SEATTLE, WA – The Washington State Academy of Sciences (WSAS) announced today the election of five WSAS members for new terms on its Board of Directors: one returning officer, and four new board members. Officers serve two-year terms and board members serve three-year terms. The board guides the implementation of WSAS’s mission, sets its strategic priorities, and provides oversight. Per WSAS bylaws, the Board of Directors is elected from the membership, by the membership.

New positions begin after WSAS’s fall board meeting on October 9, 2026. Members concluding their board service at that time include Ann Bostrom, Patricia Hunt, Lee Huntsman, and Ruby Leung.

“We are deeply grateful to Ann, Pat, Lee, and Ruby for their service and the expertise they brought to our work,” said Allison Campbell, WSAS president and chair of the board. “Their contributions have strengthened WSAS and will continue to benefit the state long after their board tenure ends.”

Jonathan Yoder, Distinguished Professor for Sustainable Development in the School of Economic Sciences at Washington State University (WSU) will continue serving as the Academy’s Treasurer for a second term. As Treasurer, Yoder will continue providing financial leadership during an active period of growth for the Academy.

Newly elected board members will add new perspectives and experiences to the board, including science policy, human-technology interaction, community engagement and communication, implementation science, and leadership of national programs. They include Amanda Boyd, Executive Director of Native American Programs and Professor in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine at WSU; Mary Czerwinski, former Research Manager at Microsoft Research; John Stein, former Science and Research Director of NOAA Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Center; and Judith Wasserheit, Professor Emerita of Global Health, Medicine, and Epidemiology at the University of Washington.

“We’re proud to welcome these four outstanding scientists to the WSAS board,” said Campbell. “Together, they bring deep expertise in public health, environmental science, and technology that will strengthen our ability to advance science in service to Washington state.”

Boyd was elected to WSAS in 2023 for contributions to our understanding of environmental health risk communication and advancing diversity in clinical trials. A citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta, Boyd has extensive experience working with rural and Indigenous communities across the United States and Canada. She currently serves on the Standing Committee for the Advancement of Science Communication at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

“I’m honored to join the WSAS board,” said Boyd. “Washington’s research and policy conversations are stronger when they include populations that have historically been left out, and I look forward to helping expand that representation and foster interdisciplinary collaboration across the Academy’s work.”

Czerwinski became a member of WSAS in 2022 following her election to the National Academy of Engineering for the application of psychological principles to the design and understanding of human-computer interaction. She was a Research Manager of the Human Understanding and Empathy group at Microsoft Research, retiring in 2025. She is a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery, the American Psychological Science Association and European Alliance for Innovation.

“I care deeply about cultivating a thriving, inclusive scientific community that reflects the full breadth of disciplines and perspectives driving discovery in our state,” said Czerwinski. “As a WSAS board member, I’m looking forward to helping expand WSAS’s reach, strengthen cross-sector partnerships, and champion science that advances Washington’s people and future.”

Stein was elected to WSAS in 2023 for foundational research on chemical contaminants in marine ecosystems, including the effects of oil spills on marine system health. He is the former Science and Research Director of NOAA Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, where he directed science programs for salmon, groundfish, and killer whales and their habitats across the Pacific Northwest. He currently serves as Board Chair for the Skagit Watershed Council and previously chaired the Puget Sound Partnership’s Science Panel.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve on the WSAS Board,” said Stein. “Science in stewardship of the economy, ecology and environment has guided my career. I look forward to furthering that mission as a WSAS board member, particularly in advancing ecosystem-based management of natural resources.”

Wasserheit has been a member of WSAS since 2008. She is an infectious disease physician and epidemiologist whose work on epidemiological synergy between HIV and sexually transmitted infections has shaped prevention policy worldwide. She is Emerita Professor of Global Health and Medicine at the University of Washington, where she chaired the Department of Global Health from 2014 to 2022 and co-directed the UW Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness. She previously served as Founding Chief of the NIH’s STD Research Branch and Director of the CDC’s STD/HIV Prevention Program. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.

“Washington faces an array of complex challenges, often amid a highly partisan environment, and many of them affect the health of our communities,” said Wasserheit. “WSAS plays an important role in providing state leaders and policymakers with nonpartisan, evidence-based information to address those challenges, and I’m excited to contribute to that work alongside the board and members.”

The full Board of Directors can be found on WSAS’s website.

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