Meet Our Staff & Teachers

Staff

Courtenay Carr Heuer, Co-Founder and Executive Director

Courtenay Carr Heuer is a Co-Founder of Scientific Adventures for Girls. She has experience in both the private and public sectors. She spent five years in non-profit management for the Center for Citizen Initiatives in San Francisco, administering a US State Department Small and Medium Enterprise business management training program for Russia-based business owners in the US. She also worked for the non-profit, the Intercultural Institute of California providing English and job training to immigrants to the US.

In the private sector she worked as a trade specialist for Sovereign Borders Solutions and also for JBC International in Washington DC, where she was responsible for lobbying Congress on international trade issues. She also served as a manager at Accenture, in Talent and Organization Management.

Courtenay has her B.A. degree in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley and her M.A. degree in Commercial Diplomacy from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. She has served as a Board Member on the San Mateo Mother's Club and the Oakland Nahodka Sister City Association.

May A. Howell, Director of Operations

May Howell is a social justice advocate and educator. May comes to Scientific Adventures for Girls with a passion for all things operational and to serve and uplift girls and imbue them with a love for STEM. May has over 10+ years of experience working as a consultant for social justice, advocacy, and community nonprofits throughout the US. Through this work, May has led the operational, policy, research, and fundraising needs of various organizations. May also worked as a researcher/data analyst for a boutique exhibit design firm, Toxey-McMillan Design Associates (TMDA Exhibits).

May is an educator at heart and began her career as an elementary school teacher and then transitioned to teaching math at the university level. May has also served as a statistical consultant/analyst for university programs and nonprofits generating statistics and writing final reports that served to measure the success of programs and helped secure continuous grant-funding. May has both a Bachelors and Masters in International Relations from San Francisco State University. She is also a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. In her free time, May loves to visit botanical gardens and National/State parks with her family.

Giselle Escajeda, Program Associate

Giselle is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts in Gender and Women’s Studies. As a first generation college graduate, she is committed to making all things accessible to underserved communities and hopes to make a difference in the lives of younger generations through her work at SAfG. Her goal is to help those in underserved communities discover their full potential and fill up the spaces where they are underrepresented. During her free time, Giselle enjoys crafting, spending time in her garden, watching her pet tarantulas and reading a book with her cat Hades by her side. 

Madeline Carpenter, Social Media Coordinator

Madeline graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a degree in Sociology and a minor in Education. Throughout her career as a student and as a working professional, she has always been most passionate about working on the issues that affect women and girls. Madeline is dedicated to making sure that every child in each of her classes feel welcomed and accepted so that they may go on to be confident and capable scientists (and/or consumers of scientific information)! 

Teachers

Bryanna “Bree” Perez, Head Teacher and Communications Coordinator

Bree is a recent graduate of UC Berkeley with a Bachelor of Science in Conservation and Resource Studies. Bree is passionate about making science more accessible to all and making it relatable to everyone’s experiences. Bree believes that everyone has the capacity to be a scientist when they observe and question the world around them! Bree hopes to uplift young girls to believe in themselves and pursue whatever field sparks their interest. In Bree’s spare time, she enjoys playing bass guitar, roller skating at the skatepark, and spending time with her dog, Choco.

Julia Martien, Head Teacher

Julia is a lover of science, art, and fun. She recently earned her PhD in Microbiology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where she worked for the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center investigating bacterial biofuel production. Throughout her undergraduate and graduate studies, she has pursued her passion for scientific outreach and education by presenting at local schools, participating in community science events, and developing hands-on educational activities. She was born and raised in the East Bay and is excited to be giving back to the community where she grew up. Her goal in teaching is to create a space where all students feel welcome, safe, and free to be themselves as they explore new interests, practice their scientific skills, and have a ton of fun. When she’s not teaching, Julia spends her free time experimenting with analog photography techniques, playing guitar, mountain biking, and making friendship bracelets.

Jo Gualpa-Thompson, Head Teacher

Jo is an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley who is pursuing a degree in Molecular and Cell Biology. They are primarily interested in the study of infectious diseases but have also enjoyed studying mathematics and physiological sciences. They hope to bring attention to the overlap between social issues and science, especially when it comes to people's health and communities. Jo prioritizes creating a supportive classroom environment by ensuring that every student feels comfortable asking questions and sharing their ideas.

Safiya Barry, Teaching Assistant

Safiya Barry is an undergraduate student at Cal State East Bay who is pursuing a degree in Speech Pathology. In her free time she likes to dance, cook, and do art projects. Safiya wants to create a classroom environment that encourages creativity and curiosity. She hopes to correct the underrepresentation of women in the STEM workforce and inspire young girls to follow their passions and interests.

Imrit Kaur, Teaching Assistant

Imrit is a current pre-nursing student at Contra Costa Community College. She has a passion for working with children and aspires to become a pediatrics nurse. Imrit believes that being a part of Scientific Adventures for Girls will help young girls realize that they are needed in STEM workplaces and deserve to be represented. Aside from work and school, Imrit enjoys painting, hiking, and hanging out with friends.

Cynthia Cuellar, Teaching Assistant

Cynthia Cuellar is a science enthusiast! Cynthia graduated from Pomona College with a degree in Public Policy and Biology. Cynthia attended a science-focused elementary school, thus she knows first-hand the impact a STEM curriculum has on developing lifelong curiosity towards the field. As the first in her family to graduate from college, Cynthia is committed to supporting the next generation of science-enthusiasts in fostering their confidence and curiosity for science.

Cynthia loves to cook, crochet, and tend to her plants in her free time.

Sarah Schmuck, Teaching Assistant

Meet Sarah, an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley studying Geology. Sarah’s interest in science developed through a STEM-based learning program similar to Scientific Adventures. She promotes a positive learning environment encouraging confidence and curiosity where young girls can discover the world of science! Sarah hopes to give back to the community that sparked her passion for science and helped shape her academic career.

In her free time, you can find Sarah pet-sitting throughout the Bay Area, tending to her garden, or walking her two dogs.

VOLUNTEER STAFF

Thank you to our wonderful team of volunteers who help make our work happen and inspire our girls in STEM!

Anna Lee, Teaching Assistant

Anna Lee is the co-founder and head of engineering of a women's health startup for the past 7 years. Anna was previously a mechanical engineer at Amazon, launching the Dash Button’s original concept and the Kindle Voyage Page Press Technology. She has most recently been named Forbes 30 Under 30 and Paper Magazine’s Asian Women Creators You Need to Know.

Federica Murgia, Teaching Assistant

Federica graduated with a Master in Nuclear and Energy Engineer at the University of Bologna. She worked at CERN in Geneva in the field of superconducting circuits applied to particle accelerators. During her carrier she faced the disparity in STEM education. This is why it is so crucial for her to increase the number of women in science, and this will only be possible starting with young girls.

In her free time, Federica loves traveling and learning new sports.

Geraldine Abilo, Teaching Assistant

Geraldine Abilo Cardenas, otherwise known as “Babi”, is a Los Angeles native living in Oakland. As the first person in her family to pursue a medical degree, Babi is passionate about reproductive justice, patient advocacy, and health equity, especially for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) communities. As a teenager, she worked as a theatrical technician with dreams of becoming a lighting designer. However, soon into college, she discovered her love for neurobiology and switched paths. She transferred to UC Berkeley where she worked as a research assistant at the Berkeley Psychophysiology Lab studying dementia pathology, long-term care, and caregiver burnout. She also worked for the Berkeley Student Cooperative where she helped to support low-income housing for college students.

Currently, she volunteers at San Francisco General Hospital where she connects families in San Francisco with community resources that address their social and legal needs. She serves as an advisor to UCSF’s Preterm Birth Initiative where she works to improve basic, interventional, and public policy research on preterm birth. Babi is also an avid powerlifter, and is training to become a coach dedicated to teaching people of all ages and abilities. One day she hopes to work as a primary care provider dedicated to alleviating health disparities through public policy, care, and research.

Heidi Stettner, Teaching Assistant

Heidi Stettner always loved math but had such a bad experience in her freshman calculus class that she ended up getting a B.A. in History. After college, she moved out to the bay area and returned to her first love with a second degree in Applied Math and a masters degree in Computer Science from U.C. Berkeley. Her first job was with the Lucasfilm computer group, which eventually turned into a job with Pixar. She has been at Pixar since 1993. When not working, you might find her walking her dog or swimming in the bay.

LauraAnn Schmidberger, Teaching Assistant

LauraAnn is a graduate student at UCSF pursuing a PhD in molecular biology. She has volunteered and worked with children in a STEM context since high school and is constantly amazed by their natural creativity and curiosity. She is very excited to have the chance to teach and inspire young girls and hopes to build their confidence as people and scientists. In her free time, LauraAnn enjoys embroidery, taking care of her plants, and cuddling with her orange cat, Fred.

Marielle Malana, Teaching Assistant

Marielle graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Molecular Cell Biology with an emphasis in Biochemistry. She aspires to become a physician. Throughout her high school and undergraduate career, she has always been passionate about mentoring and tutoring children especially in the realm of STEM. She hopes to increase the representation of women in STEM-related fields. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and collecting rare plants.

Ria Gracielle Malana, Teaching Assistant

Gracielle graduated with a B.A. in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. Her passion in scientific research and dedication in mentoring has led her to teach the fascinating world of science to many young girls for many years. She loves to see young girls be confident in themselves with the knowledge that they can attain whatever their hearts desire. Now, Gracielle is working on her dream to become a physician. 

In her free time, Gracielle loves gardening and tending to her plants. She is currently collecting many plants from all over the world.

Shaunti Luce, Teaching Assistant

Shaunti Luce is the Sr. Innovation & Technology Manager on the Food Safety Quality Assurance team at Clif Bar & Company. In this role Shaunti leans into her 20+ years as a Food Microbiologist to be the food safety representative on teams responsible for new product launches. A Bay Area native and a San Jose State University graduate, majoring in Nutritional Science with an emphasis in Food Science and minoring in Chemistry. In her free time Shaunti is passionate about travel and photography.

Shweta Kondvilkar, Teaching Assistant

Shweta is a Sales Engineer with Palo Alto Networks. Shweta earned a Master's degree in Network Engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder, where she saw the disparity in the number of girls/women applying for STEM education. Shweta is a food and travel enthusiast and enjoys baking and working out. Shweta is passionate about her role with SAfG and hopes to expose girls to science and technology in ways she never dreamed of while growing up.  

On weekends, you can usually find her on one of the Bay Area trails; learning the keyboard (the musical instrument); or perfecting her new pandemic hobby, baking.

Pioneers for Change Volunteers, The Center for Community Engagement, California State University - East Bay

The mission of PFC is to provide opportunities for growth and development through team building, service projects, and service-learning internships that encourage students to be leaders on and off campus as well as catalysts for positive change within the community.

Ana Santiago, Head Teacher

Hello, my name is Ana Santiago and I am currently a 4th year at CSUEB. I am currently pursuing a degree in Mathematics and minoring in Human Development. My future career goal is to teach. I really enjoy helping students explore STEM subjects and see the potential they have. As a Hispanic first-generation college student, I want to be able to be a role model to younger girls who are in a similar situation that I was once in. I want them to get comfortable with the idea that women of color can also be successful and pursue careers in STEM. It would be wonderful to help them become more confident and comfortable when they are talking about their creativity and ideas about science! I can't wait to see how much growth these little scientists have throughout the course!

Some things that I like to do for fun are watching movies and baking different types of desserts. I also enjoy exploring nature through hikes and road trips.

Brittany Sauceda, Head Teacher

Hello my name is Brittany Sauceda. I am a graduating senior, Kinesiology major at Cal State East Bay. In my free time I love to travel, eat good food, and go out to hidden viewpoints with friends. Growing up in a low-income community I was never introduced to STEAM so as a TA for Scientific Adventure For Girls I'd like to introduce the girls to STEAM and show them how much fun it can be. Also, as a first generation STEAM Latina I hope to influence the girls by proving to them that someone who looks like them can achieve anything science based. Just three weeks working with the girls I know that they are capable of learning so much more. Creating a confident, welcoming and engaging room is what I hope to achieve while working with my tiny scientists.

Katherine Chen, Administrative Assistant

Katherine Chen is an undergraduate student at California State University East Bay majoring in biology with a concentration in microbiology. She loves learning STEM subjects and finding ways to apply what she learns outside of the classroom. She believes learning STEM is empowering and will allow people to come together to find solutions to everyday problems that are facing communities and the planet Earth. Katherine is passionate about helping others discover the fascinating scientific world, and believes that underrepresentation in STEM should be addressed and fixed; that it’s crucial that young girls know their potential for becoming amazing scientists.

In her free time, Katherine enjoys traveling to new places and learning new plant-based recipes to cook.

Yesenia Melendez, Teaching Assistant

Yesenia Melendez is a graduating senior at California State University East Bay majoring in Biology with a concentration in Cellular and Molecular Biology. She hopes to become a Clinical Lab Scientist and give back to her local STEM community in Ventura County. Being a part of Scientific Adventures for Girls has allowed her to be the role model she never had when growing up! She looks forward to working with these girls as they have shown so much enthusiasm for science.

In Yesenia's spare time she enjoys watching baseball and traveling to different national parks."