AAA Staff

AAA's staff is based at the AAA National Office in Bethesda, MD. The office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST.

Andrea Pendleton | Rachel Yablonowitz | Melissa Kraft | Carlin Bokal | Liz Kreuzburg

Andrea Pendleton, Executive Director
apendleton@anatomy.org - 301-634-7910

Andrea joined the American Association of Anatomists as Executive Director in August 1998, following 20 years in association management focusing on communications and public policy. She was Director of Communications and Acting Executive Director for the Optical Society of America, a scientific professional organization of 12,500 members. In this capacity, she was responsible for the association's monthly magazine, Web site, public policy program, membership development, public relations, awards and committees, education activities, customer service, and advertising.

Beyond her 11 years at OSA, Andrea's science/technology background ranges from working as a Laboratory Assistant for experiments on the behavioral effects of addictive drugs on squirrel monkeys to serving as Research Assistant/Editor for the Science Council of Canada. Her public policy experience includes serving as a Legislative Assistant with the Illinois State Senate and as Editor/Acting Public Affairs Director for the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Andrea holds a B.A. in Political Science from Douglass College and is co-author of a book on the social and technological implications of an aging population, as well as numerous magazine articles. She is former president of the D.C. Chapter of Women in Communications, serves on the CEO Advisory Council of the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives, and is a member of the American Society of Association Executives and the Council of Scientific and Engineering Society Executives. She lives in Arlington, VA, with her husband Alan and three Clumber Spaniels, whom they show and breed.

Rachel Yablonowitz, Meetings Manager
ryablonowitz@anatomy.org - 301-634-7910

Rachel Yablonowitz joins AAA after 4 years as a Senior Meeting Planner for a government contractor. Her clients included the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment and various other Health and Human Services agencies. Rachel's previous positions also include working in the Meetings and Programs Department at a non-profit, scientific, membership association where she helped plan and facilitate meetings all over the world. She recently earned the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation, the foremost certification program of the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry.

Rachel graduated from the University of Maryland in 2001 with a Bachelors Degree in Communication. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, painting and spending time with family and friends.

Melissa Kraft, Member Services & Marketing Manager
mkraft@anatomy.org - 301-634-7910

Melissa Kraft joins AAA after more than five years as a membership manager for the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), where her members included the doctors, nurses, paramedics, and pilots who rescue people after an accident, as well as the big manufacturers of medevac helicopters. Before her employment with AAMS, Melissa's career focused on public relations and marketing at non-profit trade associations within the DC Metro area, including the Grocery Manufacturers of America and the National Association of Water Companies. 

As AAA's Member Services & Marketing Manager, Melissa will be responsible for recruitment and retention of members, including customer service, journal fulfillment, and database maintenance.  She will also have overall responsibility for AAA's Web site and for marketing AAA and its journals.

Melissa graduated from George Mason University with a BA in English. Her personal passions include writing, cooking, photography, and spending time with her husband and daughter.

Carlin Bokal, Education & Professional Development Associate
cbokal@anatomy.org - 301-634-7910

Carlin Bokal joined AAA in September 2008 after almost eight years in Career Services at The Catholic University of America, where she served as associate director. Her responsibilities there included providing career counseling for undergraduate and graduate students and alumni, job and internship search assistance, mock interviews, and developing career-related programming.  She also spent two years in career consulting work and was an academic advisor at the University of Maryland, College Park.

 All of this experience, plus Carlin's MA/AGS in Community and Career Counseling from the University of Maryland, College Park, will stand her in good stead in the newly created position of Education & Professional Development Associate. In this role, Carlin is responsible for AAA's education-related projects, both those that currently exist and those that are still a gleam in someone's eye! Among these are AAA's Outreach Grant program, the Education & Teaching Tools component of the Web site, our Postdoctoral Fellowship and Education Research Scholarship programs, the Anatomy Educator Training program, and a mentoring program to be launched in 2009. Carlin lives in Columbia, Maryland, with her husband and two children.

Liz Kreuzburg, Membership Coordinator/Administrative Assistant
lkreuzburg@anatomy.org - 301-634-7910

Liz Kreuzburg joined AAA in October as membership coordinator/administrative assistant, supporting all staff with a special focus on membership, awards, and accounting functions.

Liz worked for seven years as membership coordinator for the Restaurant Association of Maryland. Prior to this position, she worked in the hospitality industry as a sous chef and production coordinator and spent two years as a social worker for developmentally disabled adults.

Liz graduated from Hood College with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work and also earned an Associate of Arts degree in Professional Cooking from Baltimore International College. She enjoys cooking, bicycling, and spending time with family.

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