The STEM Communities Project involves collaborative leadership from the project team, faculty who serve as course redesign team leaders, and undergraduate students who serve as Learning Assistant advisory committee members. These 3 branches are reflected in the 3 puzzle pieces in our project logo.
STEM Communities Learning Assistant Program Leadership
Project Team - Senior Personnel
Dr. Heather Galloway
Principal Investigator
Dean, Honors College
512.245.2266
galloway@txstate.edu
Dr. Li Feng
Co-Principal Investigator
Professor, Finance and Economics
512.245.8462
li.feng@txstate.edu
Dr. Alice Olmstead
Co-Principal Investigator
Assistant Professor, Physics
512.245.0587
alice.olmstead@txstate.edu
Dr. Eleanor Close
Co-Principal Investigator
Associate Professor, Physics
512.245.8664
eclose@txstate.edu
Dr. Cynthia Luxford
Co-Principal Investigator
Associate Professor, Chemistry and Biochemistry
512.245.1290
cluxford@txstate.edu
Dr. Alicia Montecinos
Postdoctoral Researcher
Honors College
msu22@txstate.edu
Dr. Jieon Shim
Postdoctoral Researcher
Finance and Economics
nwg12@txstate.edu
Program Staff
Laura Ramirez-Mann
Coordinator (Part-time)
ksy26@txstate.edu
Project Team - Student Researchers
Tyler Atkinson
Undergraduate Researcher
Mary Ruane
Undergraduate Researcher
Hannah Castro
Undergraduate Researcher
Kylie Hedge
Undergraduate Researcher
Monica P. Arboleda Martinez
Graduate Research Assistant
Anabel Martinez
Undergraduate Researcher
Faculty Team Leaders
Biology
BIO 1330 - Functional Biology
Dr. Erica Nierth
Senior Lecturer
erica.nierth@txstate.edu
BIO 1331 - Organismal Biology
Dr. Andrea Aspbury
Senior Lecturer
aspbury@txstate.edu
Chemistry & Biochemistry
CHEM 1320- Foundations of Chemistry & CHEM 1341- General Chemistry I
Duke Willoughby
Lecturer
tvp20@txstate.edu
CHEM 3375 - Principles of Biochemistry
Dr. Joel Gray
Senior Lecturer
jg1345@txstate.edu
Physics
PHYS 1335 - General Physics I for Life Sciences Majors
Dr. Brandon Lunk
Senior Lecturer
brlunk@txstate.edu
PHYS 1345 - General Physics II for Life Sciences Majors
Dr. Dip N Mahato
Lecturer
d_m809@txstate.edu
Physics
PHYS 2325 - Mechanics, PHYS 2326- Electricity and Magnetism, & PHYS 2335 Waves and Heat
Dr. David Donnelly
Professor
dd14@txstate.edu
Undergraduate Student Leaders
Fall 2024 Learning Assistant Advisory Committee
Mac Coffelt
Wildlife Biology major
amc457txstate.edu
Kelsey Lincoln
Biochemistry major
Pre-dental minor
wmr45@txstate.edu
Briana Edwards
Biology major
Biochemistry, Psychology, and Pre-med minors
fyx8@txstate.edu
Quade white
Psychology major
Biology & Pre-med minors
gbk14@txstate.edu
Kylie Hedge
Psychology major
Biochemistry
& Criminal Justice minors uqu1@txstate.edu
Abigail Keyser
Biology major
Animal Science minor
zeu6@txstate.edu
Fall 2024 Pedagogy Course, Learning Assistants
Anabel Martinez
Wildlife biology major
zxo4@txstate.edu
Lauren Spencer
Biology major
Business Administration minor
ume2@txstate.edu
Project Leadership Alumni
Faculty Alumni
Dr. Iván Ojeda-Ruiz
Senior Lecturer
Dr. Karen Lewis
Associate Professor
Dr. Cody Patterson
Assistant Professor
Project Team Alumni
Egla Ochoa-Madrid
Public Relations Lead
Dr. Mavreen Rose Tuvilla
Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr. Charles Ramey II
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Babitha Govindaiah
Graduate Research Assistant
Daniel Payan
Undergraduate Researcher
Kimberly Balboa
Undergraduate Researcher
Emily Vanderworth
Undergraduate Researcher
Dr. Brianne Gutmann
Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr. Amreen Nasim Thompson
Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr. Madison Fitzgerald-Russell
Postdoctoral Researcher
Alexander Vasquez
Undergraduate Researcher
Alexis (Lexie) Kerr
Undergraduate Researcher
Manishabal Kaur
Undergraduate Researcher
Hannah Castro
Undergraduate Researcher
Dr. Jiwoo An Pierson
Postdoctoral Researcher
Venkata Sowjanya Koka
Graduate Research Assistant
Itzel Herrera
Undergraduate Researcher
Mariella van der Sluijs
Graduate Research Assistant
Learning Assistant Pedagogy Alumni
Lauren Spencer
Fall 2023
Olivia (Liv) Saunders
Spring 2024
Learning Assistant Advisory Committee Alumni
Venus Stanton
Spring 2022
Iman (Mon) Nash
Spring & Fall 2022
Shashank (Ayush) Neupane
Spring 2023
Olivia (Liv) Saunders
Fall 2023
Tiwa Ibironke
Spring 2024
Teresa (Tess) Luna
Spring 2022
Lauren Spencer
Fall 2022
Kyah Weaver
Spring 2023
Devin Williams
Fall 2023
Kansas Jenkins
Spring 2024
Bridget Bangert
Spring 2022
Alexis (Lexie) Kerr
Fall 2022 & Spring 2023
Jairo Gutierrez
Fall 2023 & Spring 2024
Maya Perry
Fall 202
Emily Vanderworth
Spring 2024
Chloe Hansom
Spring 2022
Anabel Martinez
Spring 2023 & Spring 2024
Sarah Weisbrodt
Fall 2023
Daniela (Dani) Rodriguez
Fall 2023 & Spring 2024
Ruth Jarrett
Spring 2024
External Advisors
External Evaluator
Dr. Kavita Mittapalli
CEO, MN Associates, Inc.
Website
Advisory Board
Dr. Tessa Andrews
Associate Professor, Genetics
University of Georgia
Website
Dr. Araceli Martinez Ortiz
Professor, Biomedical Engineering & Chemical Engineering / Interdisciplinary Learning & Teaching
University of Texas - San Antonio
Website
Dr. Daniel Reinholz
Associate Professor, Mathematics & Statistics
San Diego State University
Website
Dr. Mel Sabella
Professor, Physics
Chicago State University
Additional support for the STEM Communities Project is provided by Honors College staff.