The AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowships (STPF) is the premier opportunity for outstanding scientists and engineers to learn first-hand about public policy while contributing valuable knowledge and analytical skills to address today’s most pressing societal challenges. STPF fosters a network of STEM leaders who understand government and policymaking. Fellows gain invaluable knowledge of and experience with processes and priorities that drive public policy as well as a holistic understanding of our nation’s scientific enterprise.
Join us on June 17 at 1 p.m. ET for the second of a six-part live chat series with fellows. Learn how fellows have been impacting science policy for 47 years. Get an insider’s look at the application and interview process.
View the full chat schedule here.
The AAAS S&T Policy Fellowships are open to U.S. citizens who hold doctoral level degrees in any of the following:
- Biological, Physical or Earth sciences.
- Social and Behavioral sciences.
- Computational and Information sciences.
- Mathematics and Statistics.
- Medical and Health Sciences.
- Engineering disciplines (applicants with an M.S. in engineering and three years of professional experience also qualify).
The application deadline is November 1.
CHAT PARTICIPANTS
MODERATOR
Jessica Soule, STPF Director of Recruitment, Marketing & Alumni Engagement
FELLOWS
Allison Truhlar, 2019-21 Executive Branch Fellow, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the Deputy Director for Science Programs
Dr. Allison Truhlar is a first year AAAS fellow in the Department of Energy. She serves in the Office of Science, Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists. In this role, she contributes to the office’s outreach and communication efforts, as well as two interagency working groups related to STEM education. Dr. Truhlar received her Ph.D. in 2017 from Cornell University for research on two subjects: E. coli transport and survival in agricultural soils and student interactions in online discussions. From 2017 to 2018 she was a postdoctoral researcher for the New York State Water Resources Institute, where her research focused on improving a model for culvert capacity using limited field measurements. Also in this role, she assisted with managing a grant portfolio of New York State-specific water quality and quantity research, and communicated results from this work to diverse stakeholders including state regulatory agency employees and Congressional representatives. Most recently, Dr. Truhlar was a Research Fellow at the American Geophysical Union, where she researched and wrote a report showcasing the value of federally-funded earth and space sciences to the general public.
Antoinette Nelson, 2019-20 Executive Branch Fellow, U.S. Agency for International Development, Office of Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment & 2020-21 Executive Branch Fellow, U.S. Agency for International Development, Office of HIV/AIDS
Dr. Antoinette G. Nelson is a 2019-21 AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). She currently serves as the Gender and Environment Technical Advisor within the Office of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. In this role, she supports the design and integration of gender and women’s economic empowerment activities into USAID’s environment programming. Dr. Nelson earned her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Rutgers University in 2018 where she received an interdisciplinary training in biotechnology and pharmaceutics. Her dissertation research focused on the development of safe and cost-effective nanotechnology-based platforms for HIV prevention. As a doctoral student she received a number of prestigious awards including the National Science Foundation’s East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes Fellowship to conduct independent research at the National Center of Nanoscience and Technology of China and strengthen international relationships in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Prior to joining USAID, Dr. Nelson was a Congressional Intern for the U.S. Senate Budget Committee and within the Office of Senator Bernard Sanders (I-VT). During this time, she also served on the Executive Board of the Senate Black Legislative Staff Caucus (SBLSC) and as the Chair of the SBLSC's Historical Archives Committee. Outside of her professional life, Dr. Nelson is a STEM mentor and community organizer, having spent over 20 years supporting community-based initiatives to provide foreign assistance and disaster relief to the Caribbean and Africa. She is also a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.
Aubrey Paris, 2019-21 IEEE-USA Science and Engineering Diplomacy Fellow, U.S. Department of State, Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State