President
Joseph E. Meany, Ph.D.
Dr. Joseph Meany is a science consultant and President for The Interstellar Research Group. Dr. Meany received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from The University of Alabama, where he designed and synthesized single-molecule nanocircuits. He has 15 years’ experience in the chemical and materials sciences, and has since worked across government, academia, and private industry. His professional publications touch on nano-circuitry, instrumentation for space propulsion development, and new methods for 3D printing. He is coauthor of the book Graphene with NASA scientist, Les Johnson. With the IRG, he is a co-producer of the podcast series, From Here to the Stars. He lives in Atlanta, GA and can be found around the internet as Crimson Alkemist.
Treasurer
Lauren Randolph
Lauren Randolph is an accounting manager and Treasurer of the Interstellar Research Group. Lauren received her Bachelor’s degree from Georgia State University where she interned her junior and senior year at the Georgia Senate Budget Office during the state legislative session. She has over 10 years experience in accounting in both the private and public sectors, working for small businesses and large corporations alike. Lauren lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
Secretary
Stephen Fleming
Stephen trained as a physicist, and spent 15 years in operations roles at AT&T Bell Laboratories, Nortel Networks, and a venture-funded startup. He has 25 years of experience as a technology-focused venture capitalist and angel investor. Stephen moved to Tucson in 2017 to develop the University of Arizona’s engagement with the private sector, where he retired (2024) from the NSF-funded Center for Quantum Networks. He is an investor in over a dozen private aerospace startups, a founding member of the Space Angels Network, and is the founder and chair of the Arizona Space Business Roundtable. He maintains a consulting practice at Boostphase.com.
Director at Large
James M. C. Birchfield
International Podcast Producer and Owner of Videos, Vocals, and Adventures, LLC, James Birchfield is a Master of his field in Content Creation for multimillion dollar companies. Staying up to date on the latest trends, and managing Production teams in many different industries. James brings his unique insights to the Interstellar Research Group with the mission of inspiring or supporting the first interstellar travelers.
Director at Large
Jean E. Masterson, Ph.D.
Dr. Jean Masterson is a research scientist and a SETI Institute Affiliate. She earned her Ph.D. in biophysical chemistry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and has 12 years of experience working in the space industry. Dr. Masterson has directed a wide breadth of projects in robotic and human space exploration, specializing in the fields of In-Situ Resource Utilization and Environmental Control and Life Support Systems. In her free time, Jean enjoys hiking, having thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail in 2016, and science fiction writing. Currently, she resides in Bailey, Colorado with her fiancé David.
Director at Large
Christine Rincon, MSN, RN, CCRN, NRP
Christine Rincon, MSN, RN, CCRN, NRP, is the founder of The Space Nurse, LLC, and a dedicated advocate for Human Systems Integration (HSI) in aerospace. A Critical Care Educator, Nurse, Paramedic, and Research Fellow at ASRI, she is also a bioastronautics student at IIAS. Christine specializes in translating complex clinical realities into the functional language of engineers to ensure the human element remains central to mission design. She is committed to evolving the “human” in deep space exploration, focusing on medical readiness and ethical care standards for the next generation of interstellar travelers.