Professional and Graduate Faculty

Kathryn Accurso is an applied linguist and former ESL teacher who now works in teacher education. Her award-winning research and teaching focus on critical professional development for K-12 teachers to support them in developing more effective and equitable teaching practices around 21st-century disciplinary literacies.

Gwen Bass is the Director of the Master of Arts in Teacher Leadership program. She holds a PhD in Special Education from the University of Massachusetts–Amherst, an M.Ed. in School Counseling, and an M.A. in Sport Management. Her professional experience includes 10 years of teaching in PreK–12 special education and general education settings, primarily in roles that involve the intersection of mental health and learning.

Kelly Carriere is an Adjunct Faculty member of the Master of Arts in Teacher Leadership program. She holds a PhD in Special Education from the University of Massachusetts–Amherst, an M.Ed. in Special Education from Springfield College, and a B.A. in Early Childhood from Fitchburg State University. Her 20 years of professional experience includes 10 years of teaching special education for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities in residential treatment facilities and public schools from PreK-6.  She has vast experience as a Teaching Assistant, a Practicum Supervisor for Masters Students, and Adjunct Faculty member.

Sarah Frenette is an early childhood educator, and a teacher educator. She serves as the Director of Early Childhood and Elementary Teacher Education and is the Coordinator of Teacher Licensure for Five Colleges, Inc. She takes pride in working with pre-service teachers that aspire to teach learners of all ages, backgrounds and abilities. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in literacy, inclusion, curriculum design and reflective practice. Frenette is also the track chair for the Education Policy and Practice Nexus. She learns something new about teaching and learning, and about herself each day.

Holly Innes Graham has presented for multiple national conferences, including American Speech and Language Association (ASHLA), American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL), and the National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE). Graham has also been invited to speak to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as teachers, at various colleges and universities, including Mount Holyoke, where she currently teaches language and literacy courses to M.A.T. students..

Alicia Lopez is a lecturer in the ESL Licensure program in the Professional and Graduate Education program at Mount Holyoke College. She also teaches ELL at Amherst Regional Middle School. Her 23 years in the classroom span 2 states and 3 subjects (French, Spanish, ESL).  Alicia is the co-author with Sonia Nieto of the book Teaching: A Life’s Work, a mother-daughter dialogue (forthcoming, Teacher’s College Press).

Lisa Manzi is the instructor for Teaching with Technology in the Master of Arts in Teaching program. She has been a middle school instructional technology educator for over 18 years at the Michael E. Smith Middle School in South Hadley. She is a graduate of St. Michael’s College and has a Master of Education in Educational Technology degree from Lesley University. Her other interests are professional development for educators and curriculum development in Computer Science.

Jen Matos is a licensed high school teacher and an educational researcher. Her research is focused on racial identities in classroom settings. She is currently working with students on two different research projects. In the first project, she and her research team are examining Latinx parental resiliency in public school systems. In the second project, they are looking at best practices for the retention and graduation of Black and Latinx students in college. Having had experience as a first-generation college student, Matos welcomes students who want to talk about their own experiences.

Lauren Mattone has been an educator for over 30 years.  Since graduating from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in English, she has worked in private early childhood education, as well as the public schools.  In addition to currently teaching Math Science and Technology for the M.A.T. program, she continues to teach elementary education in the public schools.

Lyndsey Nunes, Ph.D., BCBA, has served as the Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment Initiative Program Director at Westfield State University since 2013. Nunes has 10 years of experience working with students with disabilities between the ages of 8-22. She has worked in a variety of settings such as public schools, private substantially separate schools, home based programs, and inclusive postsecondary education.

Catherine Swift, Director of the Graduate Licensure Program, has been in the field of education for over 25 years with a focus on Teacher Education. Initially an elementary classroom teacher, Swift became a visiting lecturer and program supervisor at Smith College before moving to Mount Holyoke College in 2013. Swift’s research and interests include co-teaching, social justice and equity, reflective practice, and using children’s literature to teach mindfulness and social emotional skills.

Mike Flynn is the Director of Math Programs in the Professional and Graduate Education Division. In this capacity he runs the Master of Arts in Teaching Mathematics program, oversees all the programming for the department, and develops new innovative ways to make the work of Mathematics Leadership Programs more accessible to teachers.

Virginia Bastable is one of the authors of the Developing Mathematical Ideas professional development curriculum published and two books on mathematical reasoning about the operations.

Sarah Bent is the Assistant Director of Math Programs in the Professional and Graduate Education Division. In this capacity, she oversees the Master of Arts in Teaching Mathematics program and supports the professional learning programs for K-8 math teachers locally and nationally.

Zak Champagne taught Grades 3-6 students in Jacksonville for 13 years. He also worked for six years as an Assistant in Research at FCR-STEM at Florida State University. He is currently the Director of Teacher Leadership at the Jacksonville Public Education Fund.

Yi Law Chan is a Citywide Instructional Lead for Elementary Mathematics for New York City public schools, where she facilitates professional learning for teachers, school and instructional leaders

Amy Chang began her career in education as an elementary classroom teacher in grades 3 & 4 in Amherst, Massachusetts in 2000.  For the past seven years, Chang has served as the building math coach at Fort River Elementary School in Amherst, working with teachers K-6 to improve math instruction through practices that support early numeracy, differentiation, and student reasoning. She became a Math Recovery Champion in 2016 and was awarded Excellence Grants from the Amherst Education Foundation in 2016 and 2017 to train K-12 teachers in Math Recovery in the Amherst Regional School District.

Stephanie Charbonnet is a mathematics specialist at Freedom Preparatory Academy in Memphis, Tennessee, where she also designs and leads professional learning and develops and implements curriculum and assessment for K-5 teachers.

Andrew Gael teaches math at the Cooke Center Academy, a school for students with disabilities in lower Manhattan, New York. He is also working with Illustrative Mathematics to create accessibility for students with disabilities to the Open Up Resources middle school mathematics curriculum

Marta Garcia is a mathematics education independent consultant in North Carolina and formerly a district  elementary mathematics specialist in Asheville schools. She taught at the elementary school level for 28 years and has taught math methods courses for pre-service teachers at a local university.

Jim Hanson is currently a K-5 Math Coach for Northampton Public Schools. His coaching responsibilities include co-teaching and co-planning rigorous lessons, as well as leading math department meetings and providing regular, in-district professional development.

Shauna Hedgepath has taught middle school, high school, and has served as a district math coach and curriculum specialist. She currently works with secondary teachers across Mississippi, specializing in Algebra 1 curriculum and instruction.

Trish Kepler is a mathematics specialist and coordinator at Greenwich Country Day School in CT and part of team that synchronizes and implements K-5 mathematics curriculum, assessment, and instruction and customizes student support resources to foster critical problem solving skills.

Lauren Lamb is a teacher at Saint Patrick’s Episcopal Day School in Washington, DC where she teaches grades 7 and 8 math. She is also a facilitator for Illustrative Mathematics.

Dr. Susan Jo Russell began her career in education as an elementary classroom teacher and math coach. She is a senior researcher at TERC where she co-directed the original development and second edition of Investigations in Number, Data and Space and the professional development series, Developing Mathematical Ideas. Her research has focused on children’s mathematical understanding and on how teachers can learn more about mathematics and about children's mathematical thinking. Current work centers on early algebra, number and operations, mathematical argument, and how teachers can support students to engage in mathematical practices.

Deborah Schifter is a principal research scientist at the Education Development Center, Waltham, MA.  She has worked as an applied mathematician; has taught elementary, secondary, and college level mathematics; and, since 1985, has been a mathematics teacher educator and educational researcher.

Karen Schweitzer, a teacher for 33 years, spent most of her career as a kindergarten, first and second grade classroom teacher. After a brief foray into sixth and fifth grade, she has now settled in as a third grade teacher at the Anne T. Dunphy School, where she has taught for the past 26 years.

Annie Sussman is a curriculum developer and education researcher at TERC in Cambridge, MA. She is passionate about the intersection of learning, design and technology and brings a strong background in teaching and learning to her work. Annie holds an M.A.T. from Smith College and has taught students in grades 1-6 in both public and independent school settings.

Jan Szymaszek is a third grade teacher at the Smith College Campus School in Northampton, Massachusetts, which is the laboratory school for the Smith College Department of Education and Child Study.

Polly Wagner has worked for Mount Holyoke College since 2006 facilitating Developing Mathematical Ideas and Professional Development for Coaching Mathematics courses – both online and hybrid – and most recently is launching a Professional Learning Community for math coaches. Wagner became a math coach and consultant after working on an NFS funded project called Teaching to the Big Ideas. She works in a wide range of schools across Massachusetts, private and public, urban and rural, small and large, specializing in K-8 mathematics.

Ann Zito began her career in education as an elementary classroom teacher in Holyoke before transitioning to teaching math. Six years ago she began working with elementary teachers in the capacity of a Math Coach, spending the last four years in East Longmeadow Public Schools. She was selected to be a Math Ambassador by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, working on a long term project to create high quality tasks for teachers and to provide professional development inside and outside of her district.

Analisa Leonor Balares is CEO & Chief Innovation Officer of Womensphere, and Chair of the Womensphere Foundation. Womensphere is a global platform empowering women and girls to create the future (www.womensphere.org). She leads the Womensphere Innovation Leadership Lab (WILL) and Womensphere Incubator Network (WIN), being built globally to inspire, train and empower 1 million women and girls by 2020 (1 billion by 2030) in leadership, innovation, sustainability, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts & design, mathematics).

Through partnerships with various campus constituencies and community organizations, Angelica Castro helps students get connected and raise awareness and funds through events, volunteer projects and community engagement opportunities throughout the Pioneer Valley, including Holyoke, Springfield, South Hadley and Amherst.

Following a blended career of business, social action and academia, Rick Feldman continues to span and integrate the arenas of industry and regional economics, start-up and social enterprise entrepreneurship, education, and policy development in local and global arenas. His current focus is on all aspects of entrepreneurship and social enterprise development, and his current course offerings reflect this range and integration, by focusing on global and local challenges from which opportunities for solutions can emerge through innovation and entrepreneurial leadership.

Nicole Gilbert Cote teaches three sections of the Research Methods labs and provides behind-the-scenes support for Statistics. She also teaches summer courses through PaGE, including Introduction to Psychology and Social Psychology.  Gilbert Cote is a social psychologist by training and her early research focused on gender stereotypes and construction.  While working as a Research Associate with Dr. Kathy Binder, she studied literacy skills among children and adults learning to read.

Holly Innes Graham has presented for multiple national conferences, including American Speech and Language Association (ASHLA), American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL), and the National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE). Graham has also been invited to speak to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as teachers, at various colleges and universities, including Mount Holyoke, where she currently teaches language and literacy courses to M.A.T. students..

Himali Jayathilake joined the MHC Chemistry Department in Fall 2008 after receiving her Ph.D. in physical chemistry. She has taught courses and associated laboratory components in both general chemistry and physical chemistry. In addition to teaching, Jayathilake enjoys performing research with students on synthesis, characterization and assembly of metal nano-particles.

Cheryl Lavigne's primary interests in the area of psychology involve the processes of learning – particularly as these processes pertain to literacy development. In addition, she is passionate about scientific investigation and research methodology. From the planning and development phases to data analysis and presentation, scientific research inspires, stimulates, and motivates her career. Lavigne's teaching philosophy combines her passion for research with in-depth classroom discussions and hands-on activities that, hopefully, demystify scientific investigation.

Jennifer Moulton Proctor is a web strategist and designer who has focused her career in the non-profit and education realms. With twenty years experience in the field, she excels at teaching technology in a non-threatening way to all levels of learners.

David Bosso is the 2012 Connecticut Teacher of the Year and 2012 National Secondary Social Studies Teacher of the Year. Bosso was co-chair of Connecticut’s 2015 Empowered to Lead Symposium, and was elected President of the Connecticut Council for the Social Studies. He was a 2014 fellow at the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes and provided instruction in educational methodology for forty Rwandan educators in the Rwanda Teacher Education Program. Bosso’s dissertation, focusing on teacher morale, motivation, and professional identity, is a qualitative study of State Teachers of the Year.

Jemelleh Coes is pursuing her Ph.D. in Educational Theory and Practice with certificates in law and policy, disability studies, and qualitative research at the University of Georgia. She is a classroom and field instructor for teacher candidates at the University of Georgia, and she also serves as a teacher mentor for classroom teachers throughout the state.

Kim Evelti is the Curriculum Director and a Computer Science teacher for The Williston Northampton School. During her ten years at Williston, Evelti has been responsible for initiating and implementing the school’s 1:1 computing initiative with the Microsoft Surface, earning herself a position among Microsoft’s Innovative Education Expert and Surface Expert teams. She has also lead the school’s faculty through its strategic planning processes and a variety of other strategic administrative initiatives.

Nancy Gardner is a renewed National Board Certified Teacher with 32 years of classroom teaching experience and an MA in English. A former Center for Teaching Quality Teacherpreneur, she joined the CTQ staff for 18 months as a Communications Coach after her retirement from full time teaching. Gardner has been a national facilitator, consultant, and keynote speaker for the Senior Project Center since 1992.

Karen Harrington is currently Assistant Director of the Center for Youth Engagement at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She holds a master’s degree in education and a certificate   in advanced graduate studies in school counseling and has worked in the field of educational research and evaluation since 2005. Her professional interests include career development for incarcerated youth, curriculum design, the role of social emotional factors in academic achievement, and Early Warning Indicators.

John Holland is an embedded practitioner and frequent guest lecturer with the Mount Holyoke Masters of Arts in Teacher Leadership program. Holland has dedicated has career to serving his community's neediest and youngest school children as a preschool teacher of 3- and 4-year-olds from Richmond, Virginia’s toughest neighborhoods. John supports the M.A.T.L. program with his expertise in teacher-led innovation, coaching for equity, research, education policy, and the foundations of education.

Greg Martin began teaching as a triple threat educator (teacher, coach, dorm parent) in 1996 at Rumsey Hall School in Connecticut. He then held positions at the Gunnery (Washington Connecticut), Western Connecticut State University, and Porter-Gaud School (Charleston, South Carolina). Martin currently serves as the Dean of Upper School and History Department Head at the Perkiomen School in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania.

Daniele Massey has over 13 years of experience as a classroom teacher, virtual teacher, mentor, instructional coach, teacher leader and educational consultant at the district, state, and national level. Massey is the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) 2013 Teacher of the Year.

Sarah has spent 20 years working as a performance coach development consultant. Initially based in the UK, she led the technical development of the UK Coaching Certificate, a professional coaching qualifications framework. In response to the culture shift in UK sports she created e.t.c coaching consultants, an independent coaching consultancy practice and worked with numerous sports to create their coaching systems and coach development programs.

Jennifer Walker is passionate about urban educational issues and is currently a Supervisor of School Improvement in a diverse, urban district. In this role, her primary responsibilities are to support educators and administrators, and district and state reforms designed to promote student growth and performance.

Ryan Wallace is the English Department Chair for Tolman High School in Pawtucket, RI. In addition to his 18 year career in the ELA classroom, he has also served as a Data Analysis Coach for the Rhode Island Department of Education, a professional learning facilitator for the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers, and currently serves as Chair for the Rhode Island Teacher Advisory Council.

Sarah Brown Wessling is a 20-year veteran of the high school English classroom. While a member of the faculty at Johnston High School in Johnston, Iowa she has taught courses ranging from at-risk to Advanced Placement and has served the department and district in a variety of leadership roles. Wessling is a National Board Certified Teacher since 2005 and in 2010 was selected as the National Teacher of the Year.