STAFF and Associates

Joyce Raia Blueford, Ph. D. Geologist, Board President
University
of California
, Berkeley, A.B. Geology (1974)
University of California, Santa Cruz, Ph.D. Geology (1980)
As a geologist, Dr. Blueford worked on many projects that looked at understanding how sedimentary basins evolved through time.  She worked in the Pacific Ocean, California, Alaska, and Russia (Siberia and Sakhalin). Presently her attention is focused on preservation of scientific artifacts through the Children's Natural History Museum,  Tule Ponds at Tyson Lagoon Wetland Center, Fremont Earthquake Exhibit, and California Nursery Historical Park all managed by the Math Science Nucleus so children and the public can learn more about science and the environment.

Debbie Masten Davidson,  BS Forestry and Wildlife Management, Virginia Tech

Debbie Davidson worked with the Math Science Nucleus’ nationally recognized curriculum, Integrating Science Math and Technology.  She was key in working with school administrators to bring the program to North Carolina presenting teacher training; setting up science labs and outdoor classrooms; and conducting science community clubs, science camps, and environmental projects.  Prior to the Math Science Nucleus, she developed and grew the outreach program for Discovery Place (a leading science and technology museum) in Charlotte NC.  She continues to be involved with animal rehabilitation and foster activities, and land (timber and wildlife) management.

Karen Anderson,  Ph.D. Archaeologist

Karen Anderson has a  Ph.D in anthropology from UC Santa Barbara with a specialty in archaeology. Her research specialty is pre-Columbian cultures of South America with her fieldwork for the last ten years focusing on the spread of the Tiwanaku empire that controlled most of modern day Bolivia from AD 600-1100. In the talk, she will use data from her excavations to demonstrate how archaeologists apply scientific investigation techniques to understand prehistoric cultures.
She currently teaches for the Dana Raimondi Math Scholar and acts a consultant to our scouting program.
Angeline M. Catena, Ph.D. Paleontologist

University of Wisconsin – B.S Geology (2010), Ohio University – M.S Geology (2012), Case Western Reserve University – Ph.D Biology (2018)

Angeline Catena is a geologist and paleontologist who specializes in fossil soils (paleosols) and trace fossils (ichnofossils). Through her research she has investigated the traces produced by modern reptile species, and has reconstructed the paleoenvironments of localities in the Appalachian basin of Ohio, and the Altiplano of Bolivia. Angeline is currently focused on education, in addition to her work at the Math Science Nucleus, she is also an adjunct professor of Geology at Diablo Valley College.

Art Williams, Restoration Specialist
Art has been helping to keep Tule Ponds at Tyson Lagoon look as natural and safe for our school field trips.  He keeps the irrigation maintained as well as all the trails.  He started working at the Reforestation project at the Masonic Homes as a student intern with Tri-Ced.  Art also oversees volunteers on Saturdays as he leads students on different restoration projects.  He also helps out at California Nursery Historic Park when needed.
 
Hagos Tewolde Negusse, Animator and Illustrator:
Hagos was born in Asmara, Eritrea, East Africa. He has BSc. degree in Mathematics from the University of Asmara, CISCO IT Essentials I and II from Cisco, illustration and animation certificates from Adobe and diploma in Art from an Art School in Eritrea. He was trained for years in macromedia flash by the late Doris Raia, who was an animator at the Math Science Nucleus. He works as an illustrator and Animator at the Math Science Nucleus.
Ken Miller, M.S. Electrical Engineer (retired)
Ken Miller's background includes a Bachelor of Science in Electronic Engineering, Cal Poly, Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, University of Kansas.  Amateur Radio License WB6BJX.  Licensed radio and television broadcast engineer.  California Community College Teaching Credential in Engineering.  Active in planetarium support and astronomy teaching programs.

Sam Miller,  studied Early Childhood Education at De Anza College and majored in Psychology at San Jose State.  Sam worked at a day care center with 1 to 2 year olds as the head of the toddler center when her children were young and spent many years working in Customer Service and Purchasing in the tech industry.  She always had an interest in plants and wildlife especially living in the Santa Cruz mountains on 10 acres of redwood forest. Sam have always loved working to educate young children and assisting Ken (her husband) in his pursuits of this. She enjoys volunteering in the museum shop and interacting with the visitors.

Jim Houston, Chemist
Jim has a BS in Chemistry and teaching credentials in math and physical science from UC Berkeley. He taught high school for a total of eight years including physics, honor physics, chemistry, physical science and algebra. He worked in high tech for many years, first to create chemical structure and reaction databases and then to design and test chemical software. Currently he teaches high school chemistry and physics and he is a part-time lab science teacher at a local primary school.

Dorel Baca,  B.A.  on assignment

Dorel Baca is a native to the San Francisco Bay area; he grew up in Oakland, California and received his B.A. from San Jose State University.  Dorel’s degree in Communications with an emphasis on Television, Film, and Radio, makes classes at the Math Science Nucleus understandable and fun for kids (and adults!)  Dorel was recruited by IHEART Media where he held the position as “Morning Show Producer” for five years on Wild 94.9 FM. In February of 2015, Dorel decided to return back to the Math Science Nucleus (where he taught for 6 years during college years)  as the new “Educational Coordinator.”  Dorel’s job responsibility includes instructing all “Children’s Natural History Museum” field trips, creating new programs and services for classroom teachers, and brainstorming new ideas to market the non-profit.  

More information on founder and Board President

Joyce R. Blueford, Ph.D.


As a geologist, Dr. Blueford worked on many projects that looked at understanding how sedimentary basins evolved through time.  She worked in the Pacific Ocean, California, Alaska, and Russia (Siberia and Sakhalin).  Her expertise is siliceous rock deposition during the Cenozoic in the Pacific Ocean.  Her specialty is radiolarian evolution which are protozoa that produce a siliceous skeleton of unimaginable beauty.  She has written over 60 scientific peer reviewed articles
including edited 7 volumes on Sakhalin Island (Russia) Geology. She has also authored 5 books on baseline habitat documentation of areas in southern Alameda County in California.

As a U.S. Geological Survey  research scientists, she got involved with getting more women and minorities into the ranks of geologists.  This is when it became obvious that not enough quality science was in the curriculum.  She lobbied at the local, state, and national level to get more geology into elementary schools after determining that was a major problem for low income children to think science. In 1982, Joyce with other scientists in the San Francisco Bay area founded the Math Science Nucleus to help the public school system bring in more science into the curriculum.

Joyce has also coordinated research to educational projects in her 30 years as the Board President of the Math/Science Nucleus.  She is the major author of  Integrating Science, Math, and Technology Reference curriculum, a 6 volume hands-on program for K-6th grades.  It made the supplemental list for State Adoption in 1990-98, and was used in school districts throughout the country.  She has also authored 23 Children’s science books. She was involved with the first national effort to increase earthquake education in the schools.  She worked with Xerox Palo Alto Research Center on ways in which technology can help with science education and developed some of the prototypes of online based learning that would eventually use tablets as the medium to replace books.  Dr Blueford worked in Eritrea, Africa on this prototype learning system to provide science materials that were customized to specific countries.   

Past

Doris Raia  (1957-2012) 
Animator, Artist

 


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