Michael Scherrer is a jack-of-all-trades whose curiosity has led him to establish a foundation in research, data analysis, and design. He began his career in Biology while working as a plumber and general contractor in New York, after realizing during a botany course that all the little circles under the microscope were plumbing pipes and solar panels. Michael received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin for his research into the evolutionary determinants of protein structures. There, he learned a love for teaching the Biostatistics labs, where he took pride in helping terrified undergraduates conquer data sets.

Data Science Fellow @ Created parkpic.us, a web application to predict the best photo opportunities within US National Parks. The application is built using Flask, pandas, and jQuery running on an Ubuntu AWS instance. Utilized the Flickr API and Python to collect and store over 65,000 photo records in a MySQL backend and constrained the image search using National Park Service GIS park boundary records. Applied the DBSCAN clustering algorithm using scikit-learn to determine photo opportunities from the geolocations of photos within each park. Used natural language processing of photo tags to describe the photographic opportunities at the predicted park locations. From September 2015 to Present (4 months) Greater New York City AreaStatistics Author @ Developed 22 interactive questions for the statistics program within a new HTML5 online learning platform. Authored dynamic data sets and narratives to add variation to the statistics questions. Predicted student misconceptions in approaching statistical problems and provided feedback to guide students to the correct answer. Provided peer review and quality control of content from other authors to ensure pedagogical consistency and content accuracy. From June 2015 to August 2015 (3 months) Austin, Texas AreaMarket Development Biologist @ Showcased the customer value propositions of Sapling’s online biology homework products to college professors through ~20 webinars, ~100 one-on-one virtual presentations, ~ 12 nationwide campus demonstrations and ~3 biology conferences. Authored targeted marketing campaigns reaching ~25,000 potential customers to generate demand among college biology professors in the United States and Canada. Provided training to the sales team on effectively communicating the value of our biology homework products during sales calls and email pitches. Collaborated with inside and field sales teams in strategy planning to identify opportunities and move new business through a multi-million dollar pipeline. From November 2014 to June 2015 (8 months) Austin, Texas AreaBiology Technology TA @ Partnered with program manager to design, build, and launch a beta trial consisting of 14 biology professors of Sapling’s new online homework product. Provided support and guidance to 10 question authors based on content gaps and customized the homework assignments for each professor in the trial. Partnered with developers and scientists to develop 6 new inquiry-based interactive activities to help students learn challenging biology topics. Conducted 43 interviews and 4 surveys of the professors and their students during the trial period to validate the market fit of the biology product and effectiveness of the content. Led team in the development of standard processes for executing and delivering a beta trial. Designed and built a project management tool in JavaScript to communicate priorities and set deadlines to the Content Team to ensure on time delivery of custom assignments to beta professors. Ensured 14 professors had positive customer experiences by providing ample technical support. This was Sapling’s first beta launch, which received a net promoter score of 27%. From June 2014 to November 2014 (6 months) Austin, Texas AreaSales Biologist @ Conducted market research through consisting of 18 hour-long professor interviews, to gather feedback prior to launching Sapling’s new online homework product. Compiled data to inform product development and validation, the outcome of which was the movement toward beta trials for a new biology product. From January 2014 to June 2014 (6 months) Austin, Texas AreaBiology Author @ Developed 100+ interactive questions for Sapling’s online learning program, which targeted introductory biology students. Part of the authoring consisted of predicting student misconceptions and providing feedback to guide them to the solutions. Provided peer review and quality control of content from other authors to ensure pedagogical consistency. From September 2013 to June 2014 (10 months) Austin, Texas AreaResearch Assistant @ Implemented statistical and bioinformatics algorithms by authoring customized software tools and curating large genomic and proteomic data sets. Examined underlying causes of evolutionary rate variation of proteins within the context of their three-dimensional structures across numerous species using computational and statistical methods. Research resulted in three science journal publications and completed dissertation. From August 2007 to August 2013 (6 years 1 month) Austin, Texas AreaTeaching Assistant @ Designed and taught lab courses, centered on Biostatistics, to an audience of 90+ college students for seven semesters. Authored laboratory exercises, using created data sets, to guide student through the foundations of statistical analysis by teaching students how to write code, apply analyses, and interpret the results using computer software. Collaborated with a team of 6 instructors to redesign Biostatistics coursework and online resources for two additional semesters for the purpose of course restructuring. From January 2008 to July 2013 (5 years 7 months) Austin, Texas AreaMicrobiology Lab Assistant @ Prepared the weekly media for an undergraduate microbiology course and organized the laboratory materials prior to the lab sessions. From August 2006 to May 2007 (10 months) Research Assistant @ Purified and characterized kinetochore proteins from the yeasts S. cerevisiae and C. albicans using molecular cloning techniques. Research resulted in a science journal publication. Presented scientific findings to faculty and students during a research symposium and an undergraduate poster session. From January 2006 to May 2007 (1 year 5 months) Contractor / Handyman @ Established a successful handyman business to support myself while going to college based solely on reputation, a smile, and a handshake. Maintained 5 rental properties throughout the area and provided painting, plumbing, carpentry, and landscaping services to new clients. From June 2004 to May 2007 (3 years)

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Cell and Molecular Biology @ The University of Texas at Austin From 2007 to 2013 Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Biology @ State University of New York at New Paltz From 2004 to 2007 Associate of Science (A.S.), Liberal Arts @ State University of New York at Delhi From 2001 to 2004 Certificate, Plumbing, Heating, and Pipefitting @ State University of New York at Delhi From 2001 to 2004 Michael Scherrer is skilled in: Data Analysis, Statistics, Research, Science, Bioinformatics, University Teaching, Evolutionary Biology, Public Speaking, Computational Biology, Python, Adobe Photoshop, Teaching, Molecular & Cellular Biology, Plumbing, Heating