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THE GOVERNOR'S STEM SCHOLARS TEAM

The Governor's STEM Scholars Team is comprised of industry, academic and government professionals who guide the organizational vision and mission. 

GSS Advisory Council.

The Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Board is made up of STEM professionals from academia, government, and industry, who have made a commitment to the program’s mission: to mentor, educate, and inspire students in STEM in New Jersey. The primary role of the Advisory Board is to serve as an admissions committee, but Board members also participate in conferences and mentor Scholars throughout the year.

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Lucas Dorazio

Lucas Dorazio has been a practicing chemical engineer at BASF where he leads a team of scientists developing fluid catalytic cracking catalysts to support the refining industry.

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Ricardo Garcia

Ricardo Garcia is an alumni representative on the Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Council. Ricardo was a member of the Governor’s STEM Scholars class of 2018-2019, and graduated in May 2019.

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Yuri Lin

Yuri Lin is an alumni representative on the Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Council. Yuri Lin is an undergraduate at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), studying Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics. Yuri is an alumni of the Governor’s STEM Scholars and was a member of the Class of 2018-2019.

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Neethu Pottackal

Neethu Pottackal is an alumni representative on the Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Council. Neethu was a member of the first GSS class (2014-2015) as an Edison High School student and a member of the winning GSS research project team.

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Alexandra Sun, Ph.D.

Alexandra Sun is a research chemist at Merck & Co., where she is designing innovative automation and high-throughput experimentation tools for drug development.

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Natasha Velikoselskiy

Natasha Velikoselskiy is a Leadership Expert, Executive Coach, Founder of LEADING WHILE HUMAN Leadership Development Consultancy, and an Adjunct Professor at Columbia Business School.

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Emman Ebosie

Emman Ebosie is currently the Director of the Project Management Office at Projects & Construction for Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (PSEG) and has been since 2018. Previously, Mr. Ebosie was a Manager and Principal Controls Engineer in the same department starting in 2011.

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Lauren Inganamort

Lauren Inganamort is a trustee of the County College of Morris and serves on several Board committees related to academic programs and student success.

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Siobhan McVay

Siobhan McVay is a science educator of 20 years, spending the past eight years teaching 10-12th-grade Chemistry and Physical Sciences at Delran High School.

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Justin Roskam

Justin Roskam is an alumni representative on the Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Council. Justin is a current pre-professional Biochemistry and Molecular Biology student with diverse research experiences, an active Emergency Medical Technician, and a 2021 graduate of the Governor’s STEM Scholars program.

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Sindhu Suresh, Ph.D.

Sindhu Suresh is a senior project manager in the department of Business Analytics & Monitoring of Siemens Corporate, Corporate Technology.

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Lu Wang, Ph.D.

Lu Wang is a Senior Scientist with the Small Molecule Process Research & Development group at Merck & Co.

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Karla Esquilín-Lebrón, Ph.D.

Karla Esquilín-Lebrón, Ph.D. is a Microbiology teaching instructor in the Biochemistry and Microbiology Department at Rutgers-New Brunswick.

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Michael W. Klein, J.D., Ph.D.

Michael W. Klein is a Richard P. Nathan Public Policy Fellow at the Rockefeller Institute of Government at the State University of New York, and an associated member of the faculty of the PhD in Higher Education Program at Rutgers University.

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Braxton Plummer

A longtime player in Democratic circles, Braxton Plummer has worked up and down the state, for Senator Cory Booker when he was Mayor or Newark, and for Governor Murphy – and in numerous organizations.

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Maureen Stephen

Maureen Stephen is an alumni representative on the Governor’s STEM Scholars Advisory Council. Ms. Stephen is a high school mathematics teacher in her fifth year of teaching. She has worked in the Westfield and Manville School Districts.

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Volha Tryputsen

Volha Tryputsen is a Statistician at Johnson & Johnson with 8+ years of pharmaceutical experience providing innovative statistical solutions for diverse array of projects spinning through all the phases of drug discovery and development across different therapeutic areas with the focus in Neuroscience and Oncology.

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Douglas Wong

Douglas Wong is a Chief Engineer, Systems Engineering Area Lead and Branch Chief for the Combat Capabilities Developmental Command – Armaments Center (CCDC-AC), Systems Engineering Directorate (ESIC-SED), Picatinny Arsenal. In this capacity he serves the Director of Engineering, Systems Engineering and Technology Integration (SETI), Project Manager for Maneuver Ammunition Systems (PM MAS).

GSS Science Advisor.

The Governor's STEM Scholars Science Advisor provides scientific and technical thought leadership and support to the Governor's STEM Scholars, specifically advising and mentoring the team research projects. 

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Michael Tocci, Ph.D.

Dr. Michael Tocci has more than 35 years of experience in pharmaceutical drug discovery and development and has held key leadership positions at Merck, Cell & Molecular Technologies, and Sanofi.

GSS Staff.

The Governor's STEM Scholars staff are career educational, organizational, and communications professionals who are committed to building stronger STEM ecosystems within New Jersey. 

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Anthony Cicatiello

President, Research & Development Council of New Jersey

Anthony Cicatiello is President of the Research & Development Council of New Jersey. Tony has served on the Rutgers University Board of Governors, as Chairman of the Commission on the Future of the State Colleges in New Jersey, and on the National Communications Advisory Council of The Ohio State University.

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Arling Moctesuma

Program Assistant, Governor's STEM Scholars

Arling Moctesuma is a Program Assistant with the Research & Development Council of New Jersey, where she provides support to the Governor’s STEM Scholars with program development, media relations, and recruitment strategies.

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Kim Case, J.D.

Executive Director, Research & Development Council of New Jersey

Kim Case, J.D. serves as Executive Director of the Research & Development Council of New Jersey. As Executive Director, Kim assists in setting the Council’s agenda, advises its leadership on issues related to the Council’s mission of advancing R&D in the state, and runs the day-to-day operations of the organization.

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Alise Roderer

Director, Governor's STEM Scholars

Alise Roderer is the Director of the Governor’s STEM Scholars (GSS) where she is responsible for all aspects of the program, including ensuring all elements are aligned with organizational mission and vision, Scholar recruitment and selections, event and conference implementation, and fundraising and donor management.

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