Staff – BEC Queens

Our staff are high-qualified professionals who are dedicated to promoting student success. Our staff come from a range of professional backgrounds in the public and private sectors.

Jessica Shore

Student Support- Hearing

Monica Harris

Parent Coordinator

Kathy Pham

Assistant Principal

Surendra Bipat

Social Worker

Garyne Berkoh

Director of Bard Diverse Network of Action (DNA)

Redell Armstrong

Assistant Principal

Ari Braverman

Director Of Admissions

Fizza Chowdhury

Occupational Therapist

Shavone Blunt

Associate Director of Bard Diverse Network of Action (DNA)

Rachel Ford

Learning Commons Coordinator & College Advisor

David Hopp

Chemistry Lab Technician

Lori Ween

Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Special Education Coordinator, Literature Faculty

Crystal Sandiford

Director of College Transfer Office

Olga Russell

Laboratory Technician Biology

Adam Rhodes

Technology Coordinator

Olga Ramos

Bard Network

Wilfredo Pagan

Purchasing/Payroll Secretary

Angel Johnson-Telesca

Guidance Counselor

Laura Hymson

Principal

Brianna Grant

Student Activities Coordinator

Erika Cubano

School Secretary

Justin Casale

Guidance Counselor

Elizabeth Dunn Canty

Guidance Counselor

Jonathan V. Cann

Systems Analyst & Manager

Holly Brown

Language and Literature Faculty

Jessica Shore

Student Support- Hearing

[email protected]

Monica Harris

Parent Coordinator

[email protected]

Kathy Pham

Assistant Principal

[email protected]

Surendra Bipat

Social Worker

[email protected]

Garyne Berkoh

Director of Bard Diverse Network of Action (DNA)

[email protected]

Education: Masters Of Social Work

Redell Armstrong

Assistant Principal

[email protected]

Education
Hamilton College, Yale University, Teachers College, Columbia University

Teaching/Working History
Social Studies Teacher, Advanced Placement Teacher, Assistant Principal

Areas of Research/Expertise
Student achievement, Student development, Growing instructional methodologies to empower educators and enhance learning outcomes, Promoting social equity and inclusion

Areas of Interest:
Supporting student achievement and development, Advancing equity and inclusion in education, Cultivating effective and innovative instructional practices for teacher

Ari Braverman

Director Of Admissions

[email protected]

Education: Bard College, BA, MFA Columbia University

Phone extension: 6913

Fizza Chowdhury

Occupational Therapist

[email protected]

Education: Masters in Occupational Therapy, Stony Brook University, Class of 2015
Teaching/working history: DOE since 2023, in schools since 2015
Areas of research or expertise: Executive Functioning
Areas of interest: Sensory Processing, Learning Disabilities, Cultural Influences

Shavone Blunt

Associate Director of Bard Diverse Network of Action (DNA)

[email protected]

BA. English and Communication

Rachel Ford

Learning Commons Coordinator & College Advisor

[email protected]

BA, Environmental Biology, Columbia University; MA, Psychology in Education, Teachers College

Background in youth development and college access. Previously held positions at the Double Discovery Center of Columbia University, Humanities Preparatory Academy, the Child Development Institute of Sarah Lawrence College, and most recently, volunteered with Inside Schools. Longtime member of the College Access Consortium of New York, youth soccer coach, and avid hiker and lover of the outdoors.

David Hopp

Chemistry Lab Technician

[email protected]

Lori Ween

Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Special Education Coordinator, Literature Faculty

[email protected]

B.A., Comparative Literature, Cornell University; M.A., Comparative Literature, Northwestern University; Ph.D., Comparative Literature, The Pennsylvania State University. Taught Literature at Bard High School Early College Manhattan 2002-2011; Dean of Studies at Bard High School Early College Newark (2011-2019). Areas of research and publication include marketing of 20th Century American women writers, the publishing industry and ethnicity, African American literature, and family sagas.

Crystal Sandiford

Director of College Transfer Office

[email protected]

B.S. Psychology, Stony Brook University; M.A., Higher Education Administration, Stony Brook University; M.S., School Counseling, Alfred University. Previously worked as a New York City Teaching Fellow & Secondary biology teacher.

Special trainings include: Options College Access, HESC FAFSA Ready Counselor Training, Child Abuse Identification and Reporting, Dignity for All Students, and School Violence Prevention and Intervention.

718-361-3133 x 6635

Olga Russell

Laboratory Technician Biology

[email protected]

B.A., Biology, Bard College; M.A., Social Studies, Russian State Pedagogical University in St. Petersburg, Russia; M.A., Microbiology, Columbia University.
718-361-3133 x7315

Adam Rhodes

Technology Coordinator

[email protected]

718-361-3133 x6625

Olga Ramos

Bard Network

[email protected]

A.A., Bard High School Early College; B.A. Psychology, Bard College; M.S. candidate, Urban Affairs, Hunter College. Trustee Leader Scholar at Bard College and founder of the Young Rhinebeck Youth Program: Life, Learning, and Language, 2005. Worked in admissions at BHSEC for more than ten years, first as Admissions Coordinator, then as Smart Scholars Outreach Coordinator. Olga has a long-standing commitment to outreach into the NYC public schools and particularly in recruiting students to BHSEC who come from disadvantaged academic and economic backgrounds. Research/interests include urban public education, program evaluation, early college initiatives and community activism.
718-361-3133 x6913

Wilfredo Pagan

Purchasing/Payroll Secretary

[email protected]

718-361-3133 x6613

Angel Johnson-Telesca

Guidance Counselor

[email protected]

BA, SUNY Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY; M.Ed. in Counseling and Human Development, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY. Angel brings over 18 years of College Counseling and Guidance experience from the New York City school system and private sector. Professional interest include providing mentoring and counseling to underrepresented students in areas where access to secondary educational opportunities may not be readily available.
718-361-3133 x6823

Laura Hymson

Principal

[email protected]

B.A., American Studies, Wesleyan University; M.A., Gender/Cultural Studies, Simmons College; Ph.D., American Culture, The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Taught at Rutgers University-Newark; Hunter College; and University of Hartford. Areas of research include 20th century U.S. cultural history, with a particular focus on the historical constructions of race and gender; branding and advertising; and globalization.
718-361-3133 x8002

Brianna Grant

Student Activities Coordinator

[email protected]

Erika Cubano

School Secretary

[email protected]

Justin Casale

Guidance Counselor

[email protected]

B.A., Psychology and Education, Muhlenberg College; M.A., School Counseling, Boston College

Elizabeth Dunn Canty

Guidance Counselor

[email protected]

B.A. English & Communications, Boston College; M.A., Education, CUNY Brooklyn College; M.A., School Counseling, New York University. Worked previously as New York City Teaching Fellow & Secondary English teacher at Harry Van Arsdale High School, as Guidance Intern & Health Teacher at BHSEC Manhattan, and as Guidance Counselor & Study Skills Instructor at Bard Early College Academy. Founding staff at BHSEC Queens. Special trainings include: Options College Access training, Suicide Prevention, Respect for All with a special focus on anti LGBTQ-bias, Opportunity Gaps for students of color, Adult Basic Literacy, and Project Adventure Ropes Course.
718-361-3133 x6923

Jonathan V. Cann

Systems Analyst & Manager

[email protected]

B.A., Asian Studies, Bard College.
Jonathan V. Cann is the author of 11 books and has also worked on video games and comics. Interests include art, photography, and hiking.
718-361-3133 x6717

Holly Brown

Language and Literature Faculty

[email protected]

B.A., History and Spanish, Wellesley College; M.A., Middlebury College; Ph.D. candidate, Spanish and Luzo-Brazilian Literatures and Languages, The Graduate School and University Center, City University of New York. Taught language and short story at Princeton University and Hunter College; Bilingual Education and Spanish pedagogy at The City College of New York; and College Preparedness and ESL at LaGuardia Community College. Publications include At the Crossroads of Modernity: Fernando Pessoa’s Intersectionist Poetry. Interests include medieval and early modern Spanish and Portuguese literature.
Phone: 718-361-3133 x6606