NABT Professional Development Conference 2026 Exhibitor List

Richard B. Katskee is Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Appellate Litigation Clinic at the Duke University School of Law. Previously, Richard was Legal Director at Americans United for Separation of Church and State. He represented the parent-plaintiffs in their successful challenge to the inclusion of intelligent design creationism in the public school biology curriculum in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District . And in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District , he represented in the U.S. Supreme Court the Washington school district that sought to protect the students against coercive coach-led prayers at high-school football games. Richard also served as Deputy Director of the Program Legal Group in the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, where he led federal policymaking to enforce the laws barring race, sex, and disability discrimination in America’s schools, colleges, and universities, and he was a longtime member of the Supreme Court & Appellate practice at Mayer Brown LLP in Washington, D.C. He taught First Amendment law at the American University Washington College of Law and professional and political ethics at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Harvard College. He received his J.D. from Yale Law School, his A.M. in political science from Harvard University, and his A.B. with highest distinction and high honors in political science from the University of Michigan.

Kenneth R. Miller, PhD, is Emeritus Professor of Biology at Brown University and President of the National Center for Science Education. He attended Brown as an undergraduate and earned a PhD in Cell Biology at the University of Colorado. His research on cell membranes has been published in journals such as Cell, Nature , The Journal of Cell Biology , and Scientific American . He is coauthor, along with Joseph S. Levine, of Biology textbooks used by millions of high school students. His popular books on evolution include Finding Darwin‘s God—A Scientist’s Search for Common Ground between God and Evolution , and most recently The Human Instinct – How We Evolved to have Reason, Consciousness, and Free Will . He has been outspoken in the public defense of evolution and served as lead witness in the landmark Kitzmiller v. Dover (2005) trial on “intelligent design” and evolution. His honors include the Public Service Award from the American Society for Cell Biology, the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Biology Teachers, the AAAS Award for Public Engagement with Science, the Laetare Medal from Notre Dame, and in 2023, the McGovern Science and Society Award from Sigma Xi, the scientific honor society.

Myrna Perez, PhD, is an Associate Professor at Ohio University, jointly appointed in Classics & Religious Studies and in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies. She received her PhD from the Department of the History of Science at Harvard University. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Rice University, and has been a fellow at the Harvard Divinity School, and in the Darwin Correspondence Project at Cambridge University. She is the co-editor of Critical Approaches to Science and Religion (Columbia University Press, 2023) and author of Criticizing Science: Stephen Jay Gould and the Struggle for American Democracy (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024). Her audio lecture series “The History of Science, Sexuality and Medicine” is available via Audible and Apple Books. Myrna was a featured contributor of the 2023 AAAS documentary “Science as Mastery: A Story of Race and Power.” Her work has been supported by the Templeton World Charity Foundation, the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe, the American Philosophical Society, the Library Company of Philadelphia, the Huntington Library, and the Charles Warren Center for Studies in American History at Harvard University.

Arpita Bose, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology and the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Her lab uses an interdisciplinary approach to study microbial metabolisms and their influence on biogeochemical cycling. Her lab then applies the knowledge they gain to generate new ways of addressing issues such as the energy crisis, pollution, human health, sustainability, the circular economy, and climate action. Arpita has a BSc in Microbiology from Delhi University, an MTech in Biotechnology from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, and an MS and PhD in Microbiology, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is a L’Oreal USA and AAAS Women in Science Fellow, a Packard Fellow, a Fulbright Scholar, and an Anant Fellow for Climate Action.

Jackie Joyner-Kersee , winner of six Olympic Medals, is considered by ESPN to be one of the “50 Greatest Athletes of All Time,” and was voted Female Athlete of the 20th Century by Sports Illustrated for Women. She is the first woman to win back-to-back gold medals in the heptathlon, the first African American woman to win an Olympic Medal in the long jump, and the first woman to score 7,000 points in the heptathlon. Born and raised in East St. Louis, Jackie is committed to ensuring that all children have access to high-quality after-school programs, safe recreational places within their communities, and caring adults to help them achieve their dreams. Through tireless work and a commitment to ensuring every youth is given the opportunity to achieve greatness, the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation has grown to become a safe haven and learning-rich environment for area youth. Where the challenges and limitations of one of America’s most notoriously deadly and impoverished cities will never define where a child can go, or who they can become. Jackie is the heart and soul of the JJK Foundation and serves as living proof that kids in East St. Louis can dare to dream big, and if they have the drive and determination, they can accomplish anything they desire.

Janet Carlson, PhD , is an Associate Professor (Research) Emerita at Stanford University’s Center to Support Excellence in Teaching (CSET). Her work focuses on the bridge between research and practice, and she has supported a diverse portfolio of research, design, and development activities that improve instruction and develop leading educators who emphasize equity in the classroom and positively impact the learning of all students. Janet’s interest in bringing research into practice began when she was a classroom teacher. After earning a BA in Environmental Biology from Carleton College, she taught high school biology and middle school life science teacher and joined NABT. She quickly realized that the mix of curriculum, assessments, and teaching practices she used affected the learning outcomes of her students. Read More Her curiosity about what was more and less effective —and why—led her back to graduate school and further study. She went on to earn an MA in Curriculum and Instruction from Kansas State University and a PhD in Science Education from the University of Colorado. In between and after earning those degrees, she spent 20 years at BSCS (now BSCS Science Learning), where she served as the Executive Director. She then moved to CSET at Stanford, where she has been based for over a decade.

Alex Troutman is a wildlife biologists and co-organizer of several Black in X weeks, including Black Birders Week , Black Mammologists Week , and Black in Marine Science Week . This movement encourages diversity in nature, the celebration of Black individual scientists, awareness of Black nature enthusiasts, and diversity in STEAM fields. He understands what it is like to grow up without “wildlife role models” who looked like you, and dedicates his time to fulfilling that representation for future generations of Black or POCs (people of color) scientists. Read More Alex earned both his Bachelor of Science and Masters degree in Biology from Georgia Southern University, and endeavors to promote a similar passion for biology by leading groups on nature hikes and through public speaking engagements.

Briana Pobiner, PhD , is a paleoanthropologist and museum educator whose science research centers on the evolution of Early Stone Age human diets (with a focus on meat-eating) and whose education research centers on the teaching and learning of human evolution in high school biology classrooms. Since joining the Smithsonian in 2005 to help put together the Hall of Human Origins, in addition to continuing her active field, laboratory, and experimental research programs, she has led the Human Origins Program’s education and outreach efforts. Briana is also an Associate Research Professor of Anthropology in the Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology at George Washington University. Read More Briana has a BA from Bryn Mawr College, where she created her own major called Evolutionary Studies, and an M. and PhD in Anthropology from Rutgers University. She is the recipient of the 2021 American Association of Biological Anthropologists and Leakey Foundation Communication and Outreach Award in Honor of Camilla Smith, a 2021 National Center for Science Education Friend of Darwin awardee, and the 2024 recipient of the Evolution Education Award from the National Association of Biology Teachers.

Natalia Reagan is an anthropologist, primatologist, comedian, host, producer, podcaster, professor, writer, frequent animal expert, and monkey chasing weirdo. Her training was in a four-field approach to anthropology and she often examines topics through a bio-cultural lens. Natalia is a comedy writer and correspondent, and has been featured on numerous shows and podcasts, including Neil deGrasse Tyson’s StarTalk , the Thrillist’s Daily Hit , History’s Unbelievable , UnXplained & UnXplained Now , Scientific American’s Science Quickly , Travel Channel’s Paranormal Caught on Camera , and Spike TV’s 10 Million Dollar Bigfoot Bounty . Natalia was also a writer and host for Discovery’s DNews, Seeker, and TestTube, as well as an animal expert on Nat Geo Wild’s Everything You Didn’t Know about Animals . Read More Before becoming a scientist, Natalia was an actress and comedian, and it took getting hit by her own ‘94 Ford Ranger on the shoulder of the 101 freeway for her to go back to school to become an anthropologist. After getting her Masters, Natalia began producing science comedy videos in her garage. Natalia’s passion includes combining science and comedy to help democratize science and spread science literacy while inducing spit takes!

Richard B. Katskee is Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Appellate Litigation Clinic at the Duke University School of Law. Previously, Richard was Legal Director at Americans United for Separation of Church and State. He represented the parent-plaintiffs in their successful challenge to the inclusion of intelligent design creationism in the public school biology curriculum in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District. And in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, he represented in the U.S. Supreme Court the Washington school district that sought to protect the students against coercive coach-led prayers at high-school football games. Richard also served as Deputy Director of the Program Legal Group in the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, where he led federal policymaking to enforce the laws barring race, sex, and disability discrimination in America’s schools, colleges, and universities, and he was a longtime member of the Supreme Court & Appellate practice at Mayer Brown LLP in Washington, D.C. He taught First Amendment law at the American University Washington College of Law and professional and political ethics at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Harvard College. He received his J.D. from Yale Law School, his A.M. in political science from Harvard University, and his A.B. with highest distinction and high honors in political science from the University of Michigan.

Kenneth R. Miller, PhD, is Emeritus Professor of Biology at Brown University and President of the National Center for Science Education. He attended Brown as an undergraduate and earned a PhD in Cell Biology at the University of Colorado. His research on cell membranes has been published in journals such as Cell, Nature, The Journal of Cell Biology, and Scientific American. He is coauthor, along with Joseph S. Levine, of Biology textbooks used by millions of high school students. His popular books on evolution include Finding Darwin‘s God—A Scientist’s Search for Common Ground between God and Evolution, and most recently The Human Instinct – How We Evolved to have Reason, Consciousness, and Free Will. He has been outspoken in the public defense of evolution and served as lead witness in the landmark Kitzmiller v. Dover (2005) trial on “intelligent design” and evolution. His honors include the Public Service Award from the American Society for Cell Biology, the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Biology Teachers, the AAAS Award for Public Engagement with Science, the Laetare Medal from Notre Dame, and in 2023, the McGovern Science and Society Award from Sigma Xi, the scientific honor society.

Myrna Perez, PhD, is an Associate Professor at Ohio University, jointly appointed in Classics & Religious Studies and in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies. She received her PhD from the Department of the History of Science at Harvard University. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Rice University, and has been a fellow at the Harvard Divinity School, and in the Darwin Correspondence Project at Cambridge University. She is the co-editor of Critical Approaches to Science and Religion (Columbia University Press, 2023) and author of Criticizing Science: Stephen Jay Gould and the Struggle for American Democracy (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024). Her audio lecture series “The History of Science, Sexuality and Medicine” is available via Audible and Apple Books. Myrna was a featured contributor of the 2023 AAAS documentary “Science as Mastery: A Story of Race and Power.” Her work has been supported by the Templeton World Charity Foundation, the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe, the American Philosophical Society, the Library Company of Philadelphia, the Huntington Library, and the Charles Warren Center for Studies in American History at Harvard University.

Arpita Bose, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology and the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Her lab uses an interdisciplinary approach to study microbial metabolisms and their influence on biogeochemical cycling. Her lab then applies the knowledge they gain to generate new ways of addressing issues such as the energy crisis, pollution, human health, sustainability, the circular economy, and climate action. Arpita has a BSc in Microbiology from Delhi University, an MTech in Biotechnology from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, and an MS and PhD in Microbiology, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is a L’Oreal USA and AAAS Women in Science Fellow, a Packard Fellow, a Fulbright Scholar, and an Anant Fellow for Climate Action.