People

MSEF High School Committee

William F. Rigney, Co-Chair
STEM Education Consultant

Kristen Bellavance
Taunton High School

Nancy Cianchetta
Everett High School

Nancy G. Degon
MSEF Scientific Review Committee Chair
Auburn High School (ret.)

Kaylee DeGrace
Brockton High School

MaryAnn DeMaria
Millbury High  School

Stephanie Gill
Marlborough High School

Nicholas Guerin
Wachusett Regional High School, Holden

Howard Harrison
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Alex Hatzberger
North Attleboro High School

Kathleen M. Jones
TTT Mentor Program, Cambridge 

Kimberly Kamborian
Waltham High School

Karin Lebeau
Co-Chair, MSEF Middle School Fair

Alison Riordan
Plymouth High School

Dr. Megan Rokop
Professor, UMass Boston

Jon Tyler
Westfield High School

Shannon Zayac
STEM Program Manager – MCLA

Associate Members

Chris Angelli
Somerville High School

Althea T. Brown
Medford High School (ret.)

Sebastian LaGambina
Somerville High School

Karen Martin-Myers
Upper Cape Regional Technical High School, Bourne, MA

Emily Steinberg
Lowell High School

MSEF Middle School Committee

Co-Chairs:
Karin Lebeau
Sandra H. Mayrand

Carol Barry
UMASS Lowell

Dr. Steven E. Bernacki (retired)
Raytheon Company/Draper Laboratory

Karen Bernacki

Kathy Berube
Worcester Public Schools

Karen Cristain
Douglas Public Schools

Ruth Crowley
Overlook Middle School

Nancy G. Degon
Auburn Public Schools (ret.)

MaryAnn DeMaria
The Bancroft School

Jeff Glick
Worcester Public Schools

Kelly Graveson
Douglas Public School

Chris Himes, Ph.D
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts

Lisa Greenwald
Westborough Public Schools

Erin McQuaid
Regis College

Kathleen Jones
TTT Mentor Program

Jeremy Mularella
Shrewsbury Public School

Dr. James Pelletier
Bristol Community College

William F. Rigney
MA STEM Consultant
Co-Chair, MSEF High School Committee

Rachel Usher
Douglas Public School

Cora Beth Abel, President & CEO

Under Ms. Abel’s leadership, MSEF has forged new partnerships with academic institutions, private foundations and government agencies as well as affiliated Regional Fairs and like-minded science education organizations. Her efforts over the last six years have strengthened the state’s year-long science fair programs and built greater awareness of MSEF’s mission of inquiry-based learning for all students. She has led the successful pilot and seed funding of the Curious Minds Initiative, a strategic statewide plan to increase the number of Massachusetts schools and teachers that use the inquiry-based learning model and offer science fairs programs that inspire students’ interest in science through direct engagement in the real-world discovery process. Prior to joining MSEF in 2006, she was a Founding Director and served as Vice President of MassBioEd, the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council’s (MBC) educational foundation, providing strategic direction and shaping policy to advance science literacy. She designed and led the BioTeach initiative, a dynamic model of early-stage workforce development, and oversaw a $9M-campaign that was launched at the Massachusetts State House. In the workforce arena, Ms. Abel developed an award-winning training program that opened entry-level opportunities in bio-manufacturing to underrepresented urban populations. She earned a baccalaureate in theoretical mathematics from SUNY-Buffalo and a master’s degree from Harvard University in Education & Design. She is the recipient of several national awards, including two design fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Eleanor A. Tishler, Vice President of Corporate Development

Ms. Tishler is responsible for all partner and sponsor relationships, and has built lasting and successful relations with over 100 loyal donors for over 15 years. She served as MSEF’s first independent management professional in 1989, when the organization transitioned to an autonomous organization from its life-long affiliation with The Boston Globe. During her tenure, she was responsible for formalizing business operations, heightening awareness of the science fair program and significantly expanding the scope of sponsorship. After stepping down as Executive Director a decade ago, Ms. Tishler remained with the organization as Director of Corporate Development. Before joining MSEF, she managed the corporate philanthropy program at Keyspan Energy (now part of National Grid), then a $1 billion diversified energy company. Her extensive experience in the non-profit sector includes work for United Way of Massachusetts, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Jobs for Youth, Speare Memorial Hospital and My Brothers Table.

Lauren Doty, Manager of Major Gifts and Grants

Ms. Doty joined MSEF in 2017 and is responsible for overseeing MSEF’s annual fundraising campaign. She will be working to grow our individual giving program as well as identifying and working with institutional funders. Prior to joining MSEF, Ms. Doty served as the Major Gifts Officer at Emerson Hospital where she was responsible for developing and managing special initiatives through major gifts and planned giving to grow philanthropic support. Previously, Ms. Doty served as the Director of Annual Giving at Simmons College where she raised increased revenue for the institution through leadership giving and marketing initiatives. Ms. Doty holds an MBA from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management and a BA in marketing from Simmons College. She is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Boston, Emerging Leaders Program.

Karin Lebeau, Events Manager

Ms. Lebeau is responsible for managing all logistics for both of MSEF’s statewide Science & Engineering Fairs that bring together the most talented young researchers and innovators in Massachusetts each year. She brings to MSEF eight years of experience in coordinating the Middle School Division event, which she co-chaired as part of her work at the Regional Science Resource Center (RSRC) at UMASS Medical School. Beginning this year at MSEF, she will also oversee all administrative tasks for the High School Science Fair at MIT and the annual Massachusetts Delegation of students and teacher-chaperones that are selected to participate in the International Science & Engineering Fair (ISEF). For the past two years, Ms. Lebeau served as the Director of the Central MA STEM Network. Previously, she served as Interim Director of the RSRC, where she also managed a DESE-sponsored course for STEM teachers, “Identifying & Developing Student Conceptions in Physical Science,” and served as the course manager for Board of Higher Education’s @Scale Project, “Increasing Accessibility to Algebra & Geometry for ALL Students.” Before joining RSRC, Ms. Lebeau  was a research associate at UMASS Medical School and was the lead co-author of a paper published in Current Biology on chromosome dynamics in C.elegans. Ms. Lebeau earned her BA in biology at Assumption College and an MBA at Nichols College, and is MTEL-certified in General Science and Communications & Literacy.

Elizabeth Kronberg, Executive Administrator

Ms. Kronberg joined MSEF in 2013 and is responsible for managing and executing all administrative tasks for MSEF. Her 20+ years of administrative experience includes companies in the insurance, mortgage and finance sectors in both MA and Chile. She also served as a residential supervisor in a school for special needs children. She earned her BS in Business Administration & Marketing at MCLA.

Other Professional Services

MSEF retains the services of a Certified Public Accountant, legal counsel, bookkeeper, IT team, and graphic designer on an independent contractor status. College interns are also engaged for special projects in support of administrative and programmatic efforts.