Science ATL Leadership

Donna McDermott

Coordinator, Imagining the Future

Donna grew up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey and has since lived in temperate forests, high-altitude deserts, and the Piedmont plateau. She is currently a PhD candidate at Emory University, studying how bees learn about flowers and how college students learn about bees. Donna is a former Science ATL Science Communication Fellow. She is passionate about sharing science through writing and teaching. She believes that science is as essential as art, or magic, or storytelling, in that we need all of these to understand ourselves, appreciate the world, and plan for better futures.

Samantha Snead

Content Manager, Science Scene Calendar

Samantha is an Atlanta native whose interests in science and education began at her parent’s medical practice, where she learned the value of effective science communication and STEM literacy. Samantha received her degree in biology from Georgia State University, and currently works in the College of Arts and Sciences. When she is not browsing the library or finding new trails to run, Samantha volunteers as a Master Gardener. Samantha enjoys her work at Atlanta Science Festival because she shares the core belief that science should be accessible to everyone, and most importantly, fun!

AJ Chestnut

Director of Student Success, Georgia Chief Science Officers

AJ Chestnut (BA) is a writer and educator with a background in chemistry, mathematics and middle grades science. For over 10 years, AJ has worked in the field of STEM education. Beginning as an extracurricular instructor, AJ’s in classroom experiences led her to find her niche in curriculum and instructional design. Her interdisciplinary writings have aided in program development for science education firms, education certifications for public schools, and grant procurement for non-profit organizations.

Jamal Jesse

Board Member since 2019

As the Workforce Development Manager for Georgia Power, Jamal and his team develop strategies that support Georgia’s talent pipeline for the energy industry and other target industries. By guiding partnerships with education and workforce development organizations, associations, and government agencies, Jamal works to maximize available funding and educational opportunities associated with talent development.

Before his time with Georgia Power, Jamal served 20 years in the United States Navy, retiring as a Chief Petty Officer in 2014. He was stationed onboard several U.S. Navy warships, serving as project manager. A native of New Orleans, Jamal holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Operations Management from Southwestern College and a Master of Business Administration from Auburn University. Jamal also volunteers with several veterans’ organizations. He and his wife, Marcheria, have two daughters and a Yorkie. Jamal enjoys playing golf and attending Atlanta sporting events.

Tjuan Dogan, PhD

Board Member Since 2019

Tjuan Dogan serves as Assistant Vice President for Social Impact Innovation at Emory University. In this role, she coordinates, inspires, and communicates how Emory contributes in a responsible and leading way to societal impact locally and globally. Prior to Emory, she managed corporate social responsibility at IBM for a decade; and held previous leadership roles in philanthropy and nonprofit management with the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, the Southern Education Foundation, and City Year. Tjuan is a native of Greenville, SC, and earned her Ph.D. in education, with a concentration in business management, at the University of South Carolina. She completed a year-long fellowship at Harvard Business School after earning her Ph.D. She enjoys live theater, golf, patio gardening, and making stained glass art.

Jason Hoch

Founding Board Member

Jason is President of Imperative Entertainment’s new Podcast division. Jason has over 20 years of experience with both major media companies and tech start-ups. Most recently, Jason served as Head of New Initiatives and Executive Producer at HowStuffWorks, one of the largest commercial podcast producers in the world. In this role, Jason launched three #1 podcast hits in 2018: ATLANTA MONSTER (with over 40 million downloads); its follow-up, MONSTER: THE ZODIAC KILLER; and BROKEN HARTS, a podcast collaboration with Glamour Magazine.

Meisa Salaita, PhD

Founding Board Member
Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director

Meisa Salaita has made it her mission to help others see and appreciate the beauty of science by making it a part of everyday cultural experiences. Through her work founding and directing the Atlanta Science Festival, she spends her days convincing everyone else to fall in love with science as well. To that end, Meisa also writes, has produced radio stories, and hosted TV shows — all in the name of science. In addition to her work with the Festival, Meisa is a producer for The Story Collider, a science storytelling podcast. Meisa has a Ph.D. in chemistry from Northwestern, and was recently named by the Atlanta Business Chronicle as one of 20 Women Who Mean Business in Atlanta.

David Lynn, Ph.D.

Founding Board Member

David G. Lynn has contributed in the general areas of molecular recognition, synthetic biology and chemical evolution. After a fellowship at Columbia University and teaching briefly at the University of Virginia and Cornell University, he served as Professor of Chemistry at the University of Chicago until 2000. He moved to accept the Asa Griggs Candler Professorship in Chemistry and Biology at Emory University, and in 2002, was awarded one of 20 inaugural Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professorships. In 2011, Lynn was awarded the Emory Scholar-Teacher Award for pioneering several science/arts collaborations for communicating science and as an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow. He received the ACS Herty Metal in 2013 and served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry from 2006-15.

Sarah Peterson, PhD

Founding Board Member
Co-Founder and Director of New Initiatives

Sarah Peterson believes that wonder and curiosity have the power to bridge divides and bring diverse communities together. As a Co-Founder and Director of New Initiatives of ASF, she brings together experience as a scholar and teacher of arts and humanities topics with an insatiable curiosity about the science underlying everything we do, see and use daily. In addition to her work developing and producing innovative programming and resources that present the wonders of science in surprising and engaging ways, she works to advance the professional and career development of PhDs in all disciplines. She has a PhD in English Literature from Emory University.

David Hartnett

Chairman of the Board (Founding)

As chief economic development officer for Metro Atlanta Chamber’s, David is responsible for leading a team focused on the recruitment, retention and expansion of companies and skilled talent within focused clusters e.g. corporate headquarters, bioscience, healthcare, IoT, smart city, cybersecurity, fintech, supply chain, eSports, and digital media/entertainment.

Before joining the Chamber, Hartnett served as the president and CEO of Maco Pharma (formerly United Pharma™) a privately held medical device/pharmaceutical company based in Duluth, Georgia, headquartered in Lille France. Prior to Maco Pharma, Hartnett was president and CEO of SteriFx Corporation, a specialty chemical company, contracted by U.S. Department of Defense (DARPA). Before SteriFx, he was the executive vice president of the North American headquarters of Given Imaging, Inc. (GIVN-NASDAQ). Under his leadership, the company commercialized the “PillCam” video capsule.

Hartnett is married with four sons, was raised on Coronado Island, California and is an active member of the Atlanta business community.

Lynn Durham

Board Member since 2017

Lynn Durham is the associate vice president and chief of staff to the president of the Georgia Institute of Technology. Lynn frequently serves as a liaison with community and state leaders, as well as the staff at the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

Prior to her career in higher education, Lynn was a congressional staff member in the district office of Kentucky Congressman Larry J. Hopkins, and a researcher and writer for The Tennessee Journal. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Radford University, a Master of Public Administration from Kennesaw State University and is currently working to earn her doctorate in higher education administration at the University of Georgia’s Institute of Higher Education. She is the mother of twins, Emily and Will.

Jordan Rose

Founding Board Member
Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director

Jordan Rose is a creative, lifelong learner with a passion for promoting science literacy and building community partnerships. As co-founder and co-director of Atlanta Science Festival, Jordan is helping to bring together schools, universities, companies, and museums to celebrate Atlanta’s STEAM ecosystem and highlight opportunities for the public to learn and love science. Previously, Jordan led science education initiatives at the Georgia BioEd Institute and the Emory College Center for Science Education, supporting K-12 teachers and students and facilitating university-community partnerships. Jordan has a B.S. in neuroscience and a Master’s in Public Health from Emory University. He serves on advisory boards for the Connect Atlanta STEAM Ecosystem, Technology Association of Georgia – Education Collaborative, Georgia Tech’s GIFT program, and the Georgia BioEd Institute.

Danielle Freeman

Head Volunteer Coordinator

Danielle is a continuous improvement engineer at The Clorox Company. She travels to North American and Latin America to assist the various sites in the Clorox family to involve everyone every day in improvement. She enjoys focusing on furthering education/skills which led her to achieve undergraduate and multiple masters degrees. She is one of less than 35 Certified Master Facilitators in the world.

Danielle and her family are animal rescuers and often share their home with foster pets. She enjoys travel, Zumba & Orange Theory Fitness, swimming and spending time with her family. And she is an endless volunteer-aholic!

Kellie Vinal, Ph.D.

Festival Coordinator

Kellie’s love of science was sparked at a young age, thanks to her microbiologist father’s infectious enthusiasm for learning. She chased her curiosity first to North Carolina State University to study microbiology, then to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences for molecular biology training at the bench. Eventually, she moved to Atlanta to pursue a PhD in microbiology and molecular genetics at Emory University, and the city hasn’t been able to shake her since.

Kellie is a firm believer that science is both everywhere and for everyone, and is fascinated by the intersection of science, art, and humanity. Her penchant for inspiring curiosity and wonder about science serves her well in her role as Festival Coordinator.

Eric Knapp

Program Director, Georgia Chief Science Officers

Eric Knapp is a curious and compassionate individual with a passion for youth leadership and empowerment. He serves organizations and individuals by revealing win-win partnerships and reminding people that there is a leader in every child. Eric is an education consultant and STEM advocate living in the metro Atlanta area. He is a Northrop Grumman Teacher Fellow and an established conference presenter. Eric works with the Atlanta Science Festival as the Program Director for the Georgia Chief Science Officer Program where he establishes an environment in which STEM minded students are developed into effective leaders in their schools and communities. He hopes to see emerging leaders find the place where their gifts, talents, and passions come together to meet the needs of their community. His career has taught him to never underestimate the impact a young person can make on the next generation.

Cheryl Kortemeier

Board Member since 2019

Cheryl Kortemeier is Executive Director of Corporate Volunteer Council of Atlanta for the past 8 years. The CVC brings together business professionals who are passionate about volunteerism to share best practices, strengthen community investment strategies, and make a difference through service. Previously (1998 – 2011), she was Director of Development and Communications at Trees Atlanta. She was Board Chair of EarthShare of Georgia for three years. She is a Steering Committee member of the Greater Atlanta Regional Centre of Expertise on Sustainable Development.

Jason Wellman

Board Member since 2019

Jason is a Regional Operations Manager at Google, where he leads data center operations across the eastern United States and South America, including sites in Moncks Corner, SC; Lenoir, NC; Douglas County, GA; Widows Creek, AL; Clarksville, TN and Santiago, Chile.

Since joining Google in 2005, Jason has held various positions related to Google’s Data Center Infrastructure and Operations. During his time at Google, Jason has successfully led cross-functional teams supporting Google’s critical business operations.

He is a member of the Lithia Springs High School STEM Board of Directors, which helped the school receive its certification and distinction as Georgia’s seventh STEM school in May 2016. Jason is a former member of the Douglas County Chamber of Commerce’s Chairman’s Club and also served on the board of directors for the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG).

A Texas native, he earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Stephen F. Austin State University. In 2005, Jason moved to Georgia with his wife and three children. The family currently resides in Milton, GA.