Andrea Stith is the director of research development at the Khoury College of Computer Sciences at Northeastern University. She received her doctorate in biophysics from the University of Virginia. Since graduating in 2000, Stith has worked in science policy and research administration at various non-profits and universities, including the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. She has had fellowships at research institutions around the world; Stith was an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow in the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs at the National Science Foundation, a German Chancellor Scholar of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation at both the Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany and the Ludwig Maximillian University in Munich, Germany, and a Research Fellow at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, China. She has years of experience directing research and educational development, first as assistant director for interdisciplinary education at the University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute, and then as director of research development for science and engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In addition, Stith is currently on the Board of the American Friends of Alexander von Humboldt University.In her role at Northeastern, she focuses on securing larger and more diverse grants to help Khoury College and its faculty grow. As a graduate student, Stith developed a passion for science and higher education policy. Ever since, she has aimed to help maximize the positive impact of scientific research and training on society. She believes computer science is critical for the future of the practice of science, the development of technology, the evolution of the foundations of knowledge, and the betterment of society. She is thrilled to play a small part!