63: Taylor Winkleman: Space Advocate

There's no title big enough to hold the accomplishments and aspirations for Taylor Winkelman. What has this woman NOT done? Just read her bio. Professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine. Legislative Assistant. Veterinarian. Army Sergeant. Advocate for space policy in Washington D.C. In general, Taylor works to make our world a better place for all of us. And, in typical Taylor fashion, why stop with the world? Let's bring the benefits of the UNIVERSE- the many benefits that space exploration brings us - available to all. Taylor will lead the way.

About Taylor, in her own words:

I am currently working as a consultant for health security and humanitarian outreach issues in the Washington, DC area. I previously served as a Legislative Assistant in the office of Senator Edward J. Markey, primarily working on foreign relations, military and veterans issues, science and space issues, and global health issues. I also contributed to agriculture, animal rights, and veterinary issues within the context of our office's work. I paid particular attention to humanitarian crises, international development, human rights, the outer space treaty, and global health issues such as cholera, malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. I spent six years in the Army as a Cryptologic Voice Intercept Operator, leaving as a Sergeant (E5). I led a team of 12 joint service members working a strategic mission, and a squad of 7 soldiers who worked on other missions. I deployed to Baghdad in support of OIF2. Honorably discharged, I attended Augusta State University in Georgia, double majoring in English and Biology. While there, I completed an Honors Thesis in Organic Chemistry under Dr. Thomas Crute, III, studying the synthesis of Persin (a potential breast cancer drug) and derivatives. I volunteered for the humane society and at the local Pediatric Emergency Room, worked as a freelance journalist, a veterinary technician, and an office assistant and tutor for the Chemistry and Physics Department at ASU. In 2011, I interned at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.I graduated from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine's DVM/MPH program, completing my MPH in Public Health Policy in December 2015 and my DVM in May 2016. I completed a summer externship at the Bahrain Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, summer research on Salmonella in backyard chickens in 2012, and an externship with the AVMA-GRD in Washington, DC in 2014. I went to Uganda with Veterinarians Without Borders in 2016, followed by a stint at the mEpi Lab at Massey University.