About Codon

Drawn to education while earning her PhD in Genetics and Molecular Biology at UC San Diego, Alexa pursued teaching opportunities in a range of college biology courses and and a postdoctoral position in biology education research at the University of Washington. In that role, she used surveys, interviews, and round tables to gather input from biology educators around the country on faculty priorities for college curricula. She’s dedicated to helping students develop the skills and expertise they’ll need for modern careers, and she believes that begins by setting priorities in the form of measurable learning outcomes that emphasize higher-order thinking and competencies. At Codon, Alexa is building the tools she wishes instructors and students already had: ones that make evidence-based teaching and learning practices more doable and effective (and perhaps even fun). In her down time, she can be found dancing with her two darling children, going on urban hikes, and doing crossword puzzles.

Ashley grew up as a first-generation college student from a low-income household, which gave her an early and lasting appreciation for how much the right support can change a student's trajectory. She earned a PhD in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from CU Boulder, and did a postdoc as a Jane Coffin Childs Fellow at UC Berkeley before making a deliberate pivot into biology education research, where she got to dig into why some students thrive in science and others don't. She joined Codon Learning at the very beginning and has had a hand in basically everything since. As Director of Customer Experience, she works closely with instructors to design courses that actually work for students, and collaborates with product and content teams to keep making the platform better. Outside of work, Ashley is an avid reader (primarily via audiobook, despite being fully literate). She keeps busy with her two kids, serves as emotional support human for her setter doodle Sammy (a role that is almost certainly mutual), and is the very lucky beneficiary of whatever her husband Mike is cooking.

Ben became interested in evidence-based teaching after attending the first public Summer Institute on Scientific Teaching. A few years later, he collaborated with Jo Handelsman, Sarah Miller, and Chris Pfund to publish the seminal book on the topic—Scientific Teaching. This foundation inspired him to start Codon Learning, whose aim is to help faculty and students apply evidence-based teaching practices to help all students be successful. Prior to Codon Learning, Ben founded Roberts and Company, a STEM publisher, which was acquired by Macmillan Learning. He served as VP of STEM for two years following the acquisition. When not in the office, Ben loves to read (mostly science fiction), spend time with Beau (a magnificent Australian Labradoodle), and train for Ironman 70.3 triathlons with his daughter.

Carter brings nearly 30 years of experience in higher education publishing and technology, having worked across sales, marketing, editorial, and sales leadership roles at Pearson, Morton Publishing, Macmillan, and Top Hat. He has a deep understanding of how faculty and institutions make decisions around educational content and technology. Carter's approach is consultative and relationship-driven — focused on understanding what instructors actually need and finding solutions that genuinely fit. Outside of work, he can be found in the mountains with his family or in the garage attempting to learn carpentry — with mixed results — while his trusty dog Sunny supervises. He's based in Denver.

Diana spent 16 years teaching biology and environmental science at a small, liberal arts institution. As a non-tenured instructor her main role was to support students' transition into college and their success in intro courses. To do so, she worked to implement evidence-based teaching practices, and focused on increasing engagement, active learning, and intentionally teaching effective study skills. She is most interested in strategies that nudge students to think deeply, and course design that helps students of all backgrounds thrive. Diana experienced the positive impact of Codon Learning by using the platform in her own classes, and is excited to support and facilitate the use of Codon for others. Diana holds a Master’s degree (focus in ecology) from the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she studied migratory songbirds in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore (Bayfield, WI). Prior to teaching full time, she has various experiences in ecological restoration and monitoring, science outreach, and environmental education. Outside of work, she prioritizes family time with her husband and two kids, which often includes long walks and park outings, kids’ activities, or attending local sporting events in their hometown of Madison, WI.

Erin started her journey in STEM education as a starry-eyed Ecology undergrad at the University of Georgia. With her love of ecology – she went on to graduate school, earning a MAT for Secondary Science Education, and teaching high school environmental science. Erin’s career path included working as Diversity Programs Coordinator for the Ecological Society of America, in the Adirondacks as an environmental educator with SUNY-ESF, and as coordinator for a dual enrollment program at Eastern Maine Community College. In her previous position at UMaine, Erin worked with discipline-based education researchers, investigating and implementing data-driven professional learning for STEM instructors, focused on evidence-based teaching practices. She also coordinated the Learning Assistant program and was Managing Editor for the journal CourseSource. When not working, Erin loves being outside in any capacity – hiking, backpacking, camping, paddling, and wandering. She lives outside of Bangor with her husband, Mathew, and their dogs Fern and Gunner.

Hope is no stranger to STEM education and ed tech. She earned her BS in Physics and Secondary Education, and then spent the next 8.5 years at Sapling Learning and Macmillan Learning wearing various hats ranging from content developer and tech support to software engineer. In 2020 she completed her MS in Computer Science from Georgia Tech. Throughout her education and career, she was often one of very few women among her peers, so she fully understands the fear and frustration felt by many students from underserved backgrounds in STEM. Hope came to Codon Learning to help design and build a reliable and scalable application that delivers quality content to our students and instructors and enables all students to help themselves deepen their understanding, learn study skills in a meaningful way, and achieve a high quality and deeply rewarding education in STEM. Outside of work, Hope enjoys roller skating, doing yoga, spending time outside, and hanging out with her cat, Morley.

Jasmine started her biology career as a malaria researcher, interested in all things mosquitoes and parasites. She took this esoteric passion and ultimately earned a PhD in microbiology from Colorado State University. However, during graduate school, she found and fell in love with science education research. She decided to transition away from the lab and took a position as a post-doctoral education researcher and content editor for an edtech company. She researched different methodologies to validate an online performance-based assessment measuring undergraduate graphing competencies. After her post-doctoral fellowship, she worked as an assistant teaching professor but never lost her passion to make an impact on science pedagogy. She is excited to help instructors use evidence-based tools and technology to improve their curriculum and teaching. When she isn't talking animatedly about science pedagogy and science education research, you can find her reading, hiking, climbing, doing yoga or working on an (overly) ambitious pottery project in her current home of Washington, DC.

Jeff is our lead project developer, focused on refining the Codon user interface, with an emphasis on accessibility and intuitive user experiences. He started his journey in software engineering by making productivity apps for writers, including Write or Die, a tool designed to compel the user to keep writing, well-regarded by time-constrained dissertation authors and NaNoWriMo participants. Prior to joining Codon he worked for Macmillan Learning, building a central login portal and working alongside a11y specialists on an initiative to create a unified accessible component library. He loves all animals, especially peculiar ones, when he’s not bathed in the light of a screen you can find him Onewheeling around town, looking for bats under bridges and feeding the turtles in the UT turtle pond. Originally from Minnesota, he has long-since fled for the warmth of Austin, Texas where he is involved with the local immersive art and experimental music scene.

Jenny is an Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at the University of Colorado - Boulder. She did research in developmental neuroscience and genetics before turning to education. Her work in biology education has been varied and extensive, including developing concept assessments, providing professional development for faculty, and elucidating the impacts of active engagement on student learning. She is a founding member and a former president of the Society for the Advancement of Biology Education Research (SABER). Jenny was drawn to Codon Learning because she is passionate about changing the paradigm for undergraduate science education by convincing faculty to use evidence-based practices. When not at work, she loves to be outdoors hiking and biking, tending her organic vegetable garden, and enjoying her many farm animals, preferably in the company of her husband and three sons.

After completing a B.S. in biochemistry from the University of Texas - Austin, Katie spent eight years as an academic researcher. She worked on projects spanning developmental biology in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, evo-devo in the three-spined stickleback, and membrane trafficking in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Katie ultimately earned a PhD in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California - Berkeley while investigating the intersection of DNA repair and gene silencing in yeast. While in graduate school, Katie realized her love for teaching and mentorship. She transitioned to full-time science education and has held faculty positions at UC - Berkeley, the University of Washington, and Fort Lewis College. Katie also spent 2 years as the Science Content Manager at a small K-12 EdTech company called Actively Learn, which was acquired by McGraw Hill in 2021. Katie loves crafting science content that gets learners stoked about biology, creating inclusive science curricula, and building innovative solutions to meet the needs of a rapidly changing higher ed landscape. Away from her computer, you can find Katie relishing the natural beauty around her home in Durango, CO, while trail running, writing songs, or trying to identify a bird with her Merlin app.

Kelly has had a lifelong passion for biology! During her undergraduate years, she was a scuba diver for the Seattle Aquarium and spent many Saturdays recording the behavior of California Sea Otters during their Otter Watch program. She graduated with a BS in Biology and went on to teach high school (International Baccalaureate) biology and chemistry. While teaching, she pursued a master’s degree in teaching and learning. With a strong curiosity and a passion for research, she earned an MAT in biology at the University of Washington. This experience solidified her desire to pursue a Ph.D. in Molecular Cell Biology. After teaching for 17 years, she transitioned from high school teaching to research on the parasite Giardia lamblia, focusing on a group of protein kinases with small amino acid residues in the ATP binding pocket. During her time at the University of Washington, she crossed paths with Scott Freeman and eagerly participated in several of his biology education projects, reconnecting with her original love for teaching and learning. Upon completing her Ph.D., she was fortunate to join Scott Freeman as his postdoctoral researcher. As part of an NSF grant led by Scott, she worked with him to develop lesson level learning objectives for introductory biology courses. She’s excited that the learning objectives that emerged from the study are now being used in Codon’s Introducing the Life Sciences course. When an opportunity to join Codon Learning presented itself, she jumped at the chance. She is excited about assisting instructors who aim to enhance their students' metacognitive skills, significantly improve study habits, and enhance the overall learning experience.

Laura’s first loves were water and field work, which led to research in the microbial ecology of rivers, groundwater, oceans, and even indoor air. During her graduate work she found a passion for teaching and increasing science literacy across the population. Laura taught for almost two decades in a variety of biology and science courses, mostly at the community college level. She came to understand how the educational experience is not only shaped by instructor choices during the semester, but also by the students’ prior experiences. She became an advocate for supporting the full diversity of students through evidence-based, inclusive practices. Laura still loves the water and can be found rafting, kayaking, or hiking near anything larger than a mud puddle. If that’s not an option, she will either hit the yoga studio or curl up with cats and family for some good fiction reading.

Paul is a seasoned executive, consultant, and educator with nearly 30 years of leadership experience in the education and technology sectors. He is known for driving top-line sales growth, developing high-performing teams, and fostering collaborative, growth-minded cultures. He is the Principal and Founder of Surface Consulting, LLC, an education-focused firm supported by Ph.D. advisors from Saint Louis University, and an Adjunct Professor at St. Louis Community College, where he teaches Business Administration and Economics. Paul’s earlier roles include sales, management, and market development positions at Cengage, Pearson, and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. At McGraw-Hill, he managed a multimillion-dollar product line in Computer Information Technology and signed the current top revenue-generating program at the company (In Practice by Randy Nordell). At Macmillan Learning, he advanced through multiple leadership roles in sales and marketing, ultimately serving as Vice President/General Manager of the K–12 business and leading national training, inside sales, and high-level sales teams for its SaaS platforms. His work has also included international advisory engagements in Canada, China, Portugal, and the U.K., as well as authoring a soft-skills business course for IREX in Erbil, Iraq in 2024. Paul holds a B.A. from Marquette University and an M.B.A. from Saint Louis University. Outside of work, he enjoys biographies, exercising, podcasts, The Economist, collecting university paraphernalia, and spending time with his wife, Renee, their three boys—Luke, Pierce, and Gabriel—and their charming dachshund, Simba.

Stephanie is no stranger to making quality content for college students. She worked in production for 25+ years alongside Kathi Townes, producing college level math and science textbooks. Her primary task was technical (mathematics/calculus/science) typesetting, but she has performed almost every aspect of book production. She excels at developing processes to make large tasks more manageable and loves a good binder with colored tabs for organization. She graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a BS in Kinesiology. When Steph isn’t working she is most likely outside tearing around on her mountain bike, skiing in the backcountry, hiking / camping / backpacking in the beautiful state of Colorado with her dog Moo and her camera, or building something in her woodshop.

Steve brings a passion for teaching and learning, partnering with instructors and students to find better ways to achieve their goals. With over 30 years of experience in higher education, he has held various sales roles at Pearson Education, Cengage, and Macmillan Learning — consulting at colleges and universities across the Midwest, Canada, and the Western U.S. Steve holds a BS in Medical Technology with an emphasis in Microbiology from Michigan State University. When he's not on campus, you'll find him exploring the hills and rivers with family and friends near his home in Western Montana.

Vance started his career as a software engineer at eCollege in 1997, where he wrote the first assessment engine for their learning management system. As eCollege grew, Vance honed his skills, focusing on developing the application as a service platform to deliver learning concurrently to millions of students. After becoming CTO, he helped IPO and sell the company to Pearson for $477m. As SVP of Core Platforms at Pearson, Vance played a leadership role in creating a unified platform strategy for postsecondary technologies and in driving the organizational shift to Agile software development. Most recently, he served as CTO for McGraw-Hill Education. Vance holds a BA in Mathematics from Pomona College and a Juris Doctor from the University of Colorado School of Law. He believes that a good education creates opportunities. At Codon Learning, he is passionate about merging technology and content to transform the education experience and bring about greater opportunities for students. When not in the office, Vance is can often be found exploring new wire-framing software or running up mountains with Daisy, Codon Learning’s canine director of workplace wellbeing.