Our Faculty

K “Yawa” Agbemabiese

Program Chair. BA, Ohio State University; MA, PhD, Ohio University.

Dr. K. “Yawa” Agbemabiese is currently faculty of Special Education at Bard DC and teaches elective courses in History and Women and Gender Studies. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum and Instruction, Educational Foundations, as well as a graduate certificate in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies from Ohio University. Dr. Yawa completed a Masters of Art Degree in International Affairs, African Studies from Ohio University, and a Bachelor of Arts in African American and African Studies from The Ohio State University. Her current research focuses on education and gender dynamics amongst the Anlo Ewe of Ghana. Dr. Yawa is the founder of the Charles A. and Norma J. Grooms Education Foundation, which sponsors girls’ education in Abor, Ghana, and the owner of Dunenyo Education and Training Center, Abor, Volta Region of Ghana,West Africa.

Victoria Bampoh

BS, MPhil, University of Cape Coast; MS, PhD, Syracuse University.

Dr. Victoria Bampoh grew up in Ghana but in 2006, she moved to America with a scholarship to pursue a PhD program in chemistry at Syracuse University, New York. She completed her doctoral degree in 2012 and was employed as a lecturer at the University of Minnesota, Rochester. At the University of Minnesota, she was involved in Innovative Teaching and Learning research for four years and then moved to Maryland in 2016. She taught chemistry at Bard High School Early College, in Baltimore, from August 2016 to June 2020. Besides teaching, she loves gardening, traveling, playing the piano and singing Christian songs with her husband, Bismark, and son, Benard, every Sunday at church.

Brian Chappell

BA, Boston College; MA, Georgetown; PhD, The Catholic University of America.

I am a fifth-generation Washingtonian, and I live in Brightwood Park with my wife Liz and daughters Sydney and Beverly. My intellectual focus is on postmodern and contemporary fiction, philosophy, cultural study, rhetoric, and narrative theory. I am particularly interested in how works of fiction reflect emerging religious modalities in a post-secular context. I am also interested in contemporary thought on violence and non-violence, especially as it appears in fiction. I am always trying to improve my French, so I am eager to connect with other speakers.

Maya Cyrus

BS, Howard University; MSEd, University of Pennsylvania.

I was born in Washington, DC to two engineers, who met while students at Howard University. I graduated as the valedictorian of my class from Archbishop Carroll High School in 2006. Following in my parents’ footsteps, I attended Howard University, majoring in Mathematics and minoring in Music. In 2010, I was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa society, earned my license to teach Math in DC, and graduated summa cum laude from Howard. From there, I went to Philadelphia to attend graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania. For the last 9 years, I have been teaching Math in various middle and high schools in Washington, DC. Also, I am a proud Ward 7 homeowner.

Yumin Deng

BS, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University; MEd, Shenzen University.

I have been active in international education in China and the US for over six years, working in both teaching and counseling roles. What motivates me is seeing my students become self-confident learners, seeing them achieve their goals, and watching them develop new language and cross-cultural skills. I hold a master’s degree in Education with a focus on student mental health and a Bachelors in Computer Science. My teaching style draws on this background by bringing technology to the classroom and emphasizing interpersonal student engagement. I’m very excited to part of Bard DC’s community!

Hany Eldeib

BS, MS, Cairo University, Egypt; MS, PhD, University of Virginia.

Dr. Hany has extensive experience in teaching Mathematics, Engineering, and Information Technology courses at university and high school levels. He taught at a number of universities in the Washington, D.C. areas including George Mason University and the University of the District of Columbia. He is a veteran of the satellite communications industry and is an advocate of STEM education for youth.

Roseanna Gossmann

BA, Mills College; MS, PhD, Tulane University.

Originally hailing from rural northern California, Roseanna completed her undergraduate studies in Mathematics and Biology with a special emphasis on Education at Humboldt State University and Mills College. She is passionate about math education and educational access, and has a background working with students from prekindergarten through college in extracurricular, event, and in-school settings. She has spent more than a decade learning and teaching math, and has also dabbled in teaching biology, theater, and other subjects. Roseanna earned her PhD in Mathematics from Tulane University in New Orleans in 2018. Her research interests include computational biofluid dynamics, modeling elastic bodies and fluid-elastic interactions, deformation of collapsible tubes, stokes flow, and female reproductive health, as well as mathematical biology and computational mathematics more generally. She applied these in her doctoral research exploring the elastohydrodynamics of a simplified human birth model. When she isn’t teaching and math-ing, Roseanna enjoys spending time with her husband and their small gaggle of kids and pets, reading, writing, playing music, and being mediocre at crossword puzzles.

Michael Horka

BBA, University of Michigan-Dearborn; MA, George Washington University.

Dr. Michael Horka was born in Detroit and lived in a variety of places in the Great Lakes State before moving to the District. He worked in marketing and communications during the 2000s, but found himself increasingly unsatisfied. He eventually uprooted to pursue graduate work in American Studies at George Washington University. His research and writing at GW has focused upon cultural representations of climate change, most especially those of science fiction and other forms of speculative artistry. When he’s not teaching you can find Michael reading, watching stand-up comedy, playing tennis, walking around the city, and badgering people to imagine (and create) the world we all need.

Ricardo Huaman

BA, University of California, Los Angeles; MA, Duke University; PhD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Dr. Huaman is a native English and Spanish speaker from Los Angeles, California of Peruvian and Mexican descent. I specialize in medieval and Golden Age Spanish literature along with language instruction. I majored in Spanish and Italian with a Special Field in French at UCLA. At Duke University, I received a master’s degree in Romance Studies (Spanish). I earned a Ph.D. in Romance Languages & Literatures (Spanish) at UNC-Chapel Hill. I have also taught ESL at all levels, from Pre-K to adults, in South Korea and the U.S. I recently launched my YouTube channel, The Spanish Doctor, to teach Spanish to the masses.

Kim Huynh

BS, Western Michigan University; PhD, University of Maryland.

Dr. Kim Huynh received her Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Maryland (UMD) in College Park. She previously taught Chemistry courses at UMD and Carleton College. Dr Huynh’s passion for teaching is rooted in her desire to help more students successfully complete science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees, which notoriously have a high drop-out/failure rate. She strives to teach students how to understand and appreciate the role of chemistry in their lives by not only teaching the material, but explaining why students should care about the material being taught. By drawing connections to the familiar and concrete through real world examples, Dr. Huynh shows students how the material is relevant to them. For over a decade, Dr. Huynh has taught a variety of students from kindergarten to graduate students in a wide range of settings. Outside the traditional classroom, Dr. Huynh enjoys outreach teaching opportunities (e.g. at-risk afterschool programs and STEM awareness events) because she loves to see students of all ages get excited and engaged in chemistry!

Eleanor “Nelly” Lambert

PhD, Catholic University of America; MA, St. John’s College, Annapolis; MA, Georgetown University; AB, The University of Chicago

I grew up in Haiti, France, and Washington, DC and have been teaching for the Bard Early College network since 2015. In my teaching and writing, I favor modernist writers; intersections of poetry, food, and film; and the poetry of the spiritually wise. My research in these areas has been supported by grants and fellowships from the Lannan Foundation, the Folger Shakespeare Library, the American Association of University Women, and the Library of Congress. A Faculty Associate of the Institute for Writing and Thinking at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, I also dabble in creative writing and elaborate baking.

Hsuan-Ying Liu

BA, Yuan-Ze University; PhD University of Arizona.

Dr. Hsuan-Ying Liu received her Ph.D. in Chinese Applied Linguistics with specialization in Teaching Chinese as a Second/Foreign Language from the University of Arizona. Before joining Bard DC, she was the Director of the Chinese Studies Program at the University of North Dakota. Dr. Liu has substantial experience in teaching a wide range of courses (from first-year Chinese language to advanced culture courses) as well as from different institutions (from pre-college to college levels). Her research interests include Chinese Sociolinguistics, Second Language Acquisition, and Chinese language pedagogy in high school and college settings.

Pedro Rodrigo Marino-Lopez

Literacy Studies, Universidad Nacional de Colombia; MFA, Universidad Nacional de Colombia; PhD, University of Cincinnati.

PhD in Romance and Arabic Languages and Literatures (Spanish), with a Graduate Certificate in Film Studies from the University of Cincinnati. M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the National University of Colombia, and B.A in Literary Studies from this same university. Previously worked in the fields of academic publishing, translation and second language acquisition. His research interests include contemporary Latin American literature, contemporary Colombian narrative, creative writing, digital humanities, and film studies. Born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia.

Gabriel Morden-Snipper

BA, Oberlin College; MA, Hunter College.

Gabriel Morden-Snipper, a DMV native, has taught at independent and public schools in Brooklyn, NY and Washington, DC for ten years. Prior to joining the founding faculty at Bard DC, he taught at Columbia Heights Educational Campus (CHEC). Since 2018, he has provided professional development for other DC-area teachers as a Math for America Master Teacher. He spends as much of his spare time as possible outdoors with his family. He earned his BA in Politics from Oberlin College and MA in Adolescent Mathematics Education from CUNY Hunter College.

Derek O’Leary

BA, Amherst College; MA, Tufts University; PhD, UC Berkeley.

Dr. Derek O’Leary hails from Boston but has been living in California for the past seven years. He’s delighted to move to DC to teach at Bard. He researches and writes and likes to teach about how different Americans have constructed competing narratives about their histories. He’s excited to work with students on understanding and writing about American history and literature.

John Peasant Jr.

BME, Alabama State University; MM, University of Tennessee; PhD, University of Florida.

A native of Cataula, Georgia, Dr. Peasant recently completed doctoral studies in music education at the University of Florida. His research areas involve the use of digital games in the music classroom and social justice with music education pedagogy. As an educator, Dr. Peasant has experience teaching music in grade levels from Kindergarten to college for over a decade. As a saxophonist, he predominately performed throughout the First Coast of Florida within classical and commercial settings. He has played under the baton of Frank Ticheli, Jack Stamp, Richard Saucedo, and other composers. Dr. Peasant has also shared the stage with artists such as Frankie Beverly and Maze, Kem, the Whispers, and many other R&B artists.

Tongji Phillip Qian

BA, Carleton College; MFA, Rhode Island School of Design.

Tongji Philip Qian is a visual artist and the founder of TPQ Studio. His artwork addresses the limit of an artistic practice through drawings, prints, and “prepared” sculptures. His writing on teaching and art criticism, on the other hand, focuses on conditions of students, institutions, contexts, and variations. Qian received his MFA from Rhode Island School of Design and his BA from Carleton College.

Lindsay Raymond

BS, Eastern Connecticut State University; MS, American University.

Lindsay Raymond strongly believes that Health Education is fundamental for the development of health literacy – the ability to understand and make informed decisions about health. Ms. Raymond holds a Master of Science in Health Promotion Management from American University and a Bachelor of Science in both Physical Education and Health and Fitness Management from Eastern Connecticut State University. She has ten years of diverse teaching experiences in DC Public Schools, Los Angeles Unified School District, and Connecticut Public Schools and has co-authored Health Education Curriculum for DC Public Schools. In addition to her teaching role at Bard, Ms. Raymond is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200), and teaches Yoga, Barre, and Spin classes. Outside of teaching, Ms. Raymond enjoys exploring DC on bike and foot, and spending time with her family, friends, and goldendoodle.

Alessandra Romano

• aromano@bhsec.bard.edu

Michael Sigrist

BA, MA, Miami University; PhD, SUNY Stony Brook.

Dr. Michael J. Sigrist trained in philosophy and has a special interest in the philosophy of history. His research focus and publications range over topics in ethics, value theory, personal identity, and the philosophy of literature. He is co-editor of Time and the Philosophy of Action published by Routledge in 2016. After living in Germany doing research at the University of Cologne, Dr. Sigrist moved to DC to teach philosophy in the Philosophy Department at George Washington University. He has also previously taught at American University and George Mason University. He holds a B.A. and M.A. from Miami University, and a PhD from Stony Brook University. He lives with his three children in a beautiful neighborhood in Ward 7.

Mack Scott

BS, University of Rhode Island; MA, Virginia Commonwealth University; PhD, Kansas State Univeristy.

I am an educator with close to twenty years of experience. I have had the opportunity to teach at various levels in four different states. I have spent much of my life playing, coaching, and generally being a fan of athletic competition (Go EAGLES!). My skills-based approach to education was shaped by my experience as coach where my mission was to help all athletes develop the skills they needed to become better players. As an educator, I endeavor to help all learners build the academic and cognitive skills that will help them, not only be better learners, but also more capable leaders for their families and communities.

Cassandra St. Vil

BS, Buffalo State College; MSW, University of Michigan; PhD, Howard University; MSEd, Hunter College; MSEd, Harvard University.

Cassandra “Dr. Cass” St. Vil has committed her career to teen leadership development, having worked with (or immediately around) teenagers for nearly 20 years. She is a trained Africanist, social worker and experienced high school teacher. A Teach for America, Peace Corps and Fulbright Scholar alumna, she has worked with adolescents and adults in youth development, internationally, in over 30 countries. She is a graduate of Howard University’s doctoral program in African Studies, the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Hunter College and the University of Michigan School of Social Work. The first of her five degrees was completed at Buffalo State College.

Mika Turim-Nygren

BA, University of Florida; MA, University of Chicago; PhD, University of Illinois at Chicago.

Although born in New York and raised in Florida, Mika Turim-Nygren hails most recently from Chicago, where she recently earned her PhD in American literature from the University of Illinois at Chicago. There, she wrote her dissertation on dialect literature – as in the moment when everyone started writing in accents – and its role in the rise of modern nationalism, both here and abroad. She has published a peer-reviewed article on Mark Twain’s modernism, and has another essay forthcoming about the literary representation of birthright citizenship. She has been teaching literature and composition for the past ten years, including courses on African American, immigrant, and women authors. Outside the classroom, she enjoys running, camping, dancing, drawing, cooking, and (of course) reading.

Eric Wistman

• ewistman@bhsec.bard.edu

BA, Hamilton College; MAT, University of Massachusetts.