Wendy L. Taylor, Assistant Director, Mars Education Program, Ph.D., Geology, University of Rochester, NY

Dr. Wendy Taylor is Assistant Director of Arizona State University's Mars Education Program at the Mars Space Flight Facility, School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE). Dr. Taylor also serves as the Education and Outreach Specialist for ASUs Center for Meteorite Studies and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera program. In addition to teaching planetary science, she assists with the creation of new Standards-based curricula and is currently developing several public exhibits that highlight the exploration of the Moon, the study of meteorites, and the latest geological discoveries on Mars. Before joining the ASU Mars Education team, Wendy worked as the Curriculum Specialist and Program Developer at The Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois. She developed educational materials, including teacher guides, experience boxes, docent training materials, and on-line interactive pages for the Museums new permanent exhibition, Evolving Planet. Working as a liaison between education and research, Wendy developed and led a variety of educator workshops, family programs, and geology field trips.
Dr. Taylor has a Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral Degree in Geology and is a specialist in the areas of invertebrate paleontology and taphonomy (fossil preservation). She has nine years of experience as a collections manager, having curated some of the largest fossil collections in the country. In addition to her collections and education experience, Wendy has worked as the Project Manager for dinosaur hunter and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, Dr. Paul Sereno (University of Chicago). She helped manage Dr. Serenos research program, supervised his fossil preparation laboratory, and coordinated dinosaur expeditions to Africa, China, Tibet, and India. She has also served as a lead educator for the nonprofit science education organization Project Exploration teaching hands-on science classes and leading field-based experiences for minority youth and girls.