Meet the Team

Dr. Christa Jackson - Camp Director

I am an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education in the School of Education at Iowa State University. I taught elementary and middle school mathematics and science. At Iowa State, I prepare elementary, middle, and secondary teachers to teach mathematics. Mathematics is a fun, exciting, creative subject to learn! I strive to spark students’ interest and excitement not only in mathematics but in STEM by providing them with opportunities to engage in authentic, hands-on STEM experiences. I believe it is important for students to become thinkers and problem solvers because when you cease to think, you cease to exist.

My favorite color is red, and I believe it is the BEST color in the world! I enjoy spending time with my husband, Michael Jackson, and family. I also enjoy playing games, traveling, and doing activities outdoors. My love for mathematics, problem solving, and figuring out how things work, inspired me to enter a STEM field.

I am excited about STEM InCYte Camp, and I hope you have a wonderful experience!

Ashley Delaney - Camp Staff

I am a Ph.D. student at Iowa State University in Mathematics Education. Prior to pursuing my Ph.D., I was a classroom teacher for 10 years in Iowa and Illinois. My teaching and learning focuses on young children engaging and remaining in STEM education. I particularly enjoy integrating play and problem solving into STEM education. I have always been fascinated by maps, puzzles, and the inner workings of things. Even as a child, I frequently took things apart to learn how they work or fix them. My curiosity and love of math and science drew me into STEM.

Personally, I like to craft and build projects which often includes creating items for my classroom and kids. My husband, Brett, and I have three children ages 3, 5, and 6. You can frequently find us at the softball field, biking as a family, gardening, playing outside, and cooking.

Coskun Erden - Camp Staff

I am a Ph.D. student in Mathematics Education program at Iowa State University. I worked as a mathematics teacher in high schools for 15 years in four different countries (The Philippines, Albania, Turkey, Kosovo) before attending the doctoral program. Students can understand the role of mathematics in solving the real-world problems through STEM education. So, I am excited to be a part STEM programs which makes a difference in students’ lives.

I have a daughter and a son. As a family we enjoy spending time together by playing board games, watching movies and having field trips.

Kari Jurgenson - Camp Staff

Hello! I'm Kari, and I am a doctoral student studying mathematics education. Before coming to Iowa State University, I taught middle school and high school mathematics for four years in Missouri. I love learning and exploring mathematics with children. I do a lot of work with STEM in schools and think it is such a wonderful opportunity to actively engage with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics using real-world problems and build problem-solving skills. I want to spark children's interest in STEM and their curiosity. It's so much fun!

In my free time I like to spend time outside and with family and friends. I also enjoy watching movies, listening to music, and travelling. I have been to 8 countries and 3 continents so far and hope to travel to many more.

Rabsa Naseer - Group Leader

I am from Des Moines, IA, and I am majoring in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at Iowa State University. I have been a part of STEM camps on campus before and enjoyed them very much. I have always been STEM-minded and as a child loved exploring different realms of science, from geology to astronomy to animal husbandry, I still do!

I have a huge passion for animals; I currently have three chickens, two leopard geckos, a puggle puppy (Pudgie), and five beta fish, and that list is growing. I also enjoy making art, specifically painting, and gardening both indoors and outdoors. I am an archer in training and am part of the archery club at ISU. And lastly, I collect rocks and minerals in various shapes and sizes and have way more specimens than I should!

This camp is a great opportunity for students to learn more about STEM and explore its many fields and subjects. I look forward to meeting everyone attending the camp, and I know it'll be great!

Regine Peters - Group Leader

Hi! My name is Regine. I am from Windhoek, Namibia which is in South West Africa. I am now a senior in Statistics and am a member in the Women in Science and Engineering Program at Iowa State. I am also the Vice President of the Womxn of Colour Network! I absolutely love teaching and sharing people about STEM. Since statistics sometimes does not sound too fun, I have made it my mission to show and tell people how fun it really can be. I plan on going to work after I graduate and hopefully I can find a way to combine my passion for statistics and social justice! I am very excited for the InCYte STEM camp!

In my free time I like to workout, listen to podcasts, and watch anime! I have made a promise to myself to finally get through Naruto Shippuden this summer. I’ll let you know how it goes!

Nick Rieger - Group Leader

Hi, My name is Nick Rieger, I’m from Madison, WI. In the fall, I’m going to be a 5^th year pursuing my Bachelors Degree in Mechanical Engineering. A few passions of mine include Ultimate Frisbee, where I am very involved with here at Iowa State as I was the President of the Club here for the 2017-2018 school year and have been on the Executive board for the club since then. I am also very passionate about snowboarding, something I have loved to do since I was in middle school. I also FreeBord in my spare time. FreeBording is a type of Longboard but has swiveling wheels on the bottom which makes it ride like a snowboard. I have known I wanted to be an engineer since I was a young kid. After graduation, I plan to head back home to Madison and work as a Design Engineer for a luxury kitchen appliance company.

Sam Upah - Group Leader

I am a third year student at Iowa State studying to become a high school English teacher when I graduate. I've always loved reading and writing, and I will enjoy helping students develop their literacy skills when I am a teacher. I'm excited to be participating in this STEM camp because I think that it is a wonderful opportunity for the students to learn about the value of STEM. I'm from a small town called Kelley, more of a village than a town, and I knew I wanted to go to ISU from the time I was in eighth grade.

In my free time I read (obviously), watch quirky movies, travel with my brothers, and spend time outside. I'm currently learning Spanish, so in the future I will travel to Spain to study abroad. My brothers and I compete in a mud run obstacle course every summer, and that is always a treat!

Maya Walker - Group Leader

My name is Maya Walker and I am a junior biology major here at Iowa State. I grew up in central Illinois, in a town called Normal, Illinois. I am currently a member of the Women in Science and Engineering program, the Minority Association of Pre-Med Students Club, and I am a residential assistant at a residence hall on campus. In the future I would like to attend medical school and become a pediatrician because I love working with kids! In my free time, I love going to Iowa State football games, running, singing to musicals, and hanging out with my friends!