Staff Bios

You may also view bios for emeritus Scout staff.

Edward Almasy

ealmasy@scout.wisc.edu

608.262.6606

Director

After publishing his first shrink-wrapped software package for the original Apple ][ at the tender age of 18, Ed spent most of the next six years tinkering with photons before being sucked into the Internet vortex in 1987. Since then he has been involved in various Internet-related ventures and high-tech startups before finally ending up herding virtual cats at Scout. When not sitting in front of a computer and/or pontificating on novel new ways to use the Internet, Ed can often be found boating, snowboarding, writing and playing and dancing to music, or maybe just enjoying some of Wisconsin's finer exports in the great outdoors.
Rachael Bower

bower@scout.wisc.edu

608.262.6587

Director

Born in NYC and having spent most of her life east of the midwest, Rachael moved to Madison in 1995 to work for the Trace Center at the University of Wisconsin. After many years in Wisconsin she has finally learned to appreciate domestic cheese, fish icing, the true meaning of the phrase "wind chill factor," and her uncle Luke's hotel in Mexico. With a background in communications and library science, and having gone from academia to Internet-startup-land and back again, she brings strong project management, organizational, and fundraising skills to Scout. It also doesn't hurt that she has a wicked sense of humor and the ability to throw a fabulous dinner party with less than a day's notice. When not at Scout she spends her time practicing yoga and barre, knitting, reading way too many murder mysteries, and hanging out with friends, her fabulous family including her talented brother Isaac, and her wonderful husband Iain.
Kendra A. Bouda

kbouda@scout.wisc.edu

608.265.9453

Metadata and Information Specialist

Kendra is metadata and information specialist with Internet Scout Research Group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She holds her MA in library and information studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a MA in arts management from Columbia College Chicago, and a certificate in artifact collection care from the University of Chicago. Prior to joining the Scout team, Kendra taught as adjunct faculty at Columbia, instructing arts management and business writing courses, and served as acting collections manager of Columbia’s fashion study collection. Kendra has a strong interest in the openness movement, particularly as it pertains to cultural objects and datasets that have the potential to help realize positive change in people’s lives.
Corey Halpin

chalpin@scout.wisc.edu

608.262.6608

Software Engineer

As a tender young undergraduate at UW-Madison, Corey studied electrical engineering and computer science with an emphasis on processor design. This lead naturally to a stint at the Forest Products Laboratory where he helped build robots that squished samples of building sealant while being outside. From there, Corey mastered science and then doctored philosophy in the department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology. His research used computer modeling combined with field data to examine trade-offs between growing space efficiency and species diversity among different silvicultural systems, and to elucidate the long-term developmental trajectory of northern hardwood forests subject to natural disturbances. He also enjoys hunting 4+ leaf clovers, teaching his daughter useful phrases like 'existential angst', eating the delicious food his wife makes, revising his spam filtering system, lusting after beautiful pens, and contributing to various free software projects (primarily FreeBSD).
Emma LaSaine

elasaine@scout.wisc.edu

608.265.8042

Outreach Coordinator

Emma is a writer and editor from the Chicago Area. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, focusing on nativism and ethnonationalism in the U.S. in the context of globalization. Emma holds a BA in Creative Writing from Columbia College Chicago and has worked as Managing Editor of Habitat Magazine, Contributing Editor for HT 2.0, and Production Editor for Hair Trigger 38, Columbia's multiple CSPA award-winning anthology. In her free time she enjoys reading novels, trying out new vegetarian recipes, and engaging in rousing debates on the use of the Oxford comma.
Jady Carmichael

jcarmichael@scout.wisc.edu

Content Writer

Jady grew up in the countryside just outside the Chicago suburbs, close to the beginning of the Illinois River. An early love of musicals led her to earn a BA in theater arts from Rockford University, but after spending a few years in New York, she decided a change in direction was in order and moved back to the Midwest. Currently, Jady is working on an MS in Water Resources Management in the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at UW-Madison, and she is also a website and outreach intern at the Wisconsin Geological & Natural History Survey. When not working or studying, she spends her spare time exploring interesting places in and around Madison, playing with stationery, and attempting to declutter her apartment.
Michelle Hagenbaugh

mhagenbaugh@scout.wisc.edu

Internet Cataloger

Michelle grew up in Richland Center, Wisconsin and moved to Madison to finish her undergraduate degree in History and European Studies. After volunteering at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum for a few years, she decided to pursue a career in archives. Michelle is now a graduate student at UW-Madison in Library and Information Studies and also works on manuscript collections at the Wisconsin State Historical Society. In her free time she enjoys hanging out with her two dogs, playing the board game Firefly, and reading too many Stephen King novels.
Kristen Maples

kmaples@scout.wisc.edu

608.262.5220

Internet Cataloger

Kristen grew up in the world-famous city of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. After getting a late start as a returning adult student at Edgewood College in Madison, she received a dual bachelor’s degree in Biology and Religious Studies in 2017. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Information Science at UW-Madison, while working at Scout. Kristen retired from roller derby in 2016 after playing for a few years as Trixie Hobbitses and, later, AzKabam with Madison Roller Derby. She loves tattoos, reading, and outdoor activities, such as long-distance hiking and camping. A passionate advocate for social justice and LGBTQ+ rights, Kristen does volunteer work with various UW-Madison student groups.
Sarah Hill

shill@scout.wisc.edu

Administrative Assistant

Sarah grew up in Glenview, IL, a suburb just northwest of Chicago. Her passion for social justice and research led to pursuing Bachelor of Arts degrees in sociology and communication science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she is currently a junior. She gets the most joy spending time outside, whether that be biking in Madison's parks, canoeing on Lake Mendota (when warm enough to do so!), or traveling as much as possible to far flung natural wonders to backpack. When the cold gets in the way, she enjoys practicing yoga, hanging out with her super cool cat Gio, and jamming to funky tunes. She hopes to do her part to make the world a more compassionate, humane place.
Andrew Bennett

abennett@scout.wisc.edu

Web Developer

Andrew is from Brookfield, Wisconsin and is a first-year computer science student at UW-Madison. He enjoys playing old video games, drawing, starting (but never finishing) various programming projects, and cooking.
Debra Shapiro

Contributing Editor, The Scout Report

Debra Shapiro was an Internet Cataloger at Internet Scout from 1998 to 2000, and is now an instructor at UW-Madison's School of Library and Information Studies, where she teaches in the areas of organization of information, online searching, and web design. Prior to coming to Scout, Deb was a photo archivist, and her undergraduate degree is in art history, so she contributes reviews of art, museum, and pictorial web sites to The Scout Report. That undergraduate degree in art history prepared Deb for about 15 years of restaurant work, which gave her a long-lasting love of cooking and recipe development, that you can read about on her blog, Deb's Lunch.