EEA Faculty Members
SEE's Experiential Education Academy (EEA) faculty are all educators and scholars in the field of experiential education whose knowledge and first-hand experiences support EEA workshop participants' understanding and implementation of experiential education methodologies.
Shara Lee, ed.D.
EEA Workshops: Fundamentals of Experiential Education, Principles of Ethical and Best Practices, Reflection, Assessment, Teaching and Learning Experientially, Strategic Planning for Experiential Program Design, Strengthening EE at Your Institution
Dr. Shara Lee currently serves as the Director of Engaged Learning at Valencia College, a seven-campus state college in Central Florida, in addition to teaching part-time with Syracuse University. Prior to these roles, Dr. Lee was a director with Valencia's Faculty & Instructional Development department, taught with the University of Central Florida's Office of Experiential Learning, and facilitated place-based learning experiences for The Walt Disney Company. She has taught and administered embedded and stand-alone experiential education through practices such as service learning, internships, global learning, and inquiry-based learning.
Marianna Savoca, Ph.D.
EEA Workshops: Teaching and Learning Experientially, Developing a Quality Internship Program, Strengthening EE at Your Institution
Dr. Savoca leads initiatives to scale career readiness and improve access to high-impact, learning-integrated internships and work experiences for all Stony Brook University students. Her work crosses divisional lines, connecting career with academic departments, international programs, enrollment management, advancement, economic development, and student affairs. Dr. Savoca is a faculty member in the graduate program in Higher Education Administration, is Co-PI on major grants, and is a published author. She earned her doctorate from Colorado State University, MS from Indiana University, and BS from SUNY Binghamton.
Rajni Shankar-Brown, Ph.D., MBA, M-MA, MA
EEA Workshops: Teaching and Learning Experientially, Developing a Quality Internship Program, Strengthening EE at Your Institution
Rajni Shankar-Brown, Ph.D., MBA, M-MA, MA, is an internationally award-winning and community-engaged Professor and the Jessie Ball duPont Distinguished Chair of Social Justice Education at Stetson University, as well as the recipient of Stetson’s most prestigious awards -- the McEniry Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievement, and Outstanding Faculty Advisor. She is also the Past-President of the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) and current Racial Equity and Education Chair, author, community organizer, cultural strategist, poet, artist, and a human rights and environmental justice activist. She is the Founder and the Executive Director of the Institute for Catalyzing Equity, Justice, and Social Change (I-CEJSC), Director of the Ending Poverty and Homelessness Conference, Co-Chair of Equity and Justice for the International Society for Teacher Education and Information Technology, and the Co-Director of the Acts of Kindness and Justice Movement, as well as curriculum lead and coach for the Racial Equity Action Lab and a faculty member of the International Society of Experiential Education Academy.
Dr. Shankar-Brown has worked in a variety of transformative social and eco-justice leadership roles with communities, organizations, government agencies (federal, state, and local levels), corporations, PreK-12 schools, and institution of higher education in urban, rural, and suburban areas across the United States and around the world. She is an inclusive and civically engaged educational leader who is deeply committed to advancing environmental sustainability, community wellbeing, and inclusive resilience. Dr. Shankar-Brown actively works to confront systemic oppression and advance environmental justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. She has been featured on media extensively including CBS, The Washington Post, ABC News, Equality Now, NPR, and The Seattle Times. Currently, collaborating with multiple federal agencies and the United Nations, her creative vision and research are helping to shape, challenge, and lead systems change, public policy, and program development.
Dr. Shankar-Brown is a highly respected member in the field of education and a tireless champion for social and climate justice and sustainability who continues to make significant contributions with real world impacts. Her work has been widely recognized including being awarded the Florida PDK International Educator of the Year, a Faculty-Scholar-in-Residence by the National Humanities Center, the University of North Carolina’s Inclusive Excellence Award, and being honored by Campus Compact as an Engaged Faculty Scholar. She has presented around the globe and published articles, book chapters, and creative works in leading academic sources including a globally celebrated collection of poetry Tuluminous, and an education book series including Bending the Arc Toward Justice: Equity-Focused Practices for Educational Leaders and Re-Envisioning Education: Affirming Diversity and Advancing Justice, along with an environmental justice book series in progress. In addition to being a passionate environmental justice and educational leader, she is a dedicated Amma (which means “Mom” in her first language, Tamil) who loves sunflowers and masala chai.
Evan Small, Ph.D.
EEA Workshops: Fundamentals of Experiential Education, Principles of Ethical and Best Practices
Evan serves as a faculty member in the Dr. Jo Watts Williams School of Education at Elon University where he primarily teaches in the teacher education and outdoor education programs. In addition, Evan directs the outdoor experiential education programming at Elon. Evan has been a practitioner and scholar of experiential education in various forms for many years. Evan’s background includes a strong focus in service-learning, global engagement, undergraduate research, and outdoor education. Evan’s research interests include integrating experiential education with social justice and critical pedagogy, incorporating experiential education into K-12 formal education settings, and facilitator skill development.
Stephanie Thomason, Ph.D.
EEA Workshops: Fundamentals of Experiential Education, Principles of Ethical and Best Practices, Reflection, Teaching and Learning Experientially, Strengthening EE at Your Institution
Stephanie Thomason is the associate dean of the Sykes College of Business at The University of Tampa. She has served in this role since June, 2024 and previously between 2011 and 2016. She is also an associate director for the TECO Energy Center for Leadership where she coordinates the UTampa graduate business coaching program. She has served as the president of the board of the National Society of Experiential Education and as a conference chair. She has also served as an Experiential Education Academy faculty member. She has published or presented more than 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals, textbooks, and national and regional conferences. Her publications can be accessed from journals such as Human Resource Management, International Journal of Selection and Assessment, the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, the International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Business and Society Review, the Journal of Global Information Management, the International Journal of Innovation Management, the Case Journal and the Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship. She has presented numerous times at the Academy of Management annual conferences, along with a variety of other international and regional conferences. She has also facilitated multiple workshops around the United States on experiential education. Prior to entering academia, she owned and operated several family-run businesses with multiple storefronts in South Florida. She additionally worked in the real estate, media and educational publishing industries.
Urszula Zalewski, MBA, MS
EEA Workshops: Developing a Quality Internship Program
Urszula Zalewski is the Director of Experiential Education and Student Employment at Stony Brook University - State University of New York, where she has worked for more than 21 years. She also serves as a faculty member, teaching service-learning courses in STEM academic programs, overseeing academic internships, and designing customized graduate courses for industry partners.
Urszula leads experiential education initiatives by leveraging her expertise in career readiness, partnership development, and fostering connections between academia and industry. She is dedicated to preparing students for professional success and implementing impactful experiential learning opportunities, including internships, student employment initiatives, project-based learning, and community outreach programs.
She holds a master’s degree in Management and Policy from Stony Brook University and a BS/MBA from the University of Economics in Krakow, Poland. Urszula’s commitment to student success and experiential learning has earned her numerous accolades, including the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service, the Sister Margaret Ann Landry Lifetime Achievement Advising Award, the Excellence in Service to Students Award, the Peter Baigent Leadership Award, the STONY Community Award, and the SEE Experiential Education Rising Leader Award.
In addition, Urszula serves on the Board of Directors for the Society for Experiential Education (SEE) and has made contributions to the field of Experiential Education through various publications.
Paul Gaszak, Ed.D.
EEA Workshops: Fundamentals of Experiential Education, Principles of Ethical and Best Practices, Reflection, Assessment, Teaching and Learning Experientially
Dr. Paul Gaszak is currently the Dean of Academics and Equity at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. Prior to joining IMSA in Fall 2020, he spent over 14 years in higher education serving as a Chief Academic Officer, Dean, and faculty member at multiple institutions. Dr. Gaszak has experience directing experiential initiatives at an institutional level, overseeing experiential programs, and incorporating experiential learning into courses. He also has special interests in experiential education definitions and experiential learning space design.
Maureen Drysdale, Ph.D.
EEA Workshops: Reflection, Assessment
Dr. Maureen Drysdale is Professor of Psychology at St. Jerome’s University and Adjunct Professor in Applied Health Studies at the University of Waterloo. She is the Director of the Well-Link Lab where her research focuses on Mental Health and School-to-Work Transitions. She leads a large research team dedicated to examining the health, attitudes, behaviors, and skills believed to be important for successful school-to-school and school-to-work transitions. Dr. Drysdale has spent considerable time over the years researching the role of experiential education on overall well-being, career readiness, and school-to-work transitions. She developed an intensive service learning course and throughout her career has supervised numerous students engaged in multiple forms of experiential education. Finally, she has served as a consultant with professional organizations establishing and assessing learning outcomes; measuring and assessing psychological constructs and mental health; conducting needs assessments, quality assurance, and training evaluations; and setting standards and competency criteria for licensure and recertification examinations. Her expertise with the EEA is in Assessment, Reflection, and Service Learning.
Martha (Marti) Snyder, Ph.D., PMP, SPHR
EEA Workshops: Fundamentals of Experiential Education, Principles of Ethical and Best Practices, Reflection, Assessment, Teaching and Learning Experientially, Online Learning and Experiential Education
Marti Snyder is a professor in the Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice and Director of Faculty Professional Development in the Learning and Educational Center at Nova Southeastern University (NSU), Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She is also a faculty member in the Farquhar Honors College and the Center for Information Protection Education and Research (CiPhER). Prior to her current appointment, she served on the faculty of the NSU’s College of Computing and Engineering.
Prior to joining NSU in 2006, Marti spent 15 years in corporate organizational development where she was responsible for overseeing the design and implementation of innovative learning and performance solutions in the areas of executive and expatriate education, employee onboarding and compliance, privacy and information security, sales training, and client product implementation for domestic and international banks, retailers, mortgage companies, and insurance agencies.
Marti has been teaching and learning online for over two decades. She served as chair for the 2020 Society for Experiential Education 49th Annual Conference and served as the learning effectiveness track chair for the Online Learning Consortium’s (OLC) International Conference in Online Learning from 2015-2017. She also served on the leadership board for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) special interest group, Design and Technology from 2012-2017 and the Association for Information Systems’ special interest group, Organizational Systems Research Association (OSRA) from 2016-2018.
Marti has published her research in national and international journals including Educational Technology Research and Development, The Internet and Higher Education, The Qualitative Report, International Journal of Designs for Learning, Online Learning Journal, Instruction Delivery Systems, TechTrends, Florida Journal of Educational Research and Florida Educational Florida Distance Learning Journal. She is an active member in the Society for Experiential Education (SEE), Association for Information Systems (AIS), Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), and the Project Management Institute (PMI).
Dr. Dell Ann Janney
EEA Workshops: Reflection, Developing a Quality Internship Program
Dr. Dell Ann Janney joined the Culver-Stockton faculty in August 1992. Dr. Janney holds a Doctor of Management from Webster University, an MBA from Western Illinois University, and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Culver-Stockton College and a CPA from the State of Illinois. As a professor of accounting, she develops and teaches courses including principles of accounting, intermediate accounting, professional development, and the following MBA courses: management accounting decision-making, financial accounting analysis and decisions, and strategic human resource decisions. Dr. Janney worked with the business faculty as the former division chair to establish the MBA program in 2013 in which she served as MBA program chair.
In 2012, Dr. Janney was named the first Associate Dean of Experiential Education in which she focused on establishing and implementing a Strategic Plan for Experiential Education. Under her leadership, the college developed criteria to designate courses as experiential, created an assessment plan for experiential education and launched the NSEE's Experiential Education Academy, with Culver-Stockton College achieving the highest percentage of faculty certified in the nation. In addition, Janney oversaw the HLC Quality Initiative in 2019 which included the aforementioned achievements as well as the faculty initiative to establish a Center for Experiential Education, known as the IDEA Center. In 2021, Dr. Janney was recognized by the Society of Experiential Education as the Outstanding Leader in Experiential Education. In addition, Janney was named the Culver-Stockton College Advisor of the Year in 2017 and 2018. She was the recipient of the President's Award for Exemplary Service to the college in 2013. She received the Faculty Leadership Award from the Institute of Management Accountants in 2012.
Dr. Janney also served as the Associate Dean for Instruction, including oversight for the college's Online Campus. Under her leadership, the College launched nine additional online majors including the approval of C-SC as a provider school for the Online Consortium for Independent Colleges & Universities. In addition, Janney held oversight of Instructional Technology including the selection and training for the College's learning management system, the implementation of online course evaluation system and training for Quality Matters.
In 2021, Dr. Janney was selected as the first Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies (GPS), where she developed a strategic plan for GPS and worked with faculty to launch a Masters in Counseling. She also held oversight of Career Services, and under her leadership the college was recognized for three consecutive years as the number one college for graduates gaining employment in the state of Missouri.
Janney is the co-owner of Ruby Development, LLC and Jan-Mar Inc., both real estate management corporations, where she serves as Vice President and Secretary. In addition, Janney works as a consultant for U.S. Wellness Meats in Canton, MO.
Dr. Janney resides in Canton, MO with her husband, Jeff. They have two daughters who are both married and reside in Canton as well. The highlight of Dell Ann's world is spending time with grandson, Brooks. Dell Ann enjoys walking with her daughters, grandson and their dogs, as well as playing golf.
Melonie Sexton, Ph.D.
EEA Workshops: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Experiential Education
Dr. Melonie Sexton works currently at Valencia College as a Professor of Psychology and Social Science Coordinator. Prior to Valencia College, Dr. Sexton served as a Professor of Psychology and Social Science Adviser at Vanderbilt University, and as a Senior Academic Adviser at Miami-Dade College. Among Dr. Sexton's professional honors, she received the Florida College Access Summit Joyce Romano Partnership Excellence Award in 2024, the SEE Rising Leader Award in 2022, and the UCF/Valencia Downtown Campus Faculty of the Year Award in 2022. Dr. Sexton holds a B.A. in Political Science and a B.S. in Psychology. Dr. Sexton earned her Ph.D. in Psychology from Vanderbilt University with a specialty focus in Cognitive Neuroscience. Outside of work, Dr. Sexton enjoys watching scary movies, reading psychological thrillers, and going to theme parks. She especially loves spending time with her husband and two kids.
Patrick Green, Ed.D.
Patrick M. Green, Ed.D. is the Executive Director of the Center for Engaged Learning, Teaching, and Scholarship (CELTS), and a Clinical Assistant Professor in the School of Education at Loyola University Chicago. He teaches experiential learning courses, including community-based learning, academic internships, global service-learning, and undergraduate research, and graduate courses in the Higher Education Program. He is coeditor of Re-conceptualizing Faculty Development in Service-Learning/Community Engagement: Exploring Intersections, Frameworks, and Models of Practice (Stylus Publishing, 2018), Crossing Boundaries: Tension and Transformation in International Service-Learning (Stylus Publishing, 2014), Guest Editor of Metropolitan Universities Journal special issue on faith and community engagement (December, 2020), Guest Editor of Experiential Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (November 2021, June 2022), and upcoming Guest Editor for Metropolitan Universities Journal special issue on place-based pedagogy and anchor institutions (spring 2023). Dr. Green serves as a Scholar-in-Residence with the International Association for Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement (IARSCLE), an Engaged Scholar with the Society of Experiential Education (SEE), and an Engaged Scholar with National Campus Compact.
Chase Lesane-Brown, Ph.D.
Dr. Chase L. Lesane-Brown is a lecturer in the Psychological Sciences department and Director of Experiential Learning for the School of Social Sciences at Rice University in Houston, TX. She is also Affiliated Faculty in the Center for African and African American Studies and in the Racism and Racial Experiences Workgroup. Dr. Lesane-Brown earned her B.A. in Psychology from the University of California, Riverside; her M.S. in Counseling Psychology from California State University, San Bernardino; and her Ph.D. in Personality Psychology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Dr. Lesane-Brown’s research focuses on racial/ethnic socialization, racial identity, and health socialization. Dr. Lesane-Brown teaches courses including Health Psychology, Multicultural Psychology, and Research Methods. In those courses, she routinely deploys service-learning and active-learning teaching strategies. She serves as a faculty representative on the Committee for Undergraduate Curriculum. She sits on the Advisory Board for the Office of Undergraduate Research and Inquiry, and Social Policy Analysis major. Dr. Lesane-Brown became a member of NSEE in 2018. She served on the Conference Planning Committee since 2019, co-chaired the Awards of Excellence Committee since 2020, and joined the Diversity and inclusion Committee in 2022.
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