Rachel Scanza, PhD profile page

Rachel Scanza joined the Stowers Institute for Medical Research in March, 2022, as a senior science writer. She translates complex science for a broad audience to author press releases, news stories and features for the Institute.

Scanza earned a PhD in atmospheric science from Cornell University in the lab of Natalie Mahowald, PhD, where she focused on global climate modeling of atmospheric aerosols. Her work was primarily concerned with both the direct radiative impacts of aerosols on climate and indirect effects including biogeochemical cycling of trace nutrients. Scanza continued to investigate atmospheric aerosols on climate as a postdoctoral fellow at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Prior to transitioning to science writing in life science, Scanza has published two peer-reviewed first author original research papers, co-authored a dozen additional publications and has edited and rewritten many more.