Our People
Bard Early Colleges Administrative Team
This is the contact page for the network offices. To contact a specific school, please scroll down.
Bard Early Colleges General Contact
(718) 361-3133 x8726
earlycollege@bard.edu
Stephen Tremaine
Vice President for Early Colleges
tremaine@bard.edu
Tremaine is responsible for leading the Bard Early Colleges, including strategy, partnerships, finances, and program quality. Prior to that role, Tremaine founded the Bard Early College in New Orleans. He holds an MA in English from Tulane University and is completing a PhD in Comparative Literature at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.
Clara Haskell Botstein
Associate Vice President for Early Colleges
cbotstein@bard.edu
Clara is responsible for overseeing policy, public partnerships, and strategic initiatives at the Bard Early Colleges. Clara has over a decade of experience in policy work in education and youth development. Clara holds a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Bachelor’s degree in history from Princeton University. Clara serves as Board Chair for the Two Rivers Public Charter Schools in Washington, D.C.
John Weinstein
Dean of Early Colleges
jweinstein@bhsec.bard.edu
Weinstein has extensive experience in designing and leading training and instructional support for educators in and beyond the early college context. Weinstein is responsible for academic quality and teacher training across the Bard Early Colleges network; additionally, Weinstein leads external teacher training initiatives through the Bard Center for Early College. Weinstein was a founding faculty member at the first Bard High School Early College, founding principal of the Bard High School Early College Newark, and an active scholar in Chinese theater. He holds a PhD in Chinese language and literature from Columbia University.
John Gardenhire
Associate Director of Finance and Operations
jgardenhire@bard.edu
Brian Mateo
Assistant Dean, Civic Engagement
bmateo@bard.edu
Brian Mateo is a “connector,” which makes him the perfect person to lead several engagement activities across Bard’s network. Brian works with the international campuses, Early Colleges and the Bard Globalization and International Affairs Program (BGIA). Through his work with the Early Colleges he promotes civic engagement initiatives such as assisting faculty develop Engaged Liberal Arts and Sciences courses, administering the Community Action Award program and working with Early College leadership to provide opportunities for students to engage with their communities. He also teaches a course on civic engagement at the Early College in Queens. Brian attended The Pennsylvania State University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Biobehavioral Health and a Master’s of Education in College Student Affairs. Brian also serves on the Advisory Council for the Carnegie Council Ethics for International Affairs New Leaders Program.
Anna Hessa
Development Officer
ahessa@bec.bard.edu
Anna Hessa is a dedicated fundraising professional with a specialty in the cultural sector. As Development Officer, her role is to develop and expand individual philanthropic support for the Bard Early College Network. Areas of expertise include strategic planning, event production, board development, print and digital marketing, and young donor strategy. Anna received her Master of Arts, Visual Arts Administration, from New York University; and her Bachelor of Arts, Art History, from Belmont University, Nashville, Tenn.
Murphy Austin
Data and Evaluation Manager
maustin@bec.bard.edu

Shazia Muhammad
Finance Assistant
smuhammad@bec.bard.edu
Sarah Imboden
Grants Officer
simboden@bard.edu
Sarah is an experienced grant writer and administrator who has focused on work with municipalities and nonprofits. She also has a background in journalism. Sarah currently serves as an elected council member in the Town of Red Hook where she focuses on communications, recreation, and sustainability among many other local issues. She has an MA in Public Policy from Rockefeller College, University at Albany and a BA in history.
Ligaya Franklin
Program Associate
lfranklin@bec.bard.edu
Dre Szegedy-Maszak
Strategic Initiatives Associate
d_szegedymaszak@bec.bard.edu
David Hills
Program Associate
dhills@bhsec.bard.edu
David facilitates partnerships between institutions of higher education and coordinates the Maryland Alternative Teacher Preparation Program for the Bard Early Colleges. He holds a B.A. in English and Theatre from Goucher College.
Our Faculty
Our faculty are active and accomplished scholars in their fields who combine subject matter expertise with a passion for teaching adolescents.
Our staff come from the public and private sectors and are dedicated to supporting rigorous educational opportunities for secondary school students.
Brian Carter, Program Officer, Overdeck Family Foundation
Alexandra Contreras, Senior Analyst, Global Diversity and Inclusion, Colgate-Palmolive; Bard Early Colleges parent
Margaret Hempel, Foundation Director, Gender, Sexuality, and Reproductive Justice, Ford Foundation
Tessa Huxley, Bard Early Colleges parent
Ben Iselin, Partner, McGuire Woods, LLP; Bard Early Colleges parent
Charles Johnson, Partner, Holland & Knight LLP; Trustee, Bard College
Dayna Langfan, Bard Early Colleges parent
Beth Lief, Executive Director, Petrie Foundation
Matt Mallow, Senior Managing Director and General Counsel, BlackRock
Ray Peterson, formerly Founding Principal of Bard High School Early College Manhattan and Newark
Jay Quaintance, President, SUNY Sullivan Community College
Geoff Smith, Chair, Managing Director, Digitalis Ventures
Marquitta Speller, Ed.D., Executive Director of Secondary and Collegiate Programs, Harlem Children’s Zone, Inc.
David Tsang, Senior Strategy Consultant, IBM; Bard Early Colleges alumnus