NEW FACULTY, ACADEMIC SUPPORT STAFF, and ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF BIOGRAPHIES – FALL 2006

ANTHROPOLOGY

Richard Gonzalez joins St. Lawrence University as a first-year Jeffrey Campbell Graduate Fellow who will be teaching in the Anthropology Department. He expects to earn his Ph.D. in June 2007 from the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Nadeem Hasnain joins the St. Lawrence University community as a Fulbright Scholar in Residence for the 2006-07 academic year. Dr. Hasnain is a Professor of Social-Cultural Anthropology at the University of Lucknow, India. His areas of specialization include: Religion and Society, Islam as a religious and cultural system, Lived Islam, Islam in the contemporary world, Jihad, Fundamentalism and the liberal face of Islam.

BIOLOGY

Emily Dixon comes to St. Lawrence as an Assistant Professor in both the Biology and the Chemistry departments, where she will be teaching biochemistry. She previously held a position as a postdoctoral fellow at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. Dr. Dixon earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Harvard University in 2005. Her research focuses on gene regulation in yeast. She will be teaching courses in biochemistry and molecular biology.

Kurt Bretsch joins St. Lawrence this year as a full-time General Biology Specialist. Kurt earned a Ph.D. in Marine Science at the University of South Carolina, a M.S. in Biological Oceanography at the University of Delaware, and a B.S. in Biology at Binghamton University. He conducts research in coastal marine ecology and recently completed a teaching post-doc at Coastal Carolina University.

Julie Trevett joins St. Lawrence this year as a half-time General Biology Specialist. Julie earned a B.S. in Biology at SUNY Potsdam and is currently completing her Master's degree at Buffalo State University where she worked regularly as a teaching assistant. Julie's research interests are freshwater ecology and particularly zooplankton biology.

CHEMISTRY

Matthew Skeels returns to St. Lawrence as an assistant professor in Chemistry, after serving as a visiting assistant professor for the past two years. Previously, he was a visiting assistant professor at Clarkson University, where he earned his Ph.D. in 2001.

ECONOMICS

Hans Czap comes to St. Lawrence as a Visiting Assistant Professor in Economics. He earned his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln in 2006. Dr. Czap's research focus is on growth and economic development in the international context. He will be teaching two courses of Intermediate Macroeconomics and a course in Industrial Organization.

Natalia Ovchinnikova is a new Assistant Professor of Economics. She received her PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln just a couple of weeks ago. Concurrently she earned a PhD in Mathematical Economics from Moscow State University, Russia. Natalia's research focuses on introducing social context into economic models. She will be teaching introductory economic courses, behavioral and experimental economics, and organizing experimental economics laboratory.

EDUCATION

Ying “Wannie” Wang joins St. Lawrence University as a first-year Jeffrey Campbell Graduate Fellow and will be teaching in the Education Department. Wannie plans to complete her Ed.D. this month, from the Graduate School of Education at Alliant International University.

ENGLISH

Mike Barrett is a Visiting Assistant Professor of English. Dr. Barrett earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Notre Dame and a Ph.D. in Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago. A pioneer in the spoken word movement, he is a widely published poet and essayist.

Trudy Lewis comes to us from the University of Missouri-Columbia, where she is a professor of creative writing and women's and gender studies. Trudy will be the Viebranz Visiting Professor of Creative Writing at St. Lawrence for the 06-07 academic year. She is the author of two books of fiction, Private Correspondences and The Bones Of Garbo, and is currently at work on a novel about 19th century mill workers in Lowell, Mass. Trudy will be teaching courses in fiction and women's literature.

FINE ARTS

Kasarian Dane comes to St. Lawrence from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI where he was assistant professor of painting. He received a BFA in painting summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota and an MFA in painting and drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His paintings have been exhibited in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and London.

GENDER STUDIES

Evette Hornsby-Minor comes to St. Lawrence as Assistant Professor in Gender Studies from a visiting stint at University of Minnesota and visiting at SLU. Dr. Hornsby-Minor earned her Ph.D. in Education from Claremont University in 2004. Dr. Hornsby-Minor's research focus is Black Women/mothers and ethnographic performance. She will be teaching introductory courses as well as upper division courses-- Women and the arts and Masculinity.

GEOLOGY

Jeffrey Chiarenzelli joins St. Lawrence as an Associate Professor of Geology, after serving as an Associate Professor of Geology and Department Chairperson at SUNY Potsdam. He received his B.S. in Geology from SLU in 1981, and then went on to earn an M.S. in Geology in 1983 from Carleton University in Ottawa, and a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Kansas in1989.

Carl Pierce comes to us via Texas A&M University. Carl is a first year Jeffrey Campbell Fellow and he will be teaching Geophysics in the Geology Department. Carl's research involves the use of geophysical techniques such as Ground Penetrating Radar and Metal Detection for Archaeo-forensic analysis of historic battlegrounds. His current research locations are Omaha Beach, Normandy, France and the San Jacinto Battlegrounds outside of Houston, TX.

GLOBAL STUDIES

Kallen Martin returns to St. Lawrence University as a Visiting Instructor in the Global Studies department, after spending two years here as a Jeffrey Campbell Graduate Fellow in Native American Studies. Ms. Martin graduated from SLU with her B.S. in Psychology in 1977 and went on to earn a Master’s degree from the University of California at Berkeley and from the University of Western Ontario. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Social Science at the Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs at Syracuse University.

Florence Molk will be a visiting instructor of Global Studies at St. Lawrence University. After receiving a BS in Business Economics at SUNY Oneonta, Florence Molk moved on to Binghamton University where she earned MA degrees in European labor and women’s history and sociology. She continues her academic career at Binghamton University where she is pursuing a Ph.D. in historical sociology. Her primary research focuses on policing as a salient dimension of power. Accordingly, the topic of her dissertation concentrates on divulging the concrete essence of the so-called transnational policing in a globalized world. She teaches Introduction to Global Studies and Global Political Economy. She is also an associate of the Fernand Braudel Center at Binghamton University, where she was involved with a research working group that recently finished a study of the STCWE (structural trends of the capitalist world-economy). The group was seeking to determine worldwide trends in the overall level of profit in five leading industries across centuries.

GOVERNMENT

Grace Huang returns to St. Lawrence as an Assistant Professor in Government, after serving as a visiting assistant professor for the 2005-2006 year. Dr. Huang earned her Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of Chicago. Her research focuses on Chinese Politics and political leadership. She will teach introductory courses on Comparative Politics and upper level courses on Chinese and East Asian Politics.

Michael Popovic is a Visiting Instructor in the Government Department. After completing his undergraduate studies in Germany he moved to Missouri to earn his MA. He is currently waiting to defend his dissertation at Washington University in St. Louis. Michael's research covers different areas of international relations and comparative politics. Already last semester he has taught a couple of upper division classes and will be teaching an introductory class as well as international conflict and international environmental politics in the fall.

Eric Ziegelmayer is visiting assistant professor in the Department of Government; he received his doctorate from the University at Albany. He has taught at SUNY New Paltz, Skidmore College, and the University at Albany. He is conducting research in globalization and governance in world fisheries and will be teaching International Relations and American Foreign Policy this semester.

HISTORY

Elun Gabriel comes to St. Lawrence as Assistant Professor of History after positions at SLU over the last four years as Adjunct Assistant Professor, Visiting Assistant Professor, and Coordinator of Academic Support. Dr. Gabriel earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of California at Davis in 2003. Dr. Gabriel's research focus is political violence in nineteenth-century Germany. He teaches various courses in modern European history, and he is also currently teaching in the First-Year Program.

Steven "Heath" Mitton comes to St. Lawrence as Visiting Assistant Professor in History after holding a similar position at Centenary College of Louisiana. Dr. Mitton earned his Ph.D. in History from Louisiana State University in 2005 with a research focus of U.S. foreign relations and slavery and abolition. In addition to introductory courses in U.S. history, his teaching assignments include U.S. foreign relations, the Cold War, and Latin America.

LIBRARY

Rhonda Courtney comes to St. Lawrence University as Access Services Librarian at the Owen D. Young Library, where she is responsible for the Circulation and Reserve departments. She has a B.A. in Anthropology from Binghamton University, a MALS from Stony Brook University, and received her MLS from Albany University. Rhonda also has twenty years of experience in the Information Technology field.

MATHEMATICS, COMPUTER SCIENCE & STATISTICS

Travis Atkinson is a North Country native who grew up in nearby Lewis County. He graduated from SLU in 2004 and just finished an M.S. in statistics at Colorado State University. Travis will be teaching introductory classes in both mathematics and statistics this fall.

MODERN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES

Susan Bantu comes to St. Lawrence as a Swahili Fellow in Modern Languages from Kenya where she was an African Studies Instructor at The Wangari Mathaai Empowerment Campus in Kenya, and formerly a Language Professor at New York University. She will be teaching Swahili Language and Culture while at the same time pursuing her second M.A. in Counseling and Human Development.

PERFORMANCE AND COMMUNICATION ARTS

Eugene J. Douglas is a Visiting Professor in the Department of Performance and Communication Arts. Previous to this post, Eugene was an Assistant Professor of Acting at the University of New Mexico and, before that, a Lecturer at the University of California, Irvine (where he also earned his MFA). Eugene was the Publisher/Founding Editor of Actingnow.com Magazine from 2003 to 2006 and he teaches classes that focus on basic and specialized acting techniques; Shakespearean Verse; and the methods of Michael Chekhov -- among other topics.

Ann Marie Gardinier Halstead will begin a tenure track position in the department of Performance and Communication Arts, after serving as a Visiting Assistant Professor in the department for the past two years. Ann Marie earned her MFA in Theatre Pedagogy/Directing from Virginia Commonwealth University. In addition to her teaching experience, Ann Marie has both educational and professional directing experience. She will teach Acting and Directing courses and will direct main stage productions.

PSYCHOLOGY

Makiko Deguchi comes to St. Lawrence as Visiting Assistant Professor in Psychology, having received her doctorate in Cultural Psychology at Boston College in May of 2006. Dr. Deguchi's research focus is on the acculturation process of Japanese immigrant women in the U.S. She will be teaching Introduction to Psychology and Cross-Cultural psychology.

Cynthia Lonsbary joins the St. Lawrence Community as Visiting Assistant Professor in Social Psychology. Dr. Lonsbary comes from Pennsylvania, by way of the University of Houston in Houston, TX, where she recently completed her Ph.D. in Social Psychology. Dr. Lonsbary's research interests include interpersonal relationships, social norms, human motivation and the Self. She will be teaching introductory psychology, social psychology with lab, and possibly some social psychology seminars in future semesters.

RELIGIOUS STUDIES

Kathleen Self comes to St. Lawrence as Assistant Professor in Religious Studies from a visiting position at Skidmore College. Kathleen earned her Ph.D. in Religious Studies from the University of Chicago Divinity School in 2005. Her research is on religious conversion in the Middle Ages, especially conversion narratives and representations of gender in the earlier medieval period. Kathleen will be teaching classes at the introductory level, on the history of Christianity, and a course on religion and violence.

ATHLETICS

George Repicky began coaching at St. Lawrence in 2003. He enters his fourth year of coaching Men’s and Women’s Crew. In July of 2005, after two years as an assistant coach, Repicky was promoted to Associate Head Coach and Head Men's Coach. Repicky, a 2000 graduate of Ithaca College and a member of the men’s rowing team, previously coached at Siena College and Lehigh University as well as a number of clubs and high school teams.

LANGUAGE RESOURCE CENTER

Ms. Jessica White comes to St. Lawrence as Interim Director of the Language Resource Center, after graduating from SLU in May 2005 with a B.A. in Spanish. While attending SLU, Jessica worked in the Language Resource Center for three years.

ACADEMIC SUPPORT

Suna Stone-McMasters joins St. Lawrence this fall as the Chemical Hygiene and University Environmental Compliance Officer in the Chemistry Department. Suna is a 1990 graduate of St. Lawrence University with a major in Environmental Studies/Chemistry and most recently worked in Environmental Health & Safety at SUNY Cobleskill.

Steve Alexander-Assistant Director / Instructor of the Adirondack Semester: Steve joins the semester as an alumnus of both St. Lawrence University, where he received a BS in Geology, and of the Adirondack Semester, where he was a member of the inaugural program. He has spent the last few years gaining experience and knowledge as a natural science apprentice with the Rocky Mountain Semester, an instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School, and as a faculty member at the Teton Science Schools in Jackson, WY. Steve is currently working on his MS in Science Education at Montana State University.

Marianne Dawson-Assistant Director / Instructor of the Adirondack Semester: Marianne joins the Adirondack Semester with an incredible amount of enthusiasm for the learning opportunities that such a program provides for the students. She received her B.A. in Geography and a HB in Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism from Lakehead University. After a few years in the field, Marianne’s passion for teaching brought her back to Lakehead University to complete an education degree. Marianne brings a wealth of field and teaching experience having spent the last six years working for Outward Bound Canada, Hurricane Island Outward Bound, and the National Outdoor Leadership School. This work has found her running programs throughout North America in some of the most inspiring landscapes, from the Rio Grande in Texas to the Bonnet Plume in the Yukon. When she’s not working for the Adirondack Semester, Marianne can be found in Nelson, BC substitute teaching.

ADMISSIONS

Bridget Everly: Since her graduation from St. Lawrence in 2002, Bridget has worked in independent schools as a teacher and administrator and completed her Master's degree in Higher Education Administration at Columbia. An economics major and English writing minor, Bridget also served as a Community Assistant and a peer counselor in Career Services and was involved in many other activities. She joined the staff as an Admissions Counselor in August.

ATHLETICS

Alana Alpert joins the Saint athletic medicine staff as an assistant athletic trainer.
Alana came to St. Lawrence from Finlandia University in Hancock, MI where she was athletic trainer for a program which included 13 sports, including both men’s and women’s ice hockey. A graduate of San Diego State University, she was a graduate assistant athletic trainer at St. Cloud State University and worked with the women’s ice hockey program at that school.

Miranda Lenning joins the St. Lawrence athletic media relations staff as associate director and will assist with the coverage of the athletic program and in maintaining the athletic web site. A graduate of the William Allen White School of Journalism at the University of Kansas, Miranda was a sportswriter at the Lawrence Journal World prior to joining the Saint staff. She also worked for the Dispatch-Tribune in Kansas City and was beat reporter for the University of Kansas men's basketball team for the University Daily Kansan. She also has experience in television and radio and was a production assistant for ESPN for the 2003 and 2004 NCAA men's basketball tournaments.

ADMINISTRATIVE OPERATIONS

Ben Dixon: Ben joined us in July as the University Coordinator of Economic Development. Before coming to St. Lawrence, Ben worked as a Senior Grants and Contracts Specialist at Harvard University and has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Middlebury College.

Robert Hance: Robert joined us in July as Facilities Manager in charge of the night custodial staff. Robert worked previously for General Motors as a Manufacturing Engineer and Maintenance Supervisor and has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from SUNY Utica-Rome.

Colleen Manley Colleen began working at St. Lawrence in October 2005 as Associate Director of Human Resources/Operations. Colleen previously worked for twelve years at Kraft Foods in production management and regional human resources roles. She received a Bachelors Degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Potsdam College and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree at Clarkson University.

Dan Seaman: Dan joined us in December 2005 as Director of Facilities Operations. Dan has over 26 years of experience in facilities management, 14 of those years in higher education, and was previously the Director of Physical Plant at Castleton State College in Vermont. Dan has a Bachelors Degree in Organizational Management from Roberts Wesleyan College.

Marcus Sherburne: Marcus returned to St. Lawrence as Grounds Manager in July after leaving for a year to work at Johns Hopkins University. He previously worked at St. Lawrence as grounds manager for nine years. Marcus has a bachelor’s degree in plant science and golf course management from SUNY Cobleskill.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Tony Dashnaw: Tony holds both a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science from Clarkson University. Tony comes to St. Lawrence from Clarkson University where he has been an instructor since 2002. Tony joins St. Lawrence as a web developer/applications programmer for the Information Technology department.

Chris Lafty: A member of the Penn State graduating class of 2001, with a degree in Biology, Chris worked for 4 years in the Penn State Biology Department as graphic designer and systems administrator. Chris joined the St. Lawrence University Information Technology department in December 2005 as server administrator.

Greg Matejcik: has joined St. Lawrence as the Arts Technical Support Specialist, which is a joint appointment in the Newell Center for Arts Technology and Information Technology. Prior to joining St. Lawrence, Greg worked as a Computer Systems Analyst at the National Safety Council’s Data Management Center in Syracuse, NY. Greg is also a recent alumnus, graduating from SLU with a B.A. in Music in 2004.

Mike Phillips: As the Educational Technologies Training Manager, Mike will leverage his master's degree in instructional technology, years of teaching experience in higher education and faculty development, along with course management system administration. An alumnus of Paul Smith's College and SUNY Potsdam, his experience includes designing and developing courses which address online pedagogy, interaction, and course design; authoring training manuals; and creating "survival guides" that have been used as models for similar training throughout the SUNY system.

Mark Phalen: Mark holds a Master of Science degree in Information Management from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Albany. Mark comes to St. Lawrence from AXA Equitable in Syracuse, New York where he was a lead developer. Mark joins St. Lawrence as a web developer/applications programmer for the Information Technology department.

STUDENT LIFE

Shannon Boynton: After graduating in May 2006 from St. Lawrence, Shannon worked as the Summer Sessions Residential Coordinator and joined the Student Life staff as a full-time Residential Coordinator in our Residence Life Office in August. Shannon majored in Biology, was a member of the Crew team, Habitat for Humanity, Dance Ensemble and the University Chorus. Shannon was also a community assistant for two years and served as an office assistant in the Residence Life Office.

Teresa Corbin: Teresa joins the Student Life staff as a Counselor in our Counseling Services Department. Previously, she served as Director of Student Development at Clarkson University, where she provided mental health counseling and crisis intervention to the student body. Teresa has a Master of Social Work degree from Syracuse University. Her previous experience also includes clinical social work at the St. Lawrence County Mental Health Clinic.

Sarah Coburn: Sarah began her duties as Assistant Director of Career Services and Leadership Education in July. She has a Master of Business Administration degree from Clarkson University and an undergraduate degree in business administration from State University of New York at Geneseo. Prior to coming to St. Lawrence, Sarah served as Associate Director in Career Services at Clarkson University. Clarkson University Sarah nominated and sponsored Sarah for the St. Lawrence Leadership Institute (SLLI) during 2003-2004.

Susan R. Johnson: A counselor in our Counseling Services Office, Susan received an A.S. Science for Health professions from Delaware County Community College and a Masters in Education School Counseling from Lynchburg College. Susan has worked as a therapist with Strategic Therapy Associates in Lynchburg, a prevention specialist/volunteer coordinator at the Wayne County Alcoholism Services, and visiting teacher/school social worker in Green County, Virginia.

Emily E. H. McDonnell: An August 2006 graduate of St. Lawrence University’s masters in education program, Emily is an Assistant Director in Career Services and Leadership Education. From January 2006, Emily was on our Admissions staff as an Admissions Interviewer. Previous to her St. Lawrence experiences, Emily was office manager of Togwotee Properties, LLC, in Jackson, Wyoming.

Amanda Mereau: A native of Massena, NY, Amanda returns to the North Country as Associate Director of Co-Curricular Education and Programming. She comes to St. Lawrence from Northeastern University where she served as Assistant Director of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution. With a graduate degree in higher education from Syracuse University, Amanda has experience in student activities, housing and residence life, and admissions.

Katie Protos: After graduating from Vanderbilt University with a double major in women and gender studies and communications studies in May 2006, Katie Protos joins the Student Life staff Advocates Program Coordinator. While at Vanderbilt, she was an assistant with special programming at the women’s center, a part-time women’s advocate, and a peer educator for project safe.

Colleen J. Smith: With a master’s degree in college student personnel administration from Canisius College, Colleen joined the staff as a Residential Coordinator in July. She previously served as an assistant in the Career Center at Canisius College, and intern in the student unions at the University of Buffalo. Colleen served as resident advisor during her undergraduate experience at Le Moyne College.

Matha Thornton: A recent recipient of her doctor of philosophy in higher education from the University of Virginia, Matha is our Assistant Dean and Director of Residence Life. Before her arrival at St. Lawrence, Matha served as director of student housing at Haverford College. Her experience includes director of housing and coordinator of first year residential programs at the College of Wooster, and a doctoral intern at the housing division of the University of Virginia.

Joseph A. Tolliver: Joe, dean of students at Haverford College in Pennsylvania for eight years, began his tenure as vice president and dean of student life at St. Lawrence on July 1. Joe is a graduate of SUNY Plattsburgh, where he also earned a master's degree in college student personnel administration. He earned a second master's degree and the Ed.D. from Columbia University Teacher's College. Prior to joining the staff at Haverford in 1998, he held positions at Skidmore College, Connecticut College, Trinity College, Barnard College and Pace University.

Megan-Brooke Wolfe: Megan joins the Student Life staff as a Residential Coordinator in Residence Life. Megan has an undergraduate and graduate degree from St. Lawrence University. While at St. Lawrence, she was a member of the swim team, crew team and then assistant crew coach. Most recently, Megan served as a guidance counselor at Cambridge Elementary School.

UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT

Jill Breit recently accepted a two-year half-time appointment with North Country Public Radio as coordinator of UpNorth Music, a special project the station created to record and promote regional musicians. A 1986 graduate of St. Lawrence University, Jill is a folklorist who has worked with Traditional Arts in Upstate New York since 1993.

Adam Gordon: Web designer/Content Manager in the department of Web Services in University Communications, attended Rochester Institute of Technology, where he earned a BFA in Graphic Design in 2005. After working freelance for several months, he applied joined the St. Lawrence team in February '06 and works primarily on projects related to admissions recruitment.

Mary Jo James: Having received her MBA from Clarkson University, Mary Jo came to SLU after working for nearly 10 years as a licensed Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance agent providing small businesses in the North Country with group insurance benefits. She is a native of the North Country and joined the staff as assistant director of donor relations.

Jim Michaels: Jim joined the University in January 2006 as the assistant director of parent leadership giving. In his current position, Jim works with the Parents Committee and with parents of both current students and alumni. Jim works closely with the parent volunteer group in the fund raising effort focused on parent giving. Jim retired from Johnson & Johnson in 2005 after 31 years working in various capacities within the finance organization. Jim and his wife, Mary, both originally from the North Country live in Morristown and have two grown sons.

Matthew Scafidi-McGuire: Web programmer/developer in Web Services, within the University Communications Office, earned a degree in computer science from Clarkson University. He has worked for several years as a database and web application programmer for institutions of higher learning, most recently SUNY Potsdam, and private businesses focusing on database-driven projects.

Devon Murphy Stein: Grant Writer in the Corporate & Foundation Relations
office, joined the staff in June after working as the Education Specialist at the Frederic Remington Art Museum. Holding a B.A. in English Literature from the University at Buffalo and an M.A. in Art History from Binghamton University, Devon has worked in writing, editing, and educational positions for most of her career. A native of
the North Country, she returned to the area after more than a decade in cities as diverse as Richmond, Albany, New York City and Rome.

Majken Tranby: A speech and theater major, Majken graduated cum laude from St. Lawrence on May 21, 2006 and started working in the alumni and parent programs office as assistant director on May 22. Originally from North Hero, VT, Majken was an admissions tour guide, a writing mentor with FYS, and an usher in Appleton arena as an undergraduate.

Effective August 30, 2006

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