hi there! 👋

I am a Data Scientist with the Childhood Cancer Data Lab at Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. My work focuses on bioinformatics, cloud computing, training pediatric cancer researchers, and building open-source tools that make data more accessible.

Outside of work, you can find me hanging with my dog Basil (named for this guy), doing deep dives into the history of the American Yiddish theater, and advocating for Jewish safety.

All opinions on this site are my own and do not reflect those of my employer.

Stephanie Spielman

Positions

  • Data Scientist, Childhood Cancer Data Lab, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation 2022–Present
  • Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Rowan University 2018–2022
  • Research Assistant Professor, Temple University 2016–2018

Education

  • Ph.D. in Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin 2016 Advised by Dr. Claus Wilke · computational molecular evolution
  • B.S. in Biology with Honors, Brown University 2010 Advised by Dr. Daniel Weinreich · CRISPR population genetics

Awards

  • President's Award for Excellence in Innovative Instructive Delivery 2021 Rowan University
  • Outstanding Dissertation Award 2016 University of Texas at Austin
  • Outstanding Teaching Award 2014 University of Texas at Austin

Background

My background is in computational evolutionary biology, specifically molecular evolution, protein evolution, and phylogenetic modeling. Since transitioning out of academic in 2022, I have worked in data science and bioinformatics, cloud computing, and bioinformatics science education. I’m into reproducibility and open science. Sometimes I regret not studying tardigrades.

You can download an abbreviated version of my CV below, or follow other links to see all the rest.

Download CV Publication PDFs → Google Scholar → ORCID → GitHub →

Selected Publications

Hawkins, A. G., Shapiro, J. A., Spielman, S. J., et al. (2024). The single‑cell pediatric cancer atlas: Data portal and open‑source tools for single‑cell transcriptomics of pediatric tumors. bioRxiv.

Shapiro, J. A., Gaonkar, K. S., Spielman, S. J., et al. (2023). OpenPBTA: The open pediatric brain tumor atlas. Cell Genomics, 3(7), 100340.

Echave, J., Spielman, S. J., & Wilke, C. O. (2016). Causes of evolutionary rate variation among protein sites. Nature Reviews Genetics, 17(2), 109–121.

Spielman, S. J., & Wilke, C. O. (2015). The relationship between dN/dS and scaled selection coefficients. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 32(4), 1097–1108.

Projects

Sam Kasten Legacy Project

A project reviving the life and legacy of my great-great grandfather Sam Kasten (1869-1953), comedian, actor, singer, and dancer on the early American Yiddish theater stage. Project features pictures, recordings, and article translations.

Visit Project →

Sam Kasten's Memoirs

Direct link to the e-book with my translation of Sam Kasten's memoirs of his life in the theater, originally published in Yiddish as serial articles in The Forverts from Sept 1946 - Feb 1947.

Read the Memoirs →

MAAZifier (currently in beta)

An AI-powered tool for speaking and writing against antizionism with clarity and confidence.

Preview access is currently restricted to approved users.

Visit the app →

Op-eds

Times of Israel May 2026
You're Missing the Point
jewish advocacy antizionism
Times of Israel October 2024
Why I Left the Democrats But Still Voted for Them
jewish advocacy antizionism antisemitism

Interviews

CNN / Instagram October 2024
Interview with Dana Bash
jewish advocacy antizionism antisemitism
Gothamist January 2021
Coronavirus Variants Threaten Billion Dollar Stockpile Of Antibody Therapy
covid-19 virus evolution
National Geographic October 2020
Who infected President Trump? This genetics tool could easily pinpoint the source
covid-19 virus evolution