2018 Expanding Audiences Scholarship Winners
A strategic goal of NMEA is to increase the number of members who represent and/or educate underrepresented minorities including, but not limited to people of color, indigenous people, island people, international communities, inland areas, and English-language learners.
We were honored to offer the following exceptional educators Expanding Audience Scholarships for 2018.
Nevada Winrow
As the founder of Black Girls Dive Foundation, a community-based, non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring and empowering young girls from unrepresented and underserved communities to explore their STEM identity; Dr. Winrow brings many years of experience to the organization. Her background in research and higher education administration has positioned the organization as a forward-thinking beacon of youth empowerment in STEM. It is Dr. Winrow’s belief that we must transcend the typical STEM education and move towards more robust and innovative pedagogical approaches and robust programming that bridges formal with informal science learning settings an produce connected digital networks to broaden minority participation in STEM and transform the lives of our youth into future sciences.
Her philosophy manifests in her dedication and service in teaching and administrative positions in higher education. Dr. Winrow has served on several Boards of Trustee of Historically Black College and Universities (HBCUs) and well as industry performance excellence Boards of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
Dr. Winrow considers herself a life-long learner. She earned her Ph.D. in Neuropsychology from Howard University. She holds a Masters Degree in Cognitive Neuroscience/Neuropsychology from Howard University, a Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology from Lincoln University and is currently completing her MBA with a specialization in Finance from the University of Baltimore. She is a former Neuroscience Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) and NIH fellow of the National Institution of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Dr. Winrow completed graduate work in Child Neuropsychology at the Paedological Institute in Duivendrecht, The Netherlands under Dr. Dirk Baker and completed two clinical research postdoctoral fellowships at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology/Oncology followed by a second postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Radiology, Neuroradiology Division. Her clinical research interests are in the neuropsychological and neuroradiological correlates of stroke in a pediatric sickle cell disease population. Dr. Winrow has published research and served as a contributing book author with the National Institutes of Health/ National Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Disorders on issues revolving neurodiagnostic assessment and stroke, and clinical case management in children with sickle cell disease.
Dr. Winrow is an aquatic enthusiast who is certified by the Professional Association of Diving Instructions (PADI) as a Master Scuba Diver and is a member of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences. She has taken her love of science and the ocean and founded, Black Girls Dive Foundation, creating opportunities for young girls from ethnic minority groups to explore their STEM identity. Although a new foundation, Dr. Winrow has made significant strides in position the organization’s operational sustainability through strategic domestic and international partnerships, fundraising and sponsorship and grant awards.
Meghan Emidy
Meghan Emidy is an environmental educator, scientist, and marine conservation advocate. Meghan studied Environmental Science at Westfield State University in Massachusetts and is now a recent graduate of Scripps Institution of Oceanography where she earned her master's degree in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation. For her graduate work, Meghan developed a high school curriculum on the subjects of climate change, coastal ecosystems, and marine protected areas that integrates subject matter within a place-based education framework.
Meghan has worked as an educator at the New England Aquarium and the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology. Meghan now works as a fellow at WILDCOAST, an international conservation organization dedicated to conserving coastal and marine ecosystems and wildlife. She continues her education and outreach work by taking youth on field experiences in coastal and marine environments through WILDCOAST's Explore My MPA program. Each year more than 300 students, including many from tribal communities, park-poor neighborhoods, and under-represented backgrounds, are brought to the ocean to learn about marine ecology and conservation. Meghan strives to create equitable learning opportunities for San Diego's youth through this program and her work as an environmental educator.
Carla Christie
Carla Christie is a Marine Biologist from Chile, and because of her passion on the endemic and unknown Chilean dolphin, she switched from science research to science communication. Thanks to a Chilean government scholarship, Carla has a Masters in Science Communication from Otago University New Zealand, where she began the draft of the book “El delfín chileno” published in 2015.
Carla is currently the Coordinator of Science Outreach at the Science Faculty of Universidad Austral de Chile in the city of Valdivia, southern Chile, developing cultural and educational projects and activities for school students and the community.
Carla was selected as one of the “100 young leaders from Chile,” recognized as a “Young Entrepreneur of Marine Conservation” by the program “Chile es Mar” lead by the Chile-California Council, was part of a cultural TV program “La Odisea: Valientes en la Patagonia,” and recently represented Chile in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) from the US Department of State “Hidden No More: Empowering Women Leaders in STEM.”
Carla presented with Mark Friedman from LA Maritime Institute and Yasuyuki Kosaka from Japan: “If You Eat Seafood, You’re Probably Eating Plastic,” a panel discussion with hands on activities on micro-plastics research/data collection and experimentation with innovative solutions, educational and action activities.
Claudio Aguayo
Claudio Aguayo is a Senior Research Officer at the Centre for Learning and Teaching, and the Research & Development Director at the App Lab, Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand. His main role is to lead research to inform innovative practice of learning technologies in education. He is currently undertaking research projects at the local, national and international level in mobile learning, sustainability education, marine science education, and educational app development. Claudio’s current interests include the role of technology in non-formal contexts through affective and emotional dimensions, embodied cognition in digital learning spaces, and integration of traditional knowledge in technology-enhanced learning.
Claudio’s presentation at NMEA18, “Mixed Reality Learning In Marine Ecological Literacy Education,” reported on an ongoing research study based in New Zealand that explores the use of mobile technologies within freechoice learning settings for marine ecological literacy education, with special attention given to the theoretical principles and practical considerations informing the use of Mixed Reality learning in visitor centers for cross-sector education.