Steven Kreutzer, Ph.D.
Dr. Kreutzer earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Union College in Schenectady, NY and the Masters of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in Computer Science from Northwestern University. At Northwestern, he performed research in both Software Engineering and the applications of Graph Theory to Fault-Tolerant Computing.
Prior to joining Bloomfield College, Dr. Kreutzer had a successful twenty-five-year career in industry working for AT&T Bell Laboratories, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and AIG. Early in his career, he worked on software projects as a programmer, business analyst, architect, and project manager. Later in his career, he led internal consulting groups that helped turnaround troubled projects and organizations, improve business processes, and perform technology due diligence on potential acquisition targets and strategic partnerships. In his last major role in industry, he led a software development organization that supported more than one thousand users in the U.S. and U.K. As a technology executive, Dr. Kreutzer has worked on many international projects which included working for several months in Germany and Ireland and traveling to India, Thailand, France, England, Mexico, Brazil, and Canada.
He has also revised the curriculum by adding courses in cybercrime and mobile applications development and by arranging for special topics classes to be taught in ethical hacking, electronic medical records, data visualization, and user interface design.
Dr. Kreutzer has attended many computer science conferences. He is also a member of several professional societies including the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education, Consortium for Computing Sciences in Education (CCSE), and the Computer Science Teachers Association. Dr. Kreutzer is an editor of The Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges and the papers chair for the CCSE Eastern Region Conference.
Christie Cruse, EdD
Dr. Cruse holds an EdD in Organizational Leadership from Nova Southeastern University, an MS in Organizational Leadership from Mercy College, and a BA in Psychology from the State University of New York at Geneseo.
Dr. Christie Cruse joined the Business Department at Bloomfield College in the Fall of 2015. Prior to joining Bloomfield College, Dr. Cruse taught as an adjunct professor in the Business Department at the following institutions: Marist College, SUNY Cobleskill, Dominican College, SUNY Rockland Community College, and Thomas Edison State University. Courses taught include: Strategic Management, Ethics, and Management, Human Resource Management, Exploring Business and Management, Essentials of Management, Introduction to Business, Foundations of Leadership, and Perspectives on Education.
Dr. Cruse worked for the Walt Disney World Company for three years in the Guest Relations Department. The position focused on creating new and innovative programs to increase guest satisfaction. In addition, Dr. Cruse assisted in facilitating new cast member orientation which focused on the teaching of Disney’s culture, traditions, values, and mission.
Dr. Cruse's career included management positions at Dominican College and Rockland Community College. At Dominican College, she was responsible for overseeing the first-year program which included developing new programs and activities to increase retention. As the Director of Academic Success Centers at Rockland Community College, Dr. Cruse managed the Tutoring Center, Reading & Writing Center, and the Science Learning Center. In addition, she spearheaded the redesign of twenty-two high failure and withdrawal rate courses, revised curriculum, and developed and facilitated faculty training.
Dr. Cruse has presented at conferences in six different states on the topics of Management, Diversity & Ethics, Leadership, Decision-Making, Effective Communication, Motivation, Team Building, the First-Year Experience, and Academic Support Services. In September 2011, Dr. Cruse was chosen as a recipient of the Rockland County 40 Under 40 Award which recognizes 40 individuals under the age of 40 in Rockland County that have made a positive impact in the community and in their workplace.
Dr. Cruse volunteers at Make A Wish Foundation and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. In May 2008 and January 2010, Dr. Cruse served as a staff supervisor for the BRIDGES to the Dominican Republic Service Project. BRIDGES take groups of college students on a two-week service trip to the remote mountains of the Dominican Republic. Participants assist the rural community to improve their schools, homes, roads, and means of income.
Maryann Di Liberto, Ph.D.
Dr. Maryann J. Fogarty Di Liberto earned her A.B. degree from Barnard College, which is the undergraduate college for women at Columbia University, where she double majored in math and economics. She went on to receive her M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in economics from Columbia University concentrating in the areas of international economics and econometrics. While in graduate school, Dr. Di Liberto worked as an economic analyst at NERA Economic Consulting and taught various economic courses as an adjunct instructor at Barnard College, Columbia College, New York University, and Manhattan College. Upon completion of her PhD, Dr. Di Liberto became an Assistant Professor of Economics at Lehman College, City University of New York where she taught for the next fifteen years. In 1999, Dr. Di Liberto joined the Bloomfield College faculty and currently holds the position of Professor of Economics.
Dr. Di Liberto has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and regularly attends academic conferences where she has presents her current research. She has taught a wide range of courses in economics and statistics at both the graduate and undergraduate levels.
The courses that Dr. Di Liberto currently teaches at Bloomfield College include:
Undergraduate Courses
Principles of Economics I: Microeconomics (ECN 210)
Principles of Economics II: Macroeconomics (ECN 211)
Money and Banking (ECN 309)
Monetary and Macroeconomics Theory (ECN 311)
International Economics and Trade (ECN 305)
Graduate Courses
International Economics (ECN 505)
Economic Statistics (ECN 510)
Karen Luchka
Professor Luchka earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Bloomfield College and the Masters in Business Administration from Regis University in Denver, Colorado.
Prior to becoming a full-time faculty member in 2016, Professor Luchka taught as an adjunct professor here for several years, and spent 15 years working as an accountant within the pharmaceutical industry.
Courses taught include Principles of Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Cost/Managerial Accounting, Taxation for Individuals, Advanced Accounting II, and Corporate Taxation.
Professor Luchka is a Certified Public Accountant, with an active license in the state of New Jersey. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the American Accounting Association, and the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants, where she serves on the Student Programs and Scholarships Committee and is a member of the Accounting Educators Community.
Suhaib Obeidat, Ph.D.
Dr. Suhaib A. Obeidat joined the Department of Computer Science at Bloomfield College in the Fall of 2014 as the coordinator of the Network Engineering program. Prior to that, he held the position of Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the Math and Computer Science Department at Bennett College, Greensboro, NC.
His research interests are in the area of Wireless Networks, more specifically, in designing protocols for the transmission of human speech over wireless ad hoc networks using opportunistic cross-layer designs. Currently, Dr. Obeidat’s teaching interests are in Networking Technology, particularly the Cisco Network Administration curricula, web programming for 2and 3tier architectures, and computer programming. He takes special pleasure in tackling new topics and sharing them with his students.
Anita Pasmantier, Ph.D.
Dr. Anita Pasmantier holds a B.A. in Economics and French, an M.A. in International Economics, and a Ph.D. in International Finance, all from Fordham University. Dr. Pasmantier’s dissertation was a study of the pricing of currency options, which she presented at the Financial Management Association (FMA) Conference. She has published several scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals and continues to present her research at conferences.
In 2018, Dr. Pasmantier served as a Fulbright Scholar teaching Advanced Corporate Finance at Libera Università Internazionale degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli (LUISS University) in Rome, Italy for the spring semester.
Dr. Pasmantier was selected to be a Fulbright Specialist in June 2019 where she will remain on a roster for a three-year term and is eligible to be matched with a host institution’s project abroad.
Dr. Pasmantier began her career in the business world as the Manager of Foreign Exchange at the corporate headquarters for PepsiCo, a Fortune 50 company. After three years at PepsiCo, she accepted a position as the Manager of Foreign Exchange at the corporate headquarters for Sterling Drug Inc., a Fortune 200 company, where she worked for five years. During the years she was employed full time at both PepsiCo and Sterling Drug, Dr. Pasmantier worked on her Ph.D. degree at Fordham University.
After receiving her doctorate in 1988, she began her academic career by teaching one year as an Assistant Professor at her alma mater, Fordham University. The following year, she accepted a position at Seton Hall University where she taught for six years, after which she taught for two years at Fairleigh Dickinson University before taking time off to raise her daughter Daniella. In 2008, she became an Associate Professor of Finance at the Business Division of Bloomfield College, and in 2016, she was promoted to Professor of Finance.
Yuichiro Nishizawa
Yuichiro Nishizawa is an associate professor and the chair of the Division of Creative Arts & Technology.
Professor Nishizawa attended Rhode Island School of Design (BFA in Film/Animation/Video) and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Post-Baccalaureate Certificate and MFA in Art and Technology).
Working with the diverse population of students and like-minded peers at Bloomfield College fuels Nishizawa. He regards his position as a privilege. He is “committed to the practice of knowledge as trans-disciplinary, teaching/learning as non-hierarchical, experiential and collaborative, and education as critical reflection, liberation and social action.”
He has enjoyed teaching regularly the following classes:
- Design Thinking & Practice
- Interaction & Interface: Introduction to Physical Computing
- Process && Interaction: An Introduction
- Japanese Culture and Language
- Post-Studio: Collaboration
- Geographies of Experience
Nishizawa, born in Tokyo, is interested in the complexity of the technological influences on and beyond everyday experience. He employs a wide array of media and methods in his work and inquiry. His hope is to provide an experience that brings the viewer to questions, furthers their own spirit of inquiry, engages their curiosity, and prompts them to imagine. His innate interest in function and form, conjoined with his investigation, has also led him to pursue furniture design and fabrication.
Abraham Gomez-Delgado
Abraham Gomez-Delgado is an Assistant Professor in the Creative Arts and Technology division at Bloomfield College. He is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and performance artist born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico.
Bandleader Abraham Gomez-Delgado, of Peruvian descent, left his native Puerto Rico as a child and relocated to the US. He leads the experimental Latin music group Zemog el Gallo Bueno as well as co-leads the avant-latin jazz big band Positive Catastrophe and has a Performance Art group under the name Eje.
Gomez-Delgado is also a vocalist in his own compositions as well as in composer saxophonist Fred Ho’s Green Monster Big Band. Currently, he teaches Sound Art and production at Bloomfield College in New Jersey and is composing a Plena suite entitled Debrujo, Debrooho, debrewjo. •Recently he was awarded the New Jazz Works grant from Chamber Music America and the Doris Duke Foundation (2010). •Abraham has been awarded a Meet The Composer MetLife Grant (2010) •USArtists International Award, National Endowment for the Arts grant (2010).
Gomez-Delgado has his MFA with honors from Bard College and holds a BFA from Mass College of Art.
Peter Gordon, M.F.A.
Peter Gordon is Associate Professor of Music and Coordinator of the Music Technology Program.
Prof. Gordon attended the University of California, San Diego (B.A. Liberal Arts-Music) and Mills College (M.F.A. in Electronic Music and Recording.) He comes to Bloomfield College with a long career as a composer, producer, recording artist and arranger and his professional experience inform his teaching classes in music composition, production, and improvisation.
Gordon’s music transcends genres – it is heard in the concert hall as well as on the dance floor. Gordon has received the Obie Award for his work in musical theater and the Bessie Award for his compositions for dance, as well as grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and New York State Council on the Arts. He has also been received visiting artist grants from DAAD (Berlin) and Japan-US Friendship Commission. He has composed four operas, released numerous recordings on major and independent labels, most recently a retrospective album on DFA Records, and he has performed internationally with his Love of Life Orchestra.
GJ Lee
BFA, New Jersey City University
MPS, ITP, Tish School of Arts
GJ Lee is a multidisciplinary artist and game designer. She uses a practiced-based research approach to explore and understand complex subjects. The results mostly take on the form of games, installations, and performances. Her works and collaborations have been exhibited and played at Stedelijk Museum 's-Hertogenbosch, La Gaite Lyrique, Smithsonian American Art Museum, and The Museum of the Moving Image.
She is the co-founder of The Sheep’s Meow, an independent game development studio and community organization that focuses on making game creation inclusive and accessible. She’s co-organized and produced community-driven events such as the NJ Arcade and NYC Arcade– some of which are the largest of their kind.
She has a BFA in Painting and Drawing with a co-major in Mathematics from NJCU and an MPS from NYU Tisch's Interactive Telecommunications Program.
Courses taught:
CAT 209 - Digital Game Design
CAT 208 - Visual Design for Games
CAT 408 - Pre-Capstone: Game Development
CAT 420 - Capstone
Laura Nova, M.F.A.
Laura Nova generates site-specific action-oriented projects which invite participatory energies of neighbors and strangers alike, particularly within the urban landscapes of older adult and migrant communities. Recent commissions have included multi-year social engagement projects such as “Silver Sirens,” an older adult cheerleading squad championing healthcare, gender equity, and anti-ageism; “Moving Stories,” a senior citizen-led, storytelling-walking tour which revealed personal and geographic narratives, while exercising and expanding communal connection; and “The Crescendo Project” which used RFID technology to create an automated praise-singing machine for disabled athletes during a New York Road Runner race. In tandem with Dances For A Variable Population, Nova transformed residents and dancers alike into a moving company for the “LES Citizens Parade.” Nova has shown her work at national and international venues, including the New Museum’s IdeasCity Festival, the River To River Festival, the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Real Art Ways, Substation Gallery in Johannesburg, South Africa and the National Arts Center in Tokyo, Japan. Laura Nova is the 2019 New York City Cultural Affairs Public Artist in Residence with the Department for the Aging, working on the radio drama “Hear, here!” celebrating the dignity of older New Yorkers.
She received her B.F.A. and B.A. in art and history from Cornell University and M.F.A. from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago as a Jacob Javits Fellow. She lived and worked in London as a Rotary International Scholar and completed Associate Research at Goldsmiths College. Nova is an Associate Professor in the Creative Art and Technology program and the coordinator of Expanded Media at Bloomfield College in Bloomfield, New Jersey.
Activities done with students:
“In Practice” visit with artists, designers, musicians, game makers, animators and filmmakers in their professional working studios. Network with the professionals who work for various creative industries and arts institutions. Artist workshops with LoVid, Saya Woolfalk, Karina Aguilera Skvirsky and Liselot Van der Heigden. Studio Visits with Kenseth Armstead Jillian McDonald, Sanford Biggers, LoVid, Dannielle Tegeder, Pablo Helguera, Liselot Van der Heigden.
Lynne Oddo, M.A.
Lynne Oddo is an artist who emerged in the early 1980’s from the first college in the country to offer a Master’s degree in electronic arts. NYIT, home to the Computer Graphics Lab, Inc., was known as a research center that attracted artists and scientists from all over the world, many who made contributions to the world of new media. Lynne’s undergraduate degree in Ceramic Sculpture from the State University of New York at Potsdam gave her the opportunity to continue her studies at the University of Siena, Italy, where she developed a love of painting and architecture.
Along with many years spent dancing, it was not a far stretch to her eventual interests and practice in motion, environments, and 3D space. Lynne works in various traditional and contemporary new media, generally drawing from a synthesis of classical form while integrating the more personal, romantic notion of expression.
She has had the privilege to exhibit in numerous galleries, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, The Philadelphia Museum of Science, as well as, invited to show with artists like Manfred Mohr, Isaac Victor Kerlow, Marc Wilson, Romare Bearden, Red Grooms, Jack Youngerman, and Richard Anusckiewicz.
In 2011 she established the first 3D Motion Capture Studio in the Bloomfield College Library – still the only one of its kind in an NJ college. This studio has allowed the all students at the college to explore and experiment while grasping complex concepts in kinesiology. It is a place for any motion artist, animator, game designer, scientist, and/or athlete, to build data content for their practice.
She divides her time between NYC and upstate NY, where she has converted a 2500 sq. ft. barn into an experimental working studio.
Thomas Toynton, M.S.
Tom Toynton graduated Summa cum laude from Bloomfield College in 2003 with a BA in Creative Arts Technology: Interactive Multimedia. That same year he helped found the Game Development program, and then took over as program coordinator in 2005. He also holds an M.S. in Information Technology and is currently pursuing his Ed.D. in Instructional Technology and Media at Columbia Teachers College.
His research interests are games and systems thinking and socially constructed learning environments. Tom has combined over 20 years of training and teaching experience with his life-long love for storytelling and games and believes that the key to effective education is through compelling content and engaging classroom activities that students can personally relate to. His artistic passion is dynamic storytelling through interactive technology and game environments, and he continues to work on both modding and PnP RPG projects in his spare time.
Tom is a member of the Education SIG of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), and an advisory panel member of the Northern NJ Chapter of the IGDA. His current professional projects include the development of a board game that facilitates PnP RPG experiences, an educational board game that teaches the concept of The Commons and several game projects for the Polar Climate Change Education Partnership being funded by the National Science Foundation.
Bio Forthcoming
Karen P. Fasanella, Ed.D.
Dr. Fasanella received an Ed.D. from Seton Hall University in Educational Administration and Supervision. She received her Principal/Supervisor Licenses after participating in an Educational Administration and Supervision Licensure program at Saint Peter's University. In addition, Dr. Fasanella holds an M.A. in Literacy Education/Literacy Specialist and a B.A. in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from New Jersey City University. In addition to licenses as Principal and Supervisor, Dr. Fasanella has been awarded licenses in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, and as a Reading Specialist.
Dr. Fasanella has served as an educator and administrator in the PreK-12 setting in both public and private schools. She has also served in higher education as an adjunct professor for over 15 years. As an adjunct, Dr. Fasanella has served Manhattan College, William Paterson University, Caldwell University, and Saint Peter's University teaching pre-teaching candidates to Doctoral Candidates, serving also as Doctoral Dissertation Mentor. She most recently served as Associate Dean for Academic Success and Associate Professor at Felician University.
As principal, Dr. Fasanella created a Professional Teaching Portfolio for evaluation purposes. For her efforts, Dr. Fasanella was awarded the Today's Catholic Teacher Innovations in Education Award. Dr. Fasanella was also named Distinguished National Principal by the United States Department of Education. In addition, the National Catholic Education Association awarded Dr. Fasanella the Distinguished Principal Award.
Brandon D. Fralix
Ph.D. in English from Drew University (NJ) in 2011
Dissertation: “Cymru and the Court: The Welsh in Seventeenth Century Masques”
M.A in English from Clemson University (SC) in 2003
Thesis: “Claiming Identity: Acquiring Language in Lyly’s Gallathea”
B.A. in English from Presbyterian College (SC) in 2001
What I teach:
- ENG 203 Survey of British Literature I
- ENG 249 Advanced Grammar
- WRT 106 Analytic and Argumentative Writing
- WRT 107 Synthesis and Research Writing
I am a long time member of the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), and the Council of Writing Program Administrators (CWPA), and I regularly present at these organization's annual conferences. Much of my research is focused on the National Census of Writing, a survey of 900 institutions of higher education that asks how writing programs are taught and administered. For this work, I have received an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant and the Extraordinary Service Award from the CWPA.
Education
Dr. Nixon Cleophat holds an M.Phil (Master of Philosophy) and Ph.D. in Systematic Theology and Social Ethics at Union Theological Seminary in New York City (2010 & 2014)
Attended Harvard University and earned a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) in Biblical Studies and Political Theology (2006)
Earned a BA in English and Secondary Education at Salem State University’s Honors Program (2003)
Teaching Position at Bloomfield College
Associate Professor in Religion
Research Interests
Indigenous religions, including African Religions (West African Vudun) as well as African-derived Caribbean religions such as Haitian Vodou
Liberation theologies (Black Theology, Latin American Liberation Theology, African Liberation Theology, Womanist Theo-ethics)
Queer theory
Ecological ethics
Systematic theology
Pneumatology
Book and Chapter Publications
Recently, he has published “Vodou as the Embryo and Marker of Haitian Socio-historical Identity,” in Shackled Sentiments: Slaves, Spirits, and Memories in the African Diaspora, Eric J. Montgomery, ed. (Lanham: Lexington Books, 2019).
He has co-authored a textbook
A Critical Approaches to Religion: Race, Class, and Gender. San Diego: Cognella Publishing, 2019
He is a co-editor of two collections of an anthology
Vodou in Haitian Memory. New York: Lexington Books, 2016.
Vodou in the Haitian Experience. New York: Lexington Books, 2016.
In the anthology, he also contributed two chapters:
“Haitian Vodou: The Ethic of Social Sin & the Praxis of Liberation”
“Haitian Vodou, a Politico-Realist Theology of Survival.”
Future Publication
Dr. Cleophat relies on Haitian Vodou as a critical lens to examine the ethic of social sin and the praxis of liberation in Black Theology and Christian Realism.
Dr. Cleophat’s Likes and Hobbies
He loves light pink, baby (sky) blue, and white are his favorite colors. He loves different types of red wines as long as they are not sweet or sour. He enjoys taking long walks in the park. He is a decent cook. He finds cooking to be cathartic in times of stress and other life’s ordeals. When he is not in the classroom, he’s often home watching terrible reality tv shows.
Esther (Miller) Dillard, M.S.
M.S. Communications Science, Syracuse University, August, 1992 B.A. English, SUNY Buffalo, December, 1990
Esther (Miller) Dillard is an Associate Professor of the Communications Concentration in the Humanities Division at Bloomfield College. Before coming to Bloomfield, Dillard was a reporter and anchor in several television markets including her hometown of Buffalo, NY. Television stations she's worked for include: WGRZ-TV Buffalo (NBC), WCBS-Philadelphia, KTVU (FOX) San Francisco, and WEYI-Flint ( NBC).
Dillard also takes pride in Bloomfield seniors who present a final example of what they've learned in many of her classes with their final senior presentation called the Communications Capstone. Each capstone is a 10-minute student-produced documentary. Students research topics, interview individuals, shoot video and edit a completed production. Some of their projects can be seen on her website.
In 2017, Ms. Dillard went to Cuba with a BC student graduate to shoot and produce a mini-documentary for the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce. The documentary was on the chamber's on-going collaboration with Cuban musicians in their yearly New York Summer Festival.
Ms. Dillard has also contributed to WBGO radio as a freelance journalist with produced audio news features.
She also works as an instructor for the annual Hugh N. Boyd journalism diversity workshop. The workshop has helped high school students learn the art of journalism production every summer for the past five years.
Harry Franqui-Rivera
Ph.D. in Caribbean and Latin American History, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Masters in Military and Diplomatic History from Temple University
B.A. in History from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez
G.E.D. from the Departamento de Instruccción Pública de Puerto Rico
What I teach:
- Global History I and II
- Introduction to Latin American and Caribbean Studies
- Writing History
- Change Reform and Revolution in the Americas
Professor Fanqui-Rivera specializes in Puerto Rican, Caribbean, Latino and Latin American History focusing on the 19th and 20th centuries. Among other interests he studies the condition of Puerto Rican veterans and service members and their impact in society; the role played by military service and institutions on nation-building projects and in the development of national identities; imperial-colonial relations, race, gender, class, and nation. He's also involved in Oral History and Digital Humanities Projects and in the production of short documentaries. He has several academic articles on these topics and two forthcoming books: Soldiers of the Nation: Military Service and Modern Puerto Rico, 1868-1952. University of Nebraska Press. Fighting on Two Fronts: The Experience of the Puerto Rican Soldiers in the Korean War. Centro Press. He is a published author, public intellectual, cultural critic, and blogger. He blogs and publishes in academic and news outlets such as the Huffington Post, Centro Voices, Latino Rebels, 80 Grados, Focaal, Process: A Blog for American History, and U.S. Studies Online. He served for over a decade in the U.S. Army and the National Guard and Reserve. His academic work can be found at http://www.academia.edu/. “History is not a Walt Disney production.” HFR
Fiona (Freddie) Harris Ramsby, Ph.D.
Ph.D., Rhetoric and Composition. The University of Utah, May 2015
Dissertation: Theory in the Body: Language and Power on the Rhetorical Stage
M.A. Rhetoric and Composition. California State University San Bernardino, Sept. 2007
Outstanding Thesis Award: The Habermas/Foucault Debate: Implications for Composition.
B.A. English/Linguistics. Highest Honours. California State University San Bernardino, Sept. 2005.
What I teach:
- Writing 95
- Writing 105 and 107
- Philosophy/Writing 229: Language and Society: Western Rhetoric in Contemporary Use
- English 252: Art of Drama
- English 281: Literature, Theory, and Film
Areas of research include rhetorics of the body and performance, classical rhetorics, critical discourse analysis, ethnography of performance, and critical literacy. She also specializes in developmental writing, multi-modal writing, and exploring the intersection between pop culture and theory. Dr. Ramsby is particularly interested in conducting research with Bloomfield students, as well as collaborating with students on a new theatre project at the College. Recent publications include: "Theory in the Body: Language and Power on the Rhetorical Stage". Routledge Press. (Forthcoming 2021) With Bloomfield College students Steven Hawkins and Shammoi Brown, “I Prefer Ladies with More Experience”: Sex, Death, and the Post-feminist Demon.” Death in Supernatural: Essays on the Television Series. McFarland Publishing Company (Forthcoming Fall 2017). Also, with Bloomfield student Mubarak Muhammed, “Warning! Monster Metaphors and the Urban Black Body.” Brill Press. (Spring 2019).
NORA MCCOOK
Ph.D., English Rhetoric, Composition, and Literature. The Ohio State University, June 2017
Dissertation: "Literacy Volunteer Preparation in a Service Learning and Community Literacy Training Program: Historicizing Literacy Campaigns, Volunteers, and Schools"
M.A. English Literature. University of Delaware, May 2011
B.A. English, Minor in Music. Belmont University, May 2008
What I teach:
First Year Writing (WRT 102, 105, 108, and 109)
Intro to Professional and Technical Writing (WRT 205)
Digital Media Writing (WRT 251)
Special Topics in Writing Studies (WRT 233)
My research and teaching interests focus on social and historical contexts of writing/literacy learning and instruction. I write about language biases and beliefs, histories, and contact zones where diverse language speakers engage and transform language and literacy practices. I bring historical and sociolinguistic perspectives to my writing classroom research and teaching praxis. My research interests also include writing transfer, digital media, professional and technical writing, community engagement, and inclusive pedagogies. I urge students to engage and present their research at on- and off-campus venues, including national conferences (such as the Council of Writing Program Administrators Conference and Our Digital Humanity: Storytelling, Media Organizing, and Social Justice).
Ada McKenzie
Ph.D., Comparative Literature, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2007
Master of Arts, Comparative Literature, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2005
Bachelor of Arts, Philosophy, Columbia University, 2000
What I teach:
- Introduction to World Literature
- Caribbean Literature
- Latin American Literature
- Haitian Literature
- Major Writers of the African Diaspora
- Contemporary African American Thought
- The Harlem Renaissance: Reflections on Art and Society
- Literature of Race, Class, and Gender
Ada McKenzie Thomas is Associate Professor of World Literature at Bloomfield College. Prior to joining the faculty at Bloomfield, she was Assistant Professor of English at the College of The Bahamas. As a comparatist, she researches a variety of literary traditions, specializing in the multilingual literatures of the African Diaspora. She is the recipient of several awards, including a Dissertation Fellowship from the American Association of University Women. Recent publications include “Sankofa’s Songbirds: African American Children as Culture Bearers in Jazz-Infused Children’s Literature (Identity Quest: African Youth in Contemporary Literature and Popular Culture. London: Routledge, 2013). She is currently working on a manuscript based on her dissertation, entitled “Eleggua’s Crossroads: Creolization, Possession, and Performance in Caribbean Literatures and Cultures.” Dr. McKenzie Thomas’ background includes experience in the public humanities, as she has worked at cultural institutions including Penn Center—a National Historic Landmark Site in the Sea Islands of South Carolina.
Jeanne Nutter, Ph.D.
Ph.D, Communication, Howard University
M.A., Communication, University of Cincinnati
B.A., Speech and Theater, University of Cincinnati
What I teach:
- Introduction to Mass Communication
- Oral Interpretation of Literature
- Radio and Television
- Voice and Speech Production
- Utilizing Tablet Computers
- Professional Communication
- Public Speaking
Jeanne Nutter, Professor of Communication, is the Coordinator of the Broadcast Journalism Concentration. She has been teaching at Bloomfield College since 2001. Early in her career, she worked in the public affairs department of WNBC-TV and the advertising department of the NBC Radio Network. In 1998, working with Hagley Museum and Library, Dr. Nutter helped create an exhibit and pilot documentary film on P.S. DuPont and the African American School rebuilding program. She has collected over fifty hours of oral histories of African Americans in Delaware. This has resulted in several short films: Littleton Mitchell: Human Rights Warrior, Conversation with Luther J. Porter , Conversation with Jane E. Mitchell: African American Nurse, Conversation with Reverend Maurice J. Moyer: Civil Rights Activist and Conversation, Dr. Eugene McGowan: African American School Psychologist and Community Leader and Edward Loper: African American Painter. A Separate Place: The Schools P.S. DuPont Built, a full-length documentary, has aired on WHYY-TV and won an Honorable Mention in the 2003 Wilmington Film Festival and a Best Video Documentary Production in the 2012 Black International Cinema in Berlin, Germany. She has published Growing Up Black in New Castle County an oral history of African Americans. During 2016 she co-produced a series of six documentary films entitled Voices of the Elders: Stories of African Americans in Delaware. This project was a collaboration between the Historical Society of Delaware and WITN22 -TV. In March of 2002, Jeanne Nutter was inducted into the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame. The Delaware State Education Association awarded Dr. Nutter one of the 2004 Humanities and Civil Rights Awards. In 2015 she was awarded the James H. Gilliam, Jr Humanitarian Award by the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League and in 2016 she was awarded the Oral History of the Mid-Atlantic Region Pogue Award for outstanding and continuing contributions to oral history.
Paul M. Puccio
M.A. and Ph.D., University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Dissertation: Brothers of the Heart: Friendship in the Victorian and Edwardian Schoolboy Narrative
A.B., St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia
What I teach:
- Introduction to Western Literature
- Survey of British Literature II
- Shakespeare in Performance
- Children’s Literature
- Gothic Literature
- The Art of Fiction
- Selected Topics in British Literature (Past Topics: Threat and Peril in the British Novel; Women of Mystery in the British Novel; E. M. Forster, Virginia Woolf, and Bloomsbury; Family Troubles in Victorian Fiction)
- Senior Capstones (Past Topics: E. M. Forster, The Bronte Sisters, Jane Austen)
I regularly teach classes in British literature and Western European literature. Those might seem like very foreign subjects, but one of the key goals of my teaching is to explore how literature communicates compelling questions about our humanity and how those questions transcend time and space. My students and I explore these questions in conversation and in writing that is frequently personal as well as “academic.” At the heart of my teaching is a desire to stimulate the imagination (my students’ and my own) because the imagination gives us our capacity for innovation, wonder, and sympathy. These are qualities that enrich our careers, our lives, our relationships, and our world. My publications include articles on the British school novel, contemplative learning and teaching, composition pedagogy, and music theatre; my current research focuses on British children’s literature. As Holley Professor of Applied Ethics, I organize lectures and forums about ethical issues across the work and life of the college.
Laura Warren Hill
Ph.D., US and African American History. Binghamton University, 2010
Dissertation: Strike the Hammer While the Iron is Hot: The Black Freedom Struggle in Rochester, NY, 1940-1970
M.A. US History. The State University of New York College at Brockport, 2001
B.A. History and English. Minor in Women's Studies. The State University of New York College at Geneseo, 1998
What I teach:
- US History I and II
- African American History I and II
- Intro to Africana Studies
- Food History and Contemporary Food Issues
- The Global Black Power Movement
- The Civil Rights Movement and Women in the Civil Rights Movement
- Social Policy and the Poor
- Writing History
- Senior Capstone
Laura Warren Hill is an Associate Professor and the Coordinator of the History Department. She specializes in African American History and Africana Studies and teaches classes that focus on the history of race, gender, class, and social movements. She is currently working on a book entitled, Strike the Hammer While the Iron is Hot: The Black Freedom Struggle in Rochester, NY, 1940-1970 (Cornell University Press). Her past publications include an edited collection, The Business of Black Power: Community Development, Capitalism, and Corporate Responsibility in Postwar America and several articles on Malcolm X in Rochester, NY. Professor Hill encourages all students to take classes in History and Africana Studies so they might better understand the course of their own lives.
Jim Murphy, Ph.D.
Dr. James Murphy graduated from Manhattan College with a BS in Biology (Teacher Preparation). He earned an MS and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Sackler Institute of the New York University School of Medicine, graduating in 1994. Dr. Murphy joined Bloomfield College the same year.
In the past, Dr. Murphy has studied both the molecular biology of cancer and the molecular biology of parasitism in insects. These days he focuses on the chemical modification of proteins in peas. Specifically, Dr. Murphy is interested in the effects of deacetylase inhibitors on pea root meristems. This research has resulted in publications, numerous student poster presentations as well as a recent GenBank sequence report for the Vitamin B12 Independent Methionine Synthase mRNA, accession number “KJ890480” that can be found at the website for the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Bloomfield College students have been coauthors on all these reports. This sequence will allow Dr. Murphy’s group to infer the amino acid sequence of the Methionine Synthase and investigate chemical modification of its amino acids, such as acetylation.
Dr. Murphy usually teaches the General Biology courses, “Diversity” and “Cell.” As well as the upper level Biochemistry II and Bio seminar.
Grace Cook, Ph.D.
Grace Cook is currently the Freshman Mathematics Coordinator and an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Bloomfield College. She has been a part of the college since 2013. She is a member of the Mathematical Association of America, Golden Key, Kappa Delta Pi, and Delta Phi Epsilon. She also consults for ETS and the New York City Department of Education. She has previously taught at the high school and collegiate level and worked as a test developer, statistician, and engineer
Dr. Cook has a Ph.D. in General Education from Walden University (2014) Dissertation Title: A Case Study of .Curriculum Based Organizational Change in an Elementary Teacher Preparation Program, a M.S. in Applied Mathematics, a Graduate Certificate in Applied Statistics from Stevens Institute of Technology (2001), a B.S. in Mathematics, Minor in Literature from Stevens Institute of Technology (2001), and is a New Jersey and Maryland Certified Teacher in Mathematics
Gregory Edens, Ph.D.
Professor Greg Edens joined the Division of Natural Sciences and Math in September 2013 after having worked seven years in the industry. Prior to that, he had more than seven years’ experience teaching general, analytical, and instrumental chemistry.
Dr. Edens earned his Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry at Purdue University, his Master's degree in Chemical Engineering at University of Illinois, Chicago, and his Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon.
Since his college freshman days, Edens has loved General Chemistry because of the breadth of topics covered. He enjoys learning new things each time through and strives to improve his teaching each year to inspire students, to give them a good foundation for upper-level science courses, and particularly to prepare them for Analytical Chemistry and Physical Chemistry, which he also teaches.
In Summer 2015 he supervised two students in a research project to determine mercury in fish. The students found that chunk light tuna has less mercury than solid white albacore, while Ahi tuna has very high levels of mercury. With the support of a NASA grant, one of the students will study the geographic distribution of mercury as implicated by levels in fish.
He enjoys listening to classical music, playing the piano; and gardening, cooking and riding bicycles with his wife. Ask him about a book that has changed his eating habits and improved his health. He enjoys reading chemistry journals, as well as textbooks about physical chemistry and thermodynamics.
Leila Koepp, Ph.D.
Dr. Leila Koepp is currently the Biology Coordinator in the Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and is a full professor at Bloomfield College. She has been part of the college since 1982. She has previously taught at several institutions including Montclair State University, Farleigh Dickenson University, and Upsala College. She held positions as a bacteriologist at several hospitals including Flow Memorial Hospital in Denton, Texas and Overlook Hospital in Summit New Jersey.
Dr. Koepp has a Ph.D. in Microbiology from the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Biology from Rutgers University, formerly University of Medicine and Dentistry (UMDNJ), Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (1982). Dissertation title: The Molecular Basis for the Biological Activity of the Slime Glycolipoprotein of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain BI, a M.S. in Microbiology from North Texas State University, Denton, Texas (1970), a B.A. in Biology from Messiah College, Grantham, Pennsylvania. (1968).
At Bloomfield College, she taught many courses including General Biology, Clinical Physiology, Anatomy and Physiology, Microbiology, Genetics, Developmental Biology and has developed an Immunology course which has been added to the curriculum and which she has taught in the past and continues to teach as needed. Presently she mostly teaches multiple sections of Microbiology to biology majors and nursing students. She also has transformed the genetics curriculum to reflect multicultural/multiracial issues and introduced a course for non-majors that deals with Biotechnology and Human Affairs.
Most of her research during her graduate studies focused on the investigation of the molecular basis for the pathogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa which has resulted in multiple publications in scientific journals.
She has investigated and cloned the SPO7 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with Dr. David Kabak at UMDNJ and has presented the results at several scientific meetings.
She has been involved with student research which focuses on bacterial leaf scorch (BLS) of oak trees in Northern NJ. The disease is caused by Xylella fastidiosa bacterium which infects the xylem of the leaves leading to leaf scorching and eventually death of the trees. Samples of oak leaves were collected and PCR analysis was conducted on these samples. The leaves were also analyzed by SEM with positive results for the bacterium.
In 2014 she published a book “Topics in Grief” which could be found on Amazon in honor of her late son David Koepp. She also has a blog TopicsInGrief.com
Demetris Nicolaides, Ph.D.
Demetris Nicolaides is a theoretical physicist and an author.
He graduated college in three and a half years, cum laude, with a double major, in physics and mathematics, and a master’s in physics. He continued his studies to earn a second master and a Ph.D. in physics from the City University of New York.
He finished first in his physics class and received the Paul Klapper Physics Award for “the outstanding physics major.” He was also awarded Certificates of Honors in both physics and mathematics.
Dr. Nicolaides is now a professor of physics at the Division of Natural Science and Mathematics at Bloomfield College where he teaches physics and astronomy. He loves teaching and is grateful to his students whose thirst for knowledge keeps him improving.
His interests include science in general, and the history and philosophy of science. His scientific research covers a broad range of diverse topics. In physics he investigates the properties of matter near the critical point of a phase transition. In the philosophy of physics (and of science in general) he analyzes the foundational laws of physics from a philosophical perspective. He believes that all things in nature, even the apparently different, share a subtle underlying commonality, which he strives to find. He likes the journey better than the destination and doesn’t mind getting lost now and then.
Professor Nicolaides has authored many scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals and presented his research at conferences nationally and internationally. His book, In the Light of Science—a Library Journal bestseller and a 10-Most-Popular-Books (for Science Book a Day, Jan 2018)—is an accessible presentation of the history of science and of science itself. His new book, In Search of a Theory of Everything, scheduled to be published in June of 2020, is a new kind of sight, a philosophical insight of modern physics, on a quest for the theory that will ultimately explain all the phenomena of nature via a single immutable overarching law.
He is a member of the American Physical Society (a physics group), the Astronomical Society of the Pacific (an astronomy group), and the International Association for Presocratic Studies (a philosophy group).
Maria Vogt, Ph.D.
Dr. Vogt is Professor of Chemistry. She obtained her B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her specialty is Organic Chemistry and she has a minor in Biochemistry.
Between receiving her B.S. and M.S. degrees, Professor Vogt first worked as a research assistant at the Medical College of Wisconsin in the area of electron spin resonance spectroscopy (ESR). Subsequently, she worked as a Medical Technologist at Milwaukee County General Hospital, in the area of Special Chemistry.
Following completion of the Ph.D. degree, Professor Vogt spent four years as a Research (postdoctoral) Associate at the Ben May Laboratory for Cancer Research at The University of Chicago, investigating aspects of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
Professor Vogt’s multiple research experiences resulted in a total of 45 scholarly, reviewed publications in journals including “Synthesis,” “Journal of Organic Chemistry,” “Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences,” “Cancer Research,” “Zeitschrift fuer Naturforschung”, and “Organic Synthesis,” among others.
After completion of the postdoctoral studies, Professor Vogt obtained a faculty position at Rutgers University Newark. Rutgers’ focus was on research, rather than teaching, resulting in her arrival at Bloomfield College.
At Bloomfield College, Professor Vogt teaches a number of courses. These include seminar classes, Organic Chemistry lectures/laboratories, Biochemistry lecture/laboratory, and the chemistry course required of nursing majors. After many years in research, her focus has turned towards providing the best possible education in the classroom. She feels it is impossible to do two things very well. One can either be an excellent researcher or an excellent pedagogue. Professor Vogt prefers to be in that “pedagogue” category.
At the College, Professor Vogt has sponsored numerous undergraduate research projects. Her areas of interest include instrumentation and method development of experiments to incorporate into the undergraduate laboratory experience. Her students have participated in numerous poster sessions and have obtained scholarships from the American Chemical Society and the Independent College Fund of New Jersey.
Professor Vogt spends a lot of her time teaching and helping students. Her office has been called “Grand Central Station.” She advises many science majors, including the chemistry, Preprofessional (medical, dental, podiatry, physical therapy, physician assistant, pharmacy), Allied Health Technologies, Medical Laboratory Science, Medical Imaging Science, etc. majors. However, she does have a life outside of the College. She and her husband love to travel. Favorites include Montana (in the summer) and Florida (in the winter). Travel generally does not include “touristy” activities. With her husband, she has been into mines, collected fossils/minerals, gone horseback riding and visited ghost towns, just to name a few. Her favorite memories include snowmobiling in Yellowstone National Park and a visit to the Corning Museum in the Finger Lakes region of New York. When at home, her major interest is in “fussy plants.” She loves orchids and treating them with benign neglect to get them to rebloom.
Rebecca Walter, Ph.D.
Dr. Walter has been with Bloomfield College since 2012. The courses she teaches include: Anatomy and Physiology 1&2, Biomechanics, and Vertebrate Morphology.
Dr. Walter has a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Utah. Her graduate thesis was entitled “The Biomechanics of Galloping and Acceleration in Dogs.” She currently uses Bloomfield College’s Motion Capture System in her research on the biomechanics of human walking and running.
Phyllis More, Ph.D., R.N.
Professor Phyllis More received her Ph.D. in Nursing Research from New York University in 1987. She has a Master’s degree in Nursing Education from New York University and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Cornell University New York Hospital School of Nursing.
Dr. More has been actively engaged in the field of nursing for over 40 years. She is certified in Community Health Nursing by the American Nurses Credentialing Center and participates regularly in activities of the Association of Community Health Nurse Educators. In addition she successfully passed the written examination and is a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) by the National League for Nursing. She is a member of the American Nurses Association, New Jersey State Nurses Association, National League for Nursing and Sigma Theta Tau, the International Honor Society of Nursing for which she has served as secretary and member of the executive board of the Alpha Upsilon Chapter.
Since coming to Bloomfield College in 1977, Dr. More has taught courses at all levels of the curriculum to both RN students seeking to complete the BSN and to traditional prelicensure students. Having extensive clinical experience in Community and Public Health Nursing as well as community based Pediatrics, in recent years she has focused on integrating a changing paradigm of health into senior level courses. Dr. More has had a major role in conducting several selfstudies of the Division of Nursing for continued accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.
Dunja L. Trunk, Ph.D
B.A., Indiana University of Pennsylvania
M.S., Ph.D., University of Florida
What I teach:
- Introduction to Psychology
- Human Cognition/Learning
- Developmental Psychology
- Adolescence
- Adulthood and Aging
- Research Methods
- Death and Dying
- Political Psychology
Research Interests:
Factors impacting memory and learning in young and older adults
Natascia Boeri
Ph.D., Graduate Center, City University of New York
B.A., Warren Wilson College
Courses taught:
Social Problems & Public Solutions
Theory and Practices in Human Services
Methods of Social Science Research
Senior Capstones (Senior Seminar, Fall Internship)
Special Topics (Gender & Social Policy, Women & Leadership)
Dr. Boeri is an Assistant Professor of Sociology, and specializes in gender, work, and international development. Her research on informal workers in India was funded by the National Science Foundation, and she was a 2015-2016 American Association of University Women Dissertation Fellow. She is an active member of the Sociologists for Women in Society and has represented SWS as a delegate to the United Nations numerous times. Dr. Boeri’s teaching style emphasizes experiential learning, and her aim is for students to use knowledge to nurture change in themselves and their community. Her publications can be found on Google Scholar.
Peter Kardos, Ph.D
Ph.D., The New School for Social Research
What I teach:
- Social Psychology
- Cross-Cultural Psychology
- Statistics
- Research Methods
- Diversity Training
Dr. Kardos is an assistant professor of psychology. He is a social psychologist most interested in intra- and intergroup relations and collective responsibility processes. His research investigates how group membership shapes people’s perception, emotion and behavior. His work also examines social networks and the capabilities that enable people to maintain their social relationships.
Ph.D. New York University
Courses taught:
- Deviance & Social Control,
- Criminal Justice & Race
- Prison Industrial Complex
- Sociology Spring Internship
Interests:
- Social justice activism
Vânia Penha-Lopes
Vânia Penha-Lopes is Professor of Sociology at Bloomfield College. She is also co-chair of the Brazil Seminar at Columbia University (2008-present) and was a member of the executive committee of the Brazilian Studies Association-BRASA (2010-14). A native of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Dr. Penha-Lopes graduated with honors from the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences (1982). She is also a graduate of New York University, with a Master’s degree in Anthropology (1987) and a Ph.D. in Sociology (1999). As a post-doctoral fellow at the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (2006-07), she did research on the first graduating class of Brazilian university quota students. She has received a number of awards, including the Carter G. Woodson Institute Predoctoral Fellowship in Afro-American and African Studies, from the University of Virginia (1996-98), and the Scholarship for Study Abroad from the Encyclopaedia Britannica do Brasil (1982), of which she was the youngest recipient. Dr. Penha-Lopes has lectured extensively on comparative race relations, African American fatherhood, and racism in Brazil and has been interviewed for articles in Diverse Issues in Higher Education, O Estado de São Paulo, and The Washington Post. Her work has been cited in a number of books on race relations, in textbooks, and in peer-reviewed articles. In addition to a number of articles, Dr. Penha-Lopes is the author of Confronting Affirmative Action: University Quota Students and the Quest for Racial Justice (2017), Pioneiros: Cotistas na Universidade Brasileira (2013), and co-editor of Religiosidade e Performance: Diálogos Contemporâneos (2015).
