CCST S&T Policy Fellows

Christine Hochmuth Casey, PhD, was a CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellow in 2015. Casey was placed in the California State Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing. Casey received her PhD in Biology from the University of Rochester and conducted postdoctoral research at UC San Diego. She is currently a Finance Budget Analyst with the […]

A new year means new beginnings. And for ten highly accomplished scientists and engineers, 2016 will mean a year of public service and leadership training in the California State Legislature. I am thrilled to introduce to everyone the 2016 Class of our CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship! Our latest Fellowship cohort hail from as far away as Chicago […]

If you’re a scientist or engineer who is exploring opportunities in the public policy realm, join us for our upcoming information session at Stanford University to learn about the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship: CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship Brown Bag Info Session Friday, January 29, 2016 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Pacific Medical School Office Building (MSOB), […]

Amber Mace, PhD, is the Deputy Director of the California Council on Science and Technology and a Policy Fellow at the UC Davis Policy Institute. Mace formerly served as the Executive Director of California Ocean Protection Council and Assistant Secretary for Coastal Matters at the California Natural Resources Agency, after serving as a Sea Grant […]

Esha Mathew, PhD, is a member of the 2016 Class of CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellows. She received her PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Michigan, where she studied pancreatic cancer and also earned a graduate certificate in Science, Technology, and Public Policy. Mathew’s Fellowship placement is with Assemblymember Jose […]

At the heart of policymaking is effective communication, and enabling scientists and engineers to concisely communicate complex issues is a key component of our CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship experience. This is why once again, CCST is teaming up with the Capital Science Communicators (CapSciComm) for a professional networking social: CCST & CapSciComm Networking Social Wednesday, January 20, 2016 6:00 p.m. […]

It’s the start of a new year, and time to make new plans. If you’re a scientist or engineer who is exploring opportunities in the public policy realm, join us for our upcoming webinar to learn about the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship: CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship Informational Session Wednesday, January 13, 2016 12:00 p.m. […]

Shannon Muir, PhD, is a member of the 2015 Class of CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellows. She received her PhD in Biomedical Sciences from University of California, San Diego, where she studied the genetic mechanism behind a rare form of pediatric cancer, and served as the Graduate Student Representative for the University of California […]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s State Legislature is looking for a few good scientists to trade their lab coats for business suits, and swap molecules and equations for committee hearings and bill analyses. That’s the opportunity being offered by the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship, led by the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST). […]

Do you donate to your favorite causes and organizations on #GivingTuesday? “Giving Tuesday” is a global day of giving created in 2012 that seeks to harness the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to encourage philanthropy. It has become a rallying point for nonprofits and charities for annual giving. As part of #GivingTuesday and […]

Debra Cooper, PhD, was a CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellow in 2015. Cooper was placed in the California State Senate Office of Research (SOR), where she was hired as a Policy Consultant halfway through her Fellowship. Cooper received her PhD in Neuroscience from Emory University, where she studied medications to help reduce relapse to […]

Nathan Phillips, PhD, was a CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellow in 2014, and his placement was in the California State Senate Transportation and Housing Committee with then-Chair Mark DeSaulnier. He is currently a Professor of Earth and Environment at Boston University, and had applied to the Fellowship on sabbatical from his post. Phillips received […]

Vivian Ericson, PhD, was a CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellow in 2015. She received her Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Physiology from Stanford University, and her placement was in the Office of Assemblymember Cristina Garcia. Since the Fellowship, she has continued to work as a Legislative Aide with the Office of Assemblymember Garcia. [February […]

Amber Mace, PhD, is the Deputy Director of the California Council on Science and Technology, and she oversees the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellows program. Mace formerly served as the Executive Director of California Ocean Protection Council and as Assistant Secretary for Coastal Matters at the California Natural Resources Agency, after serving as a Sea Grant […]

The fifth cohort of CCST Science and Technology Policy Fellows has received formal recognition for their service by the leadership of both the California State Assembly and the Senate, with the Fellows earning praise for their contributions and dedication. “This is a terrific program,” said Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, in acknowledging the Fellows […]

  The fifth class of the California Science and Technology Policy Fellowship Program has begun work in Sacramento, and the program is planning for the next five years. “We are very proud of the legacy this program is building,” said CCST Executive Director Susan Hackwood. “The Science and Technology Policy Fellows are a resource unique […]

Effective this month, the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) has a new deputy director. Dr. Amber Mace, associate director of the UC Davis Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy, will bring her experience and expertise leading effective science-policy organizations to the CCST team. In addition to providing strategic advice to the […]

The California Science and Technology Policy Fellowship program has placed its fourth consecutive group of fellows in the California state legislature, continuing to build on a growing legacy of making S&T expertise available to lawmakers in a way most states do not have. Each year, the program places ten professional scientists in yearlong appointments in […]

The 2011-2012 group of California Science and Technology Policy Fellows has received acknowledgments from both the Assembly and the Senate, marking the program’s third year of success. “As policy makers, our most urgent priority is to create the kind of twenty-first century jobs that will restore health to California’s economy,” said Speaker of the Assembly […]

The California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) is one of very few state-level organizations in the nation designed to offer expert advice to the state government and to recommend solutions to science and technology-related policy issues. There are some issues however which need to be addressed at a national, rather than state, level. One […]

As 2012 gets underway, lawmakers in Sacramento are returning to confront the difficult fiscal challenges of the State. In addition they will continue to navigate California’s ever-evolving science and technology related policy issues. Thanks to a small group of dedicated experts, they have a little extra help. The California Science and Technology Policy Fellowship program […]