Speakers

Sierra STEM was launched in 2021 by Dr. Neal Fox (he/him), an interdisciplinary STEM educator, mentor, and researcher and an avid outdoorsman living in California’s Sierra Nevada east of Yosemite National Park.

Neal has spent more than 400 nights under the stars, including more than three months on the Appalachian Trail, over 1,000 miles of hiking west of America’s Continental Divide, and backpacking trips in over a dozen countries. He is passionate about introducing people of all ages to backpacking and outdoor adventures.

As a high school educator, “Dr. Fox” designed unique courses centered around inquiry-based, experiential learning including: Evolution, Genetics, & Ecology; Data Analytics; Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology; and Advanced Topics in Biology. In the classroom, Dr. Fox was known for designing immersive weeks-long labs and projects that engaged students in creative project-based learning experiences.

Before becoming a high school teacher, Dr. Fox spent a decade doing research and teaching in academia. His scientific research focused on models of spoken language in humans, including computational, neurobiological, and cognitive models of speech perception and production. He earned his B.A. in Cognitive Science from the University of Virginia, his M.S. and Ph.D. in Cognitive Science from Brown University, and was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. His research and training were funded by fellowships from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and Brown Institute for Brain Science.