sustainable ways. She has a BA in Adolescent and Young Adult Social Studies Education. Episode Notes Lauren's passion for the work she does at Ada Developers Academy is ...
75
April 5, 2022

75. Erin Mallon - Author of romantic comedy novels featuring women in STEM

Erin Mallon is an author of a newly released trio of romantic comedy novels which feature protagonists who are women in STEM: Flirtasaurus (July 2020), Lovebug (February 2021), and Sharkbait (coming Summer 2022). She is also a playwright and narrator of over 550 audiobooks, many of them in the romance genre. She has won several awards for her audiobook narration and recently won the 2021 Independent Audiobook Award for Humor for her audio play These Walls Can Talk. Erin's most recent release is ...