ISEE Team
ISEE team-members
Lisa Hunter, Director
As the Director of ISEE, Lisa oversees and actively participates in the development and implementation of ISEE programs, projects, and partnerships. She also leads ISEE’s major initiatives, such as the Akamai Workforce Initiative. Lisa has been ISEE’s Director since its inception, and prior to that directed the Center for Adaptive Optics education program, where ISEE originated. Lisa provides the vision and leadership for ISEE’s growth and sustained programs. She leads fundraising, partnership development, and serves as Principal Investigator on ISEE grants. lhunter@ucsc.edu
Candice Brown Pacheco, Assistant Director
Candice is the Assistant Director of ISEE. Candice began her work with ISEE as a consultant for the Center for Adaptive Optics(CfAO) education division. She was an early developer (2002) of the ISEE Professional Development Program (PDP) and continues to work with ISEE to sustain programs like the PDP. Candice works on the development and implementation of other ISEE programs like AstroTech and, more recently, an ISEE Leadership Institute. In her previous role as director of the NSF CILS Center at UCSC, Candice worked with Lisa Hunter, Claire Max, and Rod Ogawa to establish ISEE. Candice has designed and taught STEM education courses at UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis, and UC Santa Barbara. Previously, she was a consultant with clients, such as: NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries, UC Merced, the Tech Museum of Innovation, and UCSC CalTeach, to name a few. Currently, she assists with fundraising, partnership development, and program design at ISEE.
Heather Kaluna, part-time Program Manager
Heather is a Program Manager for ISEE’s Akamai Workforce Initiative and Internship Program, and an Assistant Professor of Astronomy at the University of Hawai’i at Hilo. Heather is a veteran of many of ISEE’s programs, including the 2007 Akamai Internship Program, when she had her first research experience right here at UC Santa Cruz. In addition to being an internship mentor herself in 2018, she has served as an instructor for the program’s PREP course and mentor workshops. As a native-born resident of Hawai’i, she is passionate about supporting the goals of the Akamai Workforce Initiative.
Anne Metevier
Anne Metevier consults with ISEE on programs including the Professional Development Program (PDP) and is assisting ISEE with initial planning for STARs, a major effort that is building up education programs involving University of California's Lick Observatory. Anne has been a key author on several ISEE publications, was a champion for ISEE's nomination for a PAESMEM award (which ISEE won), and is co-editor of two volumes of papers on the PDP. As a past participant, instructor-developer, and program manager of the PDP, Anne is keenly interested in supporting alumni of ISEE's programs. To this end, she co-organized two PDP reunion conferences and helped to develop multiple ISEE Chapters. In addition to her work with ISEE, Anne is a lecturer in astronomy and physics at Sonoma State University and Santa Rosa Junior College and has a background in astrophysics research.
Nicole Mattacola, Program & Event Coordinator
Beginning in 2015, Nicole has coordinated all events big and small that support the programmatic goals of ISEE. She implements and synchronizes the logistics of the many program workshops, symposia, retreats, conferences, presentations, faculty meetings, and partnership activities both on and off campus, and provides event support. Nicole facilitates ISEE program application and selection processes, and serves as the point of contact with participants from registration through wrap-up. She provides the main administrative support for ISEE with scheduling meetings, processing travel reimbursements and assisting with procurement functions. Nicole works full-time for ISEE as a UCSC staff member. nmattaco@ucsc.edu
Cindy Giebink
Cindy Giebink works on ISEE’s information management systems, including websites, databases, and online applications. She is also involved in Akamai as a mentor, and has mentored a number of interns in software projects. Cindy works part-time as a contractor for ISEE. She lives on Maui where she works for the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy where she writes software for instrument control and database development. Jerome Shaw, R&D/Instructor/Advisor
Jerome is Associate Director of ISEE’s Akamai Workforce Initiative and leads research and development within this major project directed by ISEE. He has led the development of ISEE’s new mentoring program and the development of new tools for supporting and assessing student projects in the STEM workplace. He serves as an instructor in the PDP, Akamai’s communication course, and is on ISEE’s faculty advisory committee. Jerome is an Associate Professor Emeritus in the Department of Education at UCSC. jmlshaw@ucsc.edu
Austin Barnes
Austin Barnes has a long history with Akamai, beginning in 2009 when he was an Akamai intern, and continuing in many leadership roles including serving as Akamai’s program manager from 2015-2019. In his role as an ISEE program manager he has been a key member of the teams that developed and taught ISEE’s Mentor Workshop, Professional Development Program, and other training activities aimed at early career scientists and engineers. Currently, he is working toward his PhD at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at University of California, San Diego, studying the coastal impacts of sea level rise, and is in the pool of instructors that Akamai draws from for the Mentor Workshop, PREP course, and communication course.
Previous ISEE team-members
Cynthia Nelly Carrión, Program Manager
Cynthia was an ISEE Program Manager as part of the team that runs the Akamai Internship Program. She was an instructor in the Akamai PREP course in 2017, as part of ISEE’s Professional Development Program (PDP), and continued to build on that experience as a part of the Akamai instructional team. Cynthia was involved in managing Akamai in a range of ways, including application and selection, communication, and evaluation of program outcomes. In addition to Akamai, Cynthia was also the program manager for the AstroTech Summer School, as well as being a supporting member of other ISEE programs and initiatives.Tiffani Quan, Core Developer/Instructor
Tiffani was a core member of the ISEE instructional team. Tiffani worked with other members of the team to develop, implement, and lead ISEE workshops. Tiffani was an independent contractor with ISEE and is a Curriculum & Professional Development Specialist at the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley. As part of the Science Education for Public Understanding Program (SEPUP), she develops NGSS-aligned curriculum for middle school, co-manages the SF/Bay Area Amgen Biotech Experience center, and develops outreach curriculum in collaboration with the Joint BioEnergy Institute.Scott Seagroves, Core Developer/Instructor
Scott was a core member of ISEE’s instructional team, developing, implementing, and often leading ISEE workshops. He has been a leader in a number of ISEE’s programs, including WEST and the Akamai Workforce Initiative, and was a developer and instructor for communication courses that were the precursor to ISEE’s PREP program. Scott has been a key member of ISEE’s workforce development and R&D strands, and is a significant contributor to ISEE publications. He worked part-time for ISEE as a UCSC staff member, and is a physics instructor at The College of St. Scholastica. rseagrov@ucsc.edu
Barry Kluger-Bell, Core Developer/Instructor
Barry was a core member of the ISEE instructional team, and has been since the inception of the PDP in 2001. He developed, implemented, and lead ISEE workshops, drawing from his extensive experience in training educators about inquiry. Barry was an independent consultant to ISEE. klugerbell@gmail.com
Nicholas McConnell
Nicholas was a Program Manager with ISEE in 2017-2020. He supported ISEE's Professional Development Program (PDP) and was a core member of ISEE's instructional team. He was also a Program Manager and instructor for the AstroTech summer school and Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) Early-Career Initiative (TECI). Nicholas’ role spans several of ISEE’s ongoing efforts to help early-career members of the astronomy and telescope communities develop skills and connections that advance their careers, and to promote more equitable participation in astrophysics nationally and globally. Nicholas draws from several years' experience in astrophysics research to connect ISEE's workforce development goals with national and international astronomy communities.
Rafael Palomino
Rafael was a Program Manager with ISEE in 2017-2020. He supported the Akamai Internship program, overseeing program announcement, recruiting, evaluation, and providing support for the mentors, in addition to instructing the communications course. Rafael is also a core member of ISEE’s Professional Development Program instructional team as a developer, instructor, and consultant. In addition to supporting programs, he is involved in other ISEE projects and initiatives, particularly those aimed at educational development for graduate students and postdocs at UC Santa Cruz. Tamara Ball
Tamara Ball was a Research Associate at ISEE, and used her doctoral degree in science education to ground ISEE’s programs and projects in the learning sciences. She played an active role in disseminating ISEE’s work through publications and contributes to grant writing. Tamara worked part-time for ISEE and also works on the Sustainable Engineering and Ecological Design (SEED) collaborative in the Baskin School of Engineering at UCSC. tball@ucsc.edu
