SCHMIDT SCIENCE FELLOWS - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Project and Information Manager

As Project and Information Manager, Anu oversees and manages various projects within the organization, ensuring that they align with the organization's goals and objectives. Anu handles all information management processes to ensure efficient and secure access to relevant data. She plays a key role in designing, developing, and managing our data management system to support our Fellowship community and business operations. Anu has a unique background that is well-suited to this cross-cutting role in our team. She has extensive experience with many of the software packages we use across the Fellowship to manage our stakeholder interactions, Fellows' interactions, and business processes. She has worked as a journalist for seven years with an interest in digital transformation and online engagement across platforms and sectors in medicine and technology, for media outlets, including Sky, and The Telegraph. She holds a BA in Journalism from City, University of London.

Job Titles:

• Chairman Emeritus and Academic Council Member / Professor Chiara Daraio
• Professor

Job Titles:

• Communications Manager
• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team

Chris is responsible for the development and delivery of communications to support our aims to promote awareness of and engagement with our Fellows, their science, and our mission to advance interdisciplinary science. He works across our Fellowship community, extended network, and range of partners to find stories and the opportunities to tell them. With more than 20 years' experience, including more than a decade in the research and innovation sector, his professional experience extends to communications roles within major funding organizations, leading research institutes and centers, the NHS, and as a journalist and news editor. Before Schmidt Science Fellows, Chris was Head of External Communications for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the UK's main public funder of research, he was responsible for proactive and reactive external relations, issues management, and incident response. He has worked across a wide portfolio of research areas from AI to medical sciences and particle physics to life sciences, managing communications for major projects including the formation and launch of The Alan Turing Institute. He has served on the European Particle Physics Communications Network based at CERN and the Communications and Outreach Working Group of the SKA, an intergovernmental astronomy organization.

Job Titles:

• Fellowship Affairs Manager

Christian joined the Schmidt Science Fellows team in March 2024. As the Fellowship Affairs Manager, Christian focuses on supporting Fellows through their Fellowship Research Placement and as members of our lifelong community. Christian is the main point of contact for operational Fellowship support, handling queries, resolving issues, and engaging in proactive support of our Fellows. Christian's career in scholar and fellow support began through his time supporting graduate students in the USAID Donald M. Payne International Development Fellowship program, administered by Howard University. Most recently, Christian supported Psychiatry Residents across nine professional development fellowship programs at the American Psychiatric Association Foundation. He earned a Master's in International Training and Education from American University and a B.A. from Gordon College in Communication Arts and Business Administration.

Job Titles:

• Director of Operations
• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team

Christine is a key advisor to the Executive Director and is responsible for all aspects of the operations of the Executive Director's office. She works across the team to coordinate activities amongst the different stakeholders within the organization. She assists in developing and establishing organizational policies and goals that are consistent with strategic objectives. Christine is a highly experienced operations professional, with a track record of working with senior executives in high-profile roles. She joined Schmidt Science Fellows after 14 years at Winston Partners where she was the Associate, Operations and Administration to the CEO. She has previously held administrative and operational roles in a range of organizations, including start-ups. Earlier in her career, Christine served in the US Navy. She holds a BA in English from the University of Maryland University College.

Job Titles:

• Warden and CEO, Rhodes Trust

Job Titles:

• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team
• Admissions Manager

Abby works with the Admissions Team to support the selection of the most promising candidates for the Fellowship Program. Abby is involved in all aspects of the candidate journey, from nomination, through application and review, to selection. Abby has over 10 years' experience in academic research spanning medicinal chemistry and drug design, cancer biology, biochemistry, genetics, and neuroscience, with a focus on projects that aim to understand mechanisms underlying aging and age-related diseases. Abby obtained a Chemistry (MChem) degree from Brasenose College at the University of Oxford and worked as a research technician for just over two years before pursuing a MSc in Biomedical Sciences at University College London. She returned to the University of Oxford at Lincoln College and completed her DPhil in Interdisciplinary Biosciences (Biochemistry) as a Clarendon scholar.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team
• Director of Fellowship Affairs and Lifelong Community

Job Titles:

• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team
• Admissions Manager

Joining the team in April 2023, Chloe works with the Admissions Team to support the selection of the most promising candidates for the Fellowship Program. Chloe is involved in all aspects of the candidate journey, from nomination, through application and review, to selection. Prior to joining the Schmidt Science Fellows program, Chloe spent over 20 years in the medical imaging technology sector where she conducted research and development on innovative diagnostic tools for patients with brain and chronic metabolic diseases. Chloe also played an important role in science communication, providing valuable support to interdisciplinary teams of scientists and clinicians. Throughout her career, Chloe has been passionate about bridging different fields of science and technology to address pressing global challenges and improve the lives of people around the world. Her dedication to advancing science has earned her a PhD in Medical Imaging of the Brain from University College London, where she also earned an MSc in Computer Science and BSc in Applied Physics.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team
• Admissions Manager

Job Titles:

• Executive Director
• Founding Executive Director of Schmidt
• Member of the Rhodes Trust Senior Leadership Team

As Executive Director, Megan is responsible for overall strategic, financial, and operational leadership for the Schmidt Science Fellows organization, helping to deliver on the Program's ambitious mission to harness interdisciplinary science to advance discovery for the benefit of the world. Megan is the founding Executive Director of Schmidt Science Fellows. Under her leadership, the number of Science Fellows selected each year and the funding available to each of them has doubled; the nationalities represented among the scientists in the Fellowship have grown to 34. In addition, she has also overseen the recruitment of a diverse, international Program team and Academic Council. Megan was instrumental in the development of the Schmidt Science Fellows Strategic Plan to 2025 and in efforts that led, in June 2021, to Schmidt Futures and the Rhodes Trust affirming their commitment to continue the Schmidt Science Fellows program beyond the initial three years. This funding is part of a broader $1 billion philanthropic commitment made by Eric and Wendy Schmidt to find and develop global talent. As Executive Director of Schmidt Science Fellows, Megan is also a member of the Rhodes Trust Senior Leadership Team, providing input on the strategic management of the Rhodes Trust and working closely with the executive leaders of the Trust and other Trust partnerships. She has played a key role in deepening the partnership between the Rhodes Trust and Schmidt Futures which has led to the establishment of Rise, a new talent program designed to increase opportunity for exceptional young people who need it to do more for others, together, throughout their lives. Megan's career has been defined by a commitment to dissolving disciplinary boundaries to accelerate direct impact. She has dual doctorates in Physiology (Neuroscience) and Clinical Psychology and she conducted research at the intersection of these fields, which have been published in scientific journals such as Cortex and Nature Reviews Neuroscience and featured in mainstream outlets such as Scientific American Mind, Newsweek, and the BBC. Before Schmidt Science Fellows, she ran a private psychology practice, MindMap PLLC, and was Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She has also held administrative roles such as serving as Assistant Dean of the Faculty for Administration at Dartmouth College and has performed clinical work in settings including the Washington DC, Veterans Affairs Medical Center where she founded an interdisciplinary clinic that reduced wait-times from referral to diagnosis for Veterans with Alzheimer's Disease by 85%. Megan received her DPhil in Physiology from Magdalen College at the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes Scholar, and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The Catholic University of America.

Job Titles:

• Chief Scientist, Schmidt Futures

Job Titles:

• Director, Schmidt Futures

Job Titles:

• Events Manager
• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team

As the Events Manager, Jayne delivers multi-scale events for our Fellowship community, partners, and stakeholders. She is responsible for annual events, including the Global Meetings series, annual alumni and stakeholder conferences, smaller-scale alumni science meetings, and stakeholder engagement events. Prior to Schmidt Science Fellows, Jayne worked in special events and program management at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. Jayne received her Masters in Global Hospitality Leadership from Georgetown University and a Bachelors in Communication and Business Management from American University.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Program Team and Academic Council Team
• Operations Assistant

As the Operations Assistant, Jenna works closely with the Director of Operations to support activities across the organization. Prior to joining our team, Jenna worked closely with the COO at Bloomfield & Company, where she was a Research Associate. She also has experience as a technical writer and a copyeditor. Jenna holds a BS in Biological Anthropology and a BA in English Literature, graduating summa cum laude from Binghamton University, State University of New York.

Job Titles:

• Academic Council Member / Professor John Boothroyd / Chair of the Academic Council
• Professor

Job Titles:

• Deputy Executive Director
• Director of External Affairs & Fellowship Support

As Deputy Executive Director, Matt is responsible for ensuring that Schmidt Science Fellows implements our strategy consistently and effectively across major functions to achieve our overall mission and that internal and external communities and audiences are engaged with and supporting our vision. Matt supports the development and leads on coordinated delivery of organizational strategy, including our recent Strategic Plan 2024-2028. He oversees the effective performance and delivery of the major strategic and functional offices, ensuring appropriate integration and cooperation so that partners and external audiences receive a coherent organizational message and experience. Through overseeing the offices responsible for admissions and outreach, lifelong community, and programming, and managing the relevant Directors, in addition to leading on strategic communications and events, Matt is responsible for a seamless and integrated Fellowship journey. Matt's career has focused on research and innovation strategy, policy, and communications. He joined Schmidt Science Fellows in 2018, after having led communications for the launch of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). He was responsible for leading the development and implementation of a collective communications and engagement strategy across the UK's research and innovation bodies, for developing and leading a collective communications and public engagement function, and for providing professional leadership to dispersed communications and engagement teams. Matt has 20 years' experience in the research and innovation sector and has held a number of roles primarily in strategy, policy, and external relations. He has experience in managing high profile international media stories and has led the strategic and operational communications handling of multiple national-scale crisis incidents. He holds an MBA from Warwick Business School.

Job Titles:

• Director of the Science Leadership Program

Job Titles:

• CFO and Deputy Warden of Operations and Partnerships, Rhodes Trust

Job Titles:

• Executive Assistant to the Executive Director