PSA Faculty
Len Blanchard - B.A. Washington & Lee University, M.A.,Ph.D. Emory University. Teaches in the Department of Language and Literature at the State College of Florida: Manatee and Sarasota Counties. He is a published poet and has presented courses on the Southern Literary Renaissance and on notable Southern women writers.
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Rosemary F. Bowler - B.A. Wilson College, M.A. Columbia University, Ph.D. Boston College. Massachusetts teacher and school administrator. Executive Director of the International Dyslexia Society. Co-author of an award-winning book on learning. Governance consultant to non-profit organizations. Aficionado of the detective story. Founder and leader of the Boca Grande Sleuths.
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James Brown - B.S. Political Science, Florida A&M University. M.A. Guidance Counseling, University of South Florida. Completed doctoral coursework at Nova University. Taught social sciences for 9 years in public schools; 28 years as a counselor and college administrator at Manatee Community College.
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Harold Bubil - A University of Florida graduate, a humorous and engaging public speaker and 50-year resident of Sarasota. Real estate editor of the Herald-Tribune Media Group since 1994. Has covered architecture, green building and sustainable design in addition to residential real estate. Formerly a sports editor, he covered the Gators, Bucs and high school sports in the 1970s and early 80s.
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Phillip Buck - B.A. and M.A. English and Literature, California University. Completed doctoral coursework Colorado State University. Taught literature at the University of Colorado. Currently teaching English and Literature at the State College of Florida: Manatee and Sarasota Counties.
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Robert V. (Bob) Carlson - Ed.D., University of Rochester; Professor Emeritus, University of Vermont, who has devoted fifty plus years as a classroom teacher, school administrator, and university professor. His research and scholarly interests have examined school reform, leadership and educational organizations, and more recently, older adult lifelong learning. He presently is the Executive Director of Pierian Spring Academy.
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David Cohen - B.A. Bowdoin College; LL.B. Boston College Law School. Practiced law in Portland, Maine for twenty years before his appointment to the federal trial bench where he served for twenty years as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of Maine before retiring in 2008.
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Owen Comora - The Senior Bird Naturalist at Myakka River State Park where he has devoted some 5,000 volunteer hours. Created the Bird Naturalist program 13 years ago. Twice named Myakka's "Senior Volunteer of the Year" and honored by the Sarasota Audubon Society as one of its Environmental Heroes.
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Kevin Costello - Graduate of Chelsea School of Art and Goldsmiths College, University of London. Taught at the San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco Art Academy, Stetson University and Eckerd College; now teaches at Ringling College of Art and Design. He has worked as an art correspondent for Siesta Key Pelican, Bradenton Herald, Sarasota Herald Tribune and Sarasota Art Review.
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Bill Cotter - B.A. Government, Harvard College; J.D. Harvard Law School. President of Colby College (1979-2000) and the Oak Foundation (2000-2006). Previously President of the Africa-America Institute, Ford Foundation Representative for Colombia and Venezuela, White House Fellow, associate NYC law firm, Assistant Attorney General Northern Nigeria, law clerk to federal judge.
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Mary Jane De Genaro - B.A. Sarah Lawrence College; M.A. Columbia Teachers College. Ten years lecturing about opera in Sarasota. Designer and implementer of various innovative approaches to music education.
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Robert J. Dinkin - Taught American history for thirty-three years in the California university system. Author of five books on American political history, including Campaigning in America (1989) and most recently, Election Day: A Documentary History (2002).
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Roxane H. Dinkin - Ph.D. University of Miami, Coral Gables Florida.A clinical psychologist in private practice in Bradenton, Florida. With her husband, Robert J. Dinkin, PhD, she is the co-author of Infertility and the Creative Spirit. For many years she was a consultant to the IVF program at the University of California Medical Center at San Francisco.
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Jeanne Dubi - Before moving to Florida in 1997, lived in New York City and was Vice-President/ General Manager of Harper's Magazine. As president of the Sarasota Audubon Society, devotes much of her time to birding and conservation of bird habitat in Sarasota County.
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Marilyn Eckberg - Avid Cinephile. Grew up in a small Montana town watching movies in the last Art Deco Cinema Palace built in the U.S. Studied Art and Film & TV at Montana State University. Film Critic, Pelican Press. Instructed film classes.
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Henry Ettman - With 50 years experience as a Ph.D. university educator and jazz drummer, he has brought jazz education classes to Sarasota for the last 9 years. A sociologist/musicologist and former student of Max Roach, Oscar Peterson, and Dizzy Gillespie, Ettman has taught and played in the Midwest, West, and Florida.
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Doug Fernandes - Graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism. A sportswriter and columnist at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune since 1987, Fernandes has covered a variety of topics, including the University of Miami and Florida State football teams, as well as the Tampa Bay Bucs. For the last eight years, he's provided commentary as the H-T's sports columnist. He is a lover of most sports, but baseball is his passion.
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Arthur J. Geller - A.B. Dartmouth College, M.D. Chicago Medical School, Residency and Fellowship in Cardiology at Mt. Sinai Hospital, N.Y.Served in U.S. Public Health Service, Indian Health Division in Fort Defiance, AZ and Albuquerque NM. President of the Medical Staff Morristown Memorial Hospital, Morristown, NJ. Volunteer Physician at Senior Friendship Center in Sarasota.
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John Goodman - Boston University Professor Emeritus of Music Theory and Composition. Currently President of the Sarasota Concert Association; Director of "Second Sunday at Selby" series; lecturer for Selby Library's "Masters and Masterpieces of Music;" and Sarasota Music Archive board member and volunteer.
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Alan B. Grindal - B.A. Northwestern University, M.D. University of Illinois. Neurology training at Medical College of Virginia, where he served as a faculty member. Private practice of neurology in Sarasota since 1978. Currently a neurological consultant to the Memory Disorder Clinic at Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Clinical Assistant Professor at Florida State University. With a long-standing interest in the American Revolution, he has visited numerous historical sites of this conflict.
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L. Davis Hammond - Ph.D. in Romance Language and Literature, Harvard University After teaching French and Italian at Brandeis and Dartmouth, he taught these subjects at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire for 27 years.
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Eileen Hampshire - 35 years of involvement in a second-generation Oriental rug business; founded Art To Walk On, Inc. in 1988. Opened a showroom in Montreal, Quebec, where she consulted with architects, interior decorators and individuals on the acquisition of antique and rare carpets. Opened Art to Walk On (www.arttowalkon.com) on Palm Avenue in Sarasota in 2006.
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Bob Harrigan - Graduate of the University of Kansas with a B.S. degree in Atmospheric Science. Worked with the National Weather Service as weather observer. Taught micro-computing at the University of Kansas. Designated a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist by the American Meteorological Society. Forecasting weather for 25 years at ABC 7 in Sarasota.
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Greg High - USPTR and PTR certified. Director of Tennis for Palm Aire Country Club for 12 years; student of the game for nearly 40 years! Continues to compete in state and national tournaments. Hobbies include playing chess and collecting antique tennis racquets.
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Goody Hirshfeld - A founding member of the Living Arts Seminars, an arts-in-education enterprise of which the New York Times wrote: "I never knew art could be so much fun." Co-author of the five books that comprise the "Meet the Masterpiece" series published by Scholastic, Inc. Lectures at various Sarasota venues.
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Judy Hoerr - B.A. Beloit College, M.S.W. University of Illinois. Attended the C.G. Jung Institute, had a private practice in Peoria, IL in Individual, Marriage and Family Counseling. Served as President and Program Chairman of the CG Jung Society in Sarasota and has conducted workshops in Peoria and Sarasota.
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Si Isenberg - B.A. Syracuse University; graduate studies Syracuse and Columbia. Edited Shakespeare Bulletin. Publications: Fancies and Goodnights, A Shakespearean Journey. Secretary Drama Desk, Editor of Stages, the national theater magazine.
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Phyllis Jaffe - M.A. New York University. Elderhostel lecturer, hospice volunteer, lecturer at Ventfort Hall and at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA. Continuing Education program lecturer at Heritage Hills, Somers, NY; facilitator of UNIFEM Book Club. New York City Teacher of the Year 1984. Docent at Tanglewood Music Center.
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James W. Johnson - B.A. Philosophy, Cardinal Newman College, S.T.B. (Master of Divinity) from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. Completed his education for the Roman Catholic priesthood in 1987. Taught courses in religion at Broward Community College for 13 years, and English as a Second Language (ESL) for 15 years.
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Arthur S. Kesten - Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, University of Pittsburgh. Currently President of Nanocap Technologies. Led the United Technologies Research Center where, in 1997, was named its Distinguished Engineer of the Year.
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Peter Koenig - A painter, curator, and art writer with degrees from Harvard University, Cranbrook Academy of Art, and Massachusetts College of Art. Honors include a Fulbright Fellowship and U.S. Bicentennial Grant.
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Logan Malone - RAdm U.S. Navy (Retired). B.S. Naval Academy; graduate Nuclear Engineering School; M.A., Ed.D. Memphis State University. Served in diesel and nuclear submarines; directed development of Tomahawk missile; Chief, Naval Technical Training. President, Community Bank; Headmaster, private school; CEO, two healthcare firms monitoring Medicare in Tennessee and Florida.
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Baila Miller - B.A. and M.A. Memphis State University. 40 hours of doctorate coursework in curriculum development, University of Memphis. Her fine arts lectures explore the role of art, architecture, sculpture, photography and music in the development of modern culture. Her Yiddish courses, taught in Yiddish and English, explore European Jewish life as it adapts to the world philosophies of The Enlightenment to Romanticism and, finally, to the Modern Era.
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Kathie Moon - B.A. and M.S. University of North Carolina. Writer and current movie critic at Sarasota's Pelican Press. Has been involved in film studies through teaching film history and film appreciation, field trips, event programming, film societies, and film festivals.
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Stan R. Nikkel - B.A. University of Colorado, M.A. University of North Carolina, Ph.D. University of Maryland. Taught at the universities of George Washington, Maryland and Massachusetts at Boston. The author of two books, he has personally explored many of the historical settings associated with his courses' subjects.
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Nancy Paul - Locally trained horticulturist who has worked in the area for over 20 years. Site Horticulturist at Historic Spanish Point, Grounds Supervisor Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Sarasota County Parks and Recreation Horticulture Department, and Horticulturist for the Sarasota Kennel club. Provides landscape design and installation work for local clientele.
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Mike Pheneger - A retired U.S. Army Colonel and intelligence officer. Served as Director of Intelligence for U.S. Special Operations Command and Deputy Director of Intelligence for U.S. Central Command. Had assignments in Germany, Vietnam, Korea, Panama, and the Middle East.
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Maurice Pickard - M.D. University of Illinois. Post doctorate Internal Medicine UCSF, Fellow Clinical Medical Ethics University of Chicago, Practicing physician 35 years. Presently Chairman of Medical Ethics Committee at Northwestern University affiliated hospital.
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Malcolm Riddell - China gig 30+ years as investment banker, diplomat, and CIA spy. Senior Fellow, Peking University; Associate-in-Research, Harvard Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies; Asia Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School. Master International Affairs, Columbia University; MBA, Harvard Business School. Regularly lectures/ teaches at Harvard. More at www.chinadebate.com
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Jeff Rodgers - Director of Education for the S. Florida Museum and Director of the Bishop Planetarium. Joined the Museum in 2004 after 9 years at the American Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium in New York City. A science communicator, he spends the bulk of his time trying to de-mystify the universe and our place in it.
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Marshall Rousseau - Served as director of two area museums, the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg and more recently as the interim director of The Ringling Museum in Sarasota. He currently is active as an adjunct professor of museum studies at Eckerd College and serves on two museum boards, the Ringling and the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg.
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Beth Ann Salzman - B.A. from Smith College. Learned about women from 20 years in the retail business. Honed her Jewish knowledge as Education Director of The Manchester (NH) Jewish Community School. Her sense of humor comes from running a boxer shorts company called Gotkeys Unlimited.
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Paul Sarno - A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and the Columbia Law School. Through wide ranging readings, eight visits, membership in both the Asia Society and the Burma Studies Group, he has been engaged in a systematic effort to better understand these countries.
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Helen Schwartz - Taught for over 40 years at Indiana University, on a Fulbright at Bilkent University in Turkey, and at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at American University in Washington, DC. In her spare time, she writes murder mysteries.
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Frank Slesnick - Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Minnesota. Taught economics full time at the university level for 36 years. In addition, for 30 years he has consulted with attorneys as an expert witness calculating economic damages.
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Cheryl A. Smith - B.A. Barnard College, Columbia University; M.S.W. Smith College; Ed.D. Teachers College, Columbia University. Retired Associate Professor, Lesley University. Areas of expertise: Women's Business History, Adult Learning and Development, Interdisciplinary Studies. Author: Market Women: Black Women Entrepreneurs Past, Present and Future.
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John (Steve) Smith - A retired U.S. Navy Captain, served 24 years as line officer, nuclear power engineer and ship design manager. Senior V.P. of CDI Marine Company, a leading naval architecture firm. President of ROH, Inc., which provided Navy ship design and acquisition support.
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Dick Smolens - B.A., M.S., Ed.D. Thirty-seven years of teaching, elementary through graduate school. Retired from Hunter College to combine loves of teaching and music. Focus of singing and lecturing is "The Golden Age of American Popular Song," that unique period when music and lyrics were wed in perfect harmony.
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George Stassa - Since winning the History Medal in grade school, he has wanted to become a history teacher. Instead, he went to medical school in order to teach and earn a better living. Taught Anatomy and Radiology for thirty-five years and retired as a Clinical Associate Professor. Join his dream as a teacher of history.
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Joyce Stith - Taught English at Kent State University and California State University at Hayward. Published on Milton, Plato, Van Gogh and numerous travel destinations. Directed the film program at the Biblioteca Publica in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Spends winters in Sarasota and summers visiting great art museums of the world.
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Charlie Stryker - B.A. Florida State University; M.A. University of South Florida. Last eleven years, Adjunct Professor of History, Hillsborough Community College, Tampa. Spent thirty years in the corporate world before concentrating on teaching history.
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Mark Tlachac - Recognized Frank Lloyd Wright historian and lecturer. His lifelong passion for Wright's architecture has evolved into extensive work at Florida Southern College where he lectures and conducts tours of the campus. He has written and produced a DVD of Wright's work in Lakeland.
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Noreen Wald - AKA Nora Charles, published ten novels for Berkley Prime Crime. In addition, she has published two nonfiction books -Contestant: Success Secrets of a Game Show Veteran, Avon; and Foxy Forever, St. Martin's Press; and she has mentored 44 published students.
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Ted Weihe - Degrees from Georgetown and University of Virginia. Spent 30 years promoting small farmer co-ops in some 50 developing countries. He is currently managing a Fair Trade chocolate project in the Dominican Republic, Peru and Ecuador.
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Miles Williams - Ph.D. in political science from Vanderbilt. Taught at various universities in the United States, Colombia, Mexico, Sweden, and the Netherlands; specialties include comparative politics, international relations, migration, and human rights.
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Jay Wilson - B.A. and Ph.D. Yale University. Taught English literature at the University of Rochester and held fellowships at Cambridge University and the Folger Shakespeare Library. Taught popular courses on the history of ballet and the English Royal Ballet. Courses are profusely illustrated with photos and videos of great performances.
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William Wittig - Graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Studied in France as a Fulbright Scholar. Served as principal Flutist with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, and is a member of the London Chamber Players. Recently retired as Professor of Music at Smith College where he served for 37 years.
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J. David Yoder - B.A. Elementary Education, Eastern Mennonite University; M.Ed. School Administration, James Madison University; Ed.D. Educational Leadership, Nova Southeastern University. Higher education administrator; educational resource consultant for higher education and seminary programs. Executive Director of Sunnyside Village, a retirement community sponsored by Sarasota area Mennonite churches.
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Greg Zaritsky - Born in Kiev, Ukraine (then USSR). Moved to the United States after receiving his B.A. and M.A. from Kiev Tchaikovsky Conservatory. His musical affiliations include: American Symphony Orchestra, Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra, New Russian Orchestra, Soviet Émigré Orchestra, and Springfield Symphony Orchestra.
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Enquiries please call: 941-716-2471 or e-mail: info@pierianspringacademy.org
