Erika Wood

Event Operations Coordinator, CSEW, AAAS

Erika Wood joined AAAS in November of 2023 as CSEW’s new Events Operations Coordinator. As a graduate from the University of South Florida, she attained her BA in Public and Cultural Communications. Upon graduating, she embarked on the path of helping communities within the Non-profit sectors,  Experiential Events and Performing Arts.

Erika has worked as an Events Market Manager within a niche of familiar brands such as: Bumble.com, Deep River Snacks and Hallmark.

Additionally, she prides herself on community and has also worked for NYC’s Hurricane Sandy’s “Build It Back Program”, The WNET Group and the National Children’s Chorus.

Erika values the importance of making an impact on humanity and is pleased to be joining the AAAS family.

Iris R. Wagstaff, Ph.D.

AAAS STEM Program Director, NSF S-STEM PI

Dr. Iris R. Wagstaff is a chemist, educator, mentor, researcher, DEI consultant and science policy advisor. She currently serves as a STEM Program Director at The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) where she manages a ~$20 million Dollar portfolio of initiatives focused on broadening participation in STEM, research workforce development and inclusive innovation at the undergraduate, graduate, and early career levels. In this role she also serves as PI on several NSF-funded grants that support emerging STEM researchers and innovators from diverse backgrounds. She served as a 2015-2017 AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the DOJ National Institute of Justice Office of Investigative and Forensic Sciences where she developed and led an agency-wide diversity and inclusion initiative. She is a native of Goldsboro, NC with a BS and MS in Chemistry from UNC-Greensboro and NC A&T State Universities respectively, and a PhD in Science Education Research and Policy from North Carolina State University. She worked as a research chemist at the Dow Chemical Company for 15 years where she led analytical research problem solving teams and company-wide diversity initiatives. She has over 30 years of experience developing and leading informal STEM outreach initiatives, coaching K-12 science and math teachers, and developing strategic partnerships between industry, academia, government, non-profit and community organizations to advance science education and contribute to the U.S. STEM workforce and global economy.

Dr. Wagstaff is also a social science researcher. Her doctoral research focused on examining the factors that predict motivation in STEM (science self-efficacy, science identity, sense of belonging, STEM career intent) for a national sample of high school students. She has also served on several advisory boards in STEM education that include the American Chemical Society (ACS), National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), Department of Defense STEM Education Consortium, Science, Engineering and Math Link, and the HBCU STEM Undergraduate Center of Success. Wagstaff serves on the steering committee for the 2028 NAEP Science Framework Assessment and is the Founder and Executive Director of Wagstaff STEM Solutions – an education and STEM policy consulting firm.

Pamela Asante

Project Manager, CSEW, AAAS

Pamela Asante (nee Pecku) is a project manager in the Center for STEMM Education and Workforce. She supports the Emerging Researchers National (ERN) Conference in STEM and HBCU Making & Innovation Initiative. Before joining AAAS, Pamela gained experience in project management, healthcare accreditation, and STEM workforce development through her time at the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and the American Society for Cell Biology.

Pamela has an M.P.H. in Community & Population Health from the University of Maryland School of Medicine and a B.S. in Community Health from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Niya Ahmed

Project Associate, CSEW, AAAS

Niya Ahmed supports the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) as a Project Associate in the Center for STEMM Education & Workforce (CSEW). She provides logistical and administrative coordination on programs that aim to expand opportunities, access and resources to emerging STEMM students of marginalized identities.

Prior to joining AAAS, Niya fostered a career orchestrating partnership programs between stakeholder entities and under-resourced schools and student groups, nation-wide. Niya leverages her experience in Project & Operations Management as well as her Bachelors in Marketing and Management from the University of Maryland, College Park to further her career efforts.

In her community, Niya co-facilitates DMVBarters, a bartering collective that works to amplify & mobilize community members to bridge the gaps of access for each other, as a practice of mutual aid.

Jeunice Lim

Event Operations Manager, CSEW, AAAS

Jeunice Lim joined AAAS in May of 2022 as the Event Operations Manager. She is responsible for supporting planning and implementation of three major convenings within AAAS’s Center for STEMM Education & Workforce (CSEW) – the Emerging Researchers National (ERN) Conference, IUSE Summit, and Noyce Summit.  Prior to AAAS, she has worked with managing events and meetings for a non-profit organization and a hotel in the D.C. area.  She holds a BS in Business Administration from University of Maryland Global Campus.

Claire Molloy

Project Manager, CSEW, AAAS

Claire Molloy joined AAAS in August of 2022 in the Center for STEMM Education & Workforce (CSEW) of AAAS. She assists on programs that aim to broaden representation in STEM, including the Emerging Research Nationals Conference and the HBCU Making and Innovation Showcase. Claire received Bachelors in Biology and Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2022.