Faculty & Staff

Bárbara Sánchez Guardiola comes to Neumann University with an advanced degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College and extensive organizational and administrative experience. She managed internal operations and a child health outreach program for Public Citizens for Children and Youth and has also provided bilingual translation services to a variety of businesses and organizations. As an administrator, she has experience ensuring details and quality control and she has a strong commitment to Neumann’s values. 

Maria Teresa de Gordon
Associate Professor
English and Spanish
B.A., University of Delaware
M.A., University of Delaware
Ed.D., Wilmington University
(610)-361-5388
degordom@neumann.edu

Few faculty can claim such a diversity of experiences. He has practiced biology from various perspectives: the chemical structure of enzymes, the environmental fate of pesticides, the metabolism of drugs in race horses, the biochemistry of insecticide resistance. He also has familiarity in bionomics of grouse, cancer research, environmental analysis, laboratory management.

"The moving power of mathematical invention is not reasoning but imagination"
Augustus De Morgan

"The teacher who is attempting to teach without inspiring the pupil to learn is hammering on cold iron" Horace Mann

This herpetologist has published many articles on frog communication and recently has taught introductory biology, ecology, genetics and advanced seminars in science. He also taught a course focusing on forgiveness and reconciliation in the wake of 9/11. When on sabbatical in 2005-2006, he lived in Guatemala with his family, where he introduced an environmental curriculum by which children, through the capture and identification of larval insects, adopt streams and monitor their quality. Locally, he is active with several environmental organizations. In 2001, he received the Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award.

Founder of the Neumann University Criminal Justice Program, this retired Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) brings reality to the classroom through his law enforcement experiences and knowledge of the subject areas taught. He considers his most important job to be preparing Neumann University students for their chosen careers in criminal justice.

 

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		Brinda Govindaraju Assistant Professor Biology M.B.B.S., Coimbatore Medical College, India M.D., Educational Commission of Foreign Medical Graduates 610-361-5293 govindab@neumann.edu
Dr. Brinda Govindaraju taught Anatomy and Physiology as an adjunct at Neumann for seven years. In 2012, she received the Part-Time Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.  Before coming to Neumann, she was a general practitioner in India after earning her degree from Coimbatore Medical College. She has volunteered as a teacher for a local Indian association for six  years. She’s an avid reader and often donates blood. In her free time, Brinda enjoys gardening and spending time with her two daughters.

 

This Erie, Pennsylvania, native has shown his paintings and photographs locally and nationally. In 2003 he received Neumann University's Growth in Scholarship Award.

An internationally known coloratura soprano who has performed in the Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, "Dr. Yuki" shares international teaching techniques with Neumann students as a result of her involvement with the International Chamber Music Festival in Evian, France, and her lectures in Japan. Dr. Yuki is also director of the Neumann University Concert Chorale. Her joy in music inspires both beginning and experienced singers at Neumann University, and her professional achievements as a soloist and lecturer enrich the learning experience for her students. According to Dr. Yuki, "Singing offers a challenge to all singers: How do we express our feelings with our voices? My role is to help voice students convert their internal feelings into external expressions via their voices. Everyone who has a voice can polish their instrument and create music if they wish to."

This statistician teaches courses such as mathematical statistics, business statistics, and college algebra in addition to introductory statistics. In 2007, he received Neumann University’s Excellence in Teaching Award.

Claudia Marie Kovach
Professor
English and French
B.A., Seton Hill University
M.A., Purdue University
Ph.D., Purdue University
(610)-558-5573
ckovach@neumann.edu

Former dean of the Division of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Kovach serves as Executive Director of the Delta Epsilon Sigma National Catholic Scholastic Honor Society DESNational@neumann.edu. She has published and presented internationally on writers such as Isabel Allende, Margery Kemp, Voltaire, and Amy Tan; she accords special attention to the medieval (and timeless) Tristan legend and its possibilities in tandem with contemporary literary theory. Her avocations include Chinese folk dance, competitive figure skating and ice dancing, and Tang Soo Do karate.

Dr. Mastropaolo was an adjunct at Neumann for two years teaching a variety of courses such as Physical Science, Environmental Studies, Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Microbiology. He also served as the Science Laboratory Manager at Neumann University for one year. Before his time at Neumann University, Dr. Mastropaolo received a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech where he studied bacterial interactions during an infection and spent four years working on soil microbiology at Tufts University School of Medicine. Dr. Mastropaolo has an interest in working with undergraduate students in a laboratory setting in order to prepare them for careers in science. He will be working with other Neumann and SEPCHE (Southeastern Consortium of Higher Education) faculty to expand undergraduate research opportunities for students in the Sciences. When he is not teaching science he likes to spend his time with his three children swimming and doing karate.

This developmental psychologist is interested in language and cognitive development in infancy and early childhood. Though she is no longer officially a student, she is still learning about language and cognitive development from her son, Dylan, who was born in September of 2005.

Dr. McMonagle, also known as "Doc" by many of his students, served as Deputy Legislative Director for a US Congressman on Capitol Hill before running for Congress and later for Delaware County Council.  Dr. McMonagle earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from Temple University and his MPP in Public Policy Studies from the University of Chicago.  An expert in American Government and Public Policy, this educator brings a wealth of practical and scholarly experience into the classroom -- preparing students for a variety of skill-based careers or for graduate studies starting in their freshman year at Neumann. His book, Caribou and Conoco, explains the political and social variables that have been driving important public policy debates on energy and the environment.

This multidimensional teacher sees mathematics, like music, as a creation. It is not found or discovered, but created. It is not a creation that we can hold or see, but it is there--like music. The difference: music is fed through feeling, through the heart; mathematics, instead, is music of the mind.

A specialist in moral and environmental philosophy, this semi-professional musician teaches a wide range of philosophy courses as well as philosophy with music. He has over twenty publications and has made over forty paper presentations. He believes that some popular songs are helpful in showing that philosophy lives outside the classroom.

Kathryn Montalbano is an Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Media. Her research interests include the history and political economy of mass and digital media institutions, religion and media, surveillance, and feminist media studies. She teaches courses related to mass and digital media and communication research methods. She received her Ph.D. in communications from Columbia University in 2016, and her B.A. from Haverford College in 2009.

Dr. Roberts brings direct patient experience from various clinical settings into the classroom. Her areas of interests are addiction, multicultural issues, and motivational interviewing. Her research interests involve stereotyping and perception.

This leader of the literature/humanities group and educator of the imagination (a phrase drawn from critic Northrop Frye) has special interests in Emily Dickinson, poetry in general, Shakespeare, 19th-century novels, interdisciplinary women's studies, conferencing with students, and lifelong learning.

Sister Linda Marie Sariego, OSF has been a member of the Sisters of Saint Francis of Philadelphia for many years. She received a BA in Spanish K-12 from Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA, a Master's of Arts in Bilingual/ Bicultural Studies from LaSalle University, Philadelphia; a Master's of Arts in Spanish from The  Catholic University of America, Washington DC and a Ph.D. in Spanish from The Catholic University of America, Washington DC in 2010. Her specialization is Golden Age (16th and 17th century) Peninsular Literature, particularly the Pastoral Novel. Sister Linda recently published a book entitled :Dynamic Spaces in La Diana by Jorge de Montemayo. Scripta Humanistica: Potomac, Maryland, 2010.

Sister Linda has taught on the elementary level, the university level, and has served as administrator and as translator for pilgrimages. She also offers service as a reviewer of books and translator of insert for Pastoral Music periodical.

Jazz band conductor, musician, and teacher extraordinaire, Dr. Sayers thinks that learning about unfamiliar music is a little like taking a morning swim: It's a shock to the system at first, but the longer you are in, the more you enjoy it.

Dr. Fallest-Strobl believes that a major benefit of teaching science courses comes from the opportunity to further explore certain topics within the laboratory setting. Because science is everywhere to explore, she strives to share her views with her students. It also gives her a chance to get to know her students better and everyday to learn something new from them.

After years as a major market TV Broadcaster, and still counting, Karen Thomas is sharing her expertise of mass media, public speaking and broadcasting with the Communications Program here at Neumann University. Karen is an award-winning journalist as well as a certified Broadcast Meteorologist, and her passion is working with Neumann University students in the field, especially in the area of internships.
In 1990, Karen graduated from Rowan University, and in 2002, the University awarded her Alumni of the Year. Then it was onto Mississippi State University for her graduate work in Geoscience. Most recently, Karen was elected to the Board of Directors for the Philadelphia Chapter of The National TV Arts & Sciences.

Dr. Maria G. Traub is Associate Professor of French and Italian in the Division of Arts and Sciences. In the fall of 2005, she was named Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Academiques by the French Government for services rendered in the domain of French culture. A frequent traveler abroad, she strongly advocates speaking more than one language in today's world. In addition, she has studied voice in France and Italy and enjoys sharing her expertise with arts majors.

Dancer, choreographer, educator, and biology teacher, this clinical laboratory specialist received the Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award in 2005. Before coming to Neumann, she worked in the highly technological field of laboratory medicine. Her major research interests have been in the areas of hematology and immunology. She has given numerous presentations on such topics such as leukemia, coagulation disorders, and the immune response. Integrating technology into her teaching practice is a special area of interest and she continues to give presentations in innovative uses of technology in the classroom. In the past, she designed self-paced instructional units and instructional videotapes for microscopic work.

Mr. Yönten received his Ph.D. in Political Science and International Relations from University of Delaware in 2011. He got his BA and MA degrees from Bogazici University (Istanbul/Turkey) in 1999 and 2002 respectively, His research interests include international migration, multilateralism, and Turkish foreign policy. His doctoral dissertation is on multilateralism in international migration. Since 2003, Mr. Yönten has been involved in a large scale project aiming to build a dataset of all multilateral treaties since the establishment of the modern nation-state system. The dataset is useful to examine distributional aspects of institutionalized cooperation over time and space, and hegemony and leadership in institutionalized cooperation. Mr. Yönten teaches a range of courses in international relations and comparative politics including Current Problems in World Politics, US Foreign Relations, Politics of Developing Nations, and Statistics for Social Sciences.