BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Kim McCarthy
President
Kim is Brian's daughter and was born and raised in Nashua, NH with her twin brother, John. She received her Bachelor Science studying Architectural Engineering Technology at the University of Hartford. Following Hurricane Katrina, Kim decided to pursue her Masters in Architecture at Louisiana State University. A lifelong passion for the environment and an interest in disaster management led her to a second Masters in Sustainable Design from Boston Architectural College in 2014. Kim received her Architecture license in 2017. She currently works in Cambridge on K-12 educational projects. She is also a member of the Board of Directors for the NH Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council and Great American Downtown. She enjoys reading, gardening, fishing, craft beer, and watching the Red Sox and Patriots. She is teaching herself the Baritone Ukulele, and aspires to one day be on Jeopardy!
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In 2023, Kim was recognized for her work with the Foundation as a member of the Class of 2023 New Hampshire Union Leader 40 Under Forty and was selected for WZID's "20 Outstanding Women."
Rob Shaw
Vice President
Rob has had a lifelong interest in STEM from his first usage of a computer in 1968 through his work career primarily in Semiconductor Process and currently as a Technology Development Manager with Texas Instruments in Manchester, NH, supporting worldwide efforts for TI in the US, China, Japan, and Germany. He also serves on the Front Door Agency Board of Directors and the Nashua Zoning Board of Adjustment since 2006. Rob also served as the Nashua Ward 9 Alderman for one term in 2004. In his spare time Rob enjoys yoga, walking, running, skiing, and sailing along with spending as much time at the beach as possible. He resides in Nashua with his wife and has two grown children.
Mike Tabacsko
Treasurer
Born & raised in New Jersey, Mike began his 40+ year career in the Bakery Ingredients Industry in the Midwest. An assignment in New England brought him to Nashua in 1988, where he has remained rooted ever since. Mike reflects that while it wasn’t obvious to him at the time, STEM subjects influenced almost every aspect of his job. From sales proposals and contracts, to recipes and administrative technology, aspects of STEM are an embedded part of our lives, even if we may not realize it in the moment. Mike Served four terms on the Nashua Board of Aldermen as the Ward 5 Alderman. During his tenure, he served on numerous Aldermanic Committees, including as Chair of the Planning & Economic Development Committee, and Joint Special School Building Committee and as Aldermanic Liaison to the Nashua Board of Fire Commissioners, and the Downtown Improvements Committee. In his spare time Mike, along with his wife Meg enjoy bicycling and spending time with their families, especially their 3 grandchildren.
Steve Bolton
Raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, Steve attended Manchester public schools and graduated from Manchester High School West in 1972. In 1976, Steve completed his economics major at Dartmouth College He received the Juris Doctor Degree, cum laude, from Western New England College School of Law in 1981 and was admitted to the practice of law in New Hampshire that same year. Steve served the City of Nashua for twelve years as an Alderman-at-Large, twice being elected by his colleagues to the Presidency of the Board. Steve chaired the Joint Special School Building Committee for twelve years overseeing all school related construction projects. Prior to his tenure on the Board of Aldermen, Steve served on the Nashua Board of Education for five years and before that as Nashua’s City Corporation Counsel and Deputy City Corporation Counsel. Additionally, Steve has served on the boards of several local charities including Girls, Inc. of New Hampshire, Nashua Pastoral Care Center, Bridges, and Nashua Elks Crusaders Youth Football and Spirit Program. He was honored as the 2009 Pro Bono Attorney of the Year for Southern Hillsborough County. In 2016 Steve returned to City Hall to again serve as City Corporation Counsel where he continues to oversee the City Legal Department.
Gloria McCarthy
Gloria grew up in the Freetown, MA area. As a young child, she would sit out under the stars with her father picking out various constellations, trying to count the stars they could see. Her mother worked for Raytheon on the assembly line for the Apollo moon project. There were lots of discussions about the moon and outer-space and what would be found there.
Gloria and Brian met in college at UMass Dartmouth where she majored in Fine Arts and received her teaching certification. They married in 1975. She worked for nine years as a jewelry designer before moving to Nashua with Brian in 1980. After taking time off to start a family, Gloria became a para-educator at Broad Street Elementary School in Nashua. She taught for 26 years before retiring in 2021. Gloria says that later in life Brian became her inspiration. His fascination with Space, and all things Science took them on many interesting journeys. From Sci- Fi conventions, Air and Space Museums and rocket launches to watching and photographing a total eclipse of the sun. Aside from working with the Foundation, Gloria is a member of the Nashua Conservation Commission. She also served on the Master Plan Committee in 2021.
Meg Tabacsko
Born and raised in Arlington, MA, Meg has a BA in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and is employed by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) as the School Education Program Manager. Her primary responsibility is visiting area schools to educate teachers and students about the public health significance of water supply and wastewater treatment. Meg reaches more than 10,000 students each year. In addition to the hundreds of classroom presentations, she conducts teacher training workshops, creates curricula, and oversees an annual poster and writing contest. Meg has been an active member of the New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) since 1993 serving in numerous leadership roles. She is currently a member of their Youth Education, Workforce Development, and Public Awareness committees and the lead on the Kate Biedron Memorial Task Force. Meg is the recipient of the Massachusetts Environmental Secretary’s Award for Excellence in Energy and Environmental Education, NEWEA’s Public Educator of the Year, and Water Environment Federation’s (WEF) Water Champion of North America Award.
Rick Dowd
Michael O'Brien
Kim Shaw
Liz Racioppi
Liz has been associated with the arts for 20 years in the Nashua community, but STEM topics have been a passion since childhood. With an engineer father, a 20+ year career in high tech, and a niece who is a world champion domino builder, she is surrounded by STEM related initiatives of all sorts. Liz earned a BA in Management from Southern New Hampshire University which she has used in the tech field, in her business as an Elizabeth Grady skincare salon owner, and in a variety of community organizations. Between 2005 and 2014, Liz was one of the founding members of City Arts Nashua, the first commission chair for the Nashua Arts Commission, and served on the New Hampshire Creative Communities Network. She was an Advisory Committee member for Granite State Future and served on the boards of Great American Downtown and the Friends of the Court Street Theater. She was a member of Nashua Rotary West, is a graduate of Leadership Greater Nashua 2009, and is a recipient of the Nashua Telegraph 20/20 Emerging Leader Award in 2013. Liz volunteers her time with the Nashua International Sculpture Symposium and other organizations when needed. In her downtime, Liz can be found hiking, kayaking, reading, gardening, taking barre classes, and indulging her inner nerd while fine tuning her strategy and hand/eye coordination by playing Pokemon GO.