2024 STEM Policy Fellows Begin Service at State Government Offices

Contact: John Fear, jmfear@ncsu.edu

Four new North Carolina STEM Policy Fellows are beginning their yearlong roles in high-level state government offices. The fellowship provides in-state, non-academic career opportunities for recent graduate students in science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines.

“The four 2024 NC STEM Policy Fellows will serve in four of our returning host offices,” says Susan White, North Carolina Sea Grant’s executive director. “We look forward to seeing the success of these new fellows as they work to tackle key science policy issues across the state.”

North Carolina Sea Grant administers the fellowship, now in its fifth year, with a generous matching grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and support from some of the host offices. This year’s fellowship class includes students from Duke University and the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Anne-Elisabeth Baker holds a master’s of environmental management, with a concentration in environmental economics and policy, from Duke University. During her fellowship, she will work in the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

“This fellowship will allow me to expand my understanding of state government and continue building relationships in the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and beyond. I’m also deeply grateful for the built-in mentorship and networking that the Fellowship provides,” says Baker.

Maylyn Hinson earned her master’s in coastal and ocean policy from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where her research identified improved governance arrangements to enable the sustainable development of finfish mariculture in North Carolina. She will serve in the North Carolina Department of Commerce Office of Science, Technology, and Innovation.

“I want to position myself to meaningfully contribute to the development of policies that not only address immediate challenges but also foster long-term sustainability and progress,” says Hinson. “The North Carolina STEM Policy Fellowship represents a unique opportunity for me to translate these principles into tangible outcomes.”

Anika Pruim earned her master’s in coastal and ocean policy from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, with research focusing on the implementation of nature-based stormwater solutions in North Carolina. She also has held internships with North Carolina Sea Grant and North Carolina Coastal Federation. She will serve in the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s State Energy Office.

“The opportunities that I will gain through the North Carolina STEM Policy Fellowship align well with my career endeavors,” says Pruim. “I want to work at a high level in a state agency, focusing on implementing environmental policies that will promote a sustainable, clean, and beautiful North Carolina.”

Jane Swart received her Ph.D. in biology from Duke University, where she used molecular and developmental biology techniques to understand the evolutionary history of two sea urchin species. She will work in the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.

“I am eager to bring everything I’ve learned as a scientist to a career in policy,” says Swart. “Working in science at a critical moment for addressing climate change, and through the pandemic, has shown me how crucial it is that science informs policy. This fellowship is a wonderful opportunity for me to make that transition.”

North Carolina Department of Transportation also serves as a host office, in addition to the above offices, but does not have a fellow this cycle.

To prepare for their appointments, fellows participate in professional development sessions in science policy and communication, an opportunity developed in partnership with Sigma Xi, a scientific honor society based in Research Triangle Park.

More about NC STEM Policy Post-Graduate Fellowships.