Regina Ayala Chavez

I have always been fascinated by physics, climate change, education, and equity. These interests have resulted in a wide-ranging educational and professional career. I have a bachelor’s degree in physics, a master’s degree in engineering, and in 2024 I completed a Ph.D. in STEM education at NC State. My early educational experiences honed my skills with quantitative analysis, and my journey through the Ph.D. introduced me to qualitative research.

I am originally from Mexico and moved to the U.S. in 2017. I identify as a Latina and I am fluent in Spanish and English. Perhaps not surprisingly, some of my favorite projects at Catalyst are those that include Latin/Hispanic populations. Since joining the team, I’ve honed my qualitative skills by collecting data using a number of Latin-inspired methods such as pláticas and sobremesas, and through other story-based methods. My work has been published and presented in multiple journals and conferences across the science education and communication community. I joined the Catalyst team in 2022, as I was finishing my dissertation, and I am now a full-time Catalyst team member.