Nov-Dec 2024 | Fellowship Focus

Florencia Behn (2008-09 USAID fellow) was appointed as Vice President for Research Administration & Development to oversee HudsonAlpha’s research administration policies and procedures to assist researchers in navigating the sponsored program administration cycle. Florencia works closely with the Chief Science Officer to advance short- and long-range development plans through strategic alliances and coordinating efforts between institute mission areas. "STPF gave me the experience and confidence to pursue a career outside of the lab - it was an inspirational and uplifting experience for me,” she says. Image: Cathleen Shaw 

DEFCON AI, which uses software to helping advance response planning in the face of disrupted logistics and supply chain operations, recently finished another round of raising seed money. “Bringing revolutionary innovation to the defense and health care sector has been one of the most rewarding professional experiences of my life,” said co-founder and CEO Yisroel Brumer (2004-05 fellow, Dept. of Homeland Security), who is also founding partner of Red Cell Partners. “The startup environment allows you to swing for the fences and revolutionize established practices in a way that is very hard to replicate.” And on the fellowship, “STPF gave me an incredible opportunity to transition from academia into the government, and I am forever thankful for the doors it opened.” 

Joining AAAS from the US Dept. Of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, Stephanie Rodriguez (2015-17 NSF fellow) is the inaugural director of the STEMM Opportunity Alliance, where she'll be working with partners at both a national and grassroots level and building opportunities by bringing education and workforce together. Her "AAAS [STPF] fellowship was among the first opportunities (...) to understand the power of systems change," she shared in an interview with AAAS.