Faculty and Staff

Biography

John Wang was born in Taipei, Taiwan, and grew up in Los Angeles. Though he began his college studies as an Engineering Physics major at the University of California, Berkeley, he eventually graduated with a degree in Economics. After working in the corporate world for a few years, he decided to pursue writing fiction, which led him on a journey that included stops in Matsusaka, Japan (where he taught English to junior high, elementary, and kindergarten students), Hattiesburg, Mississippi (where he earned an M.A. in English/Creative Writing at the University of Southern Mississippi), and Tallahassee, Florida, where he completed his Ph.D. in English Literature/Creative Writing at Florida State University. John’s fiction and poetry has appeared in such journals as Cimmaron Review, Quarterly West, Hobart, Barcelona Review, and elsewhere. Prior to joining MC, John was Founding Editor for the literary journal Juked.

Biography

Rebecca Eggenschwiler is originally from Michigan where she completed her B.A. in English with minors in Psychology and Philosophy at Hope College. She attended the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, where she received her M.A. in English with an emphasis in antebellum American literature. Since coming to Montgomery College, she has enjoyed teaching a variety of literature and composition classes, as well as organizing the annual Humanities Cherry Blossom Conference.

 

 

Biography

Dr. Kevin Gibbons has taught anthropology and archaeology at Montgomery College since 2019. His own research is as a zooarchaeologist, using animal remains from archaeological sites to address questions around breeding and improvement, the economics of livestock husbandry, land degradation, and social inequality in post-medieval and early modern Iceland through the lens of historical ecology and human ecodynamics.
 
Dr. Gibbons views anthropology’s most vital functions as encouraging curiosity in the world and people around us, promoting critical thinking habits, and nurturing students to be informed and empathetic global citizens. He frames his courses around environmental literacy and social and ecological resilience.
 
He’s done fieldwork in the US Southeast & Mid-Atlantic, Iceland, the Caribbean, and England and has served as adjunct faculty at American University and the University of Maryland. He has degrees from Young Harris College, the University of Georgia, the University of Sheffield (UK), and the University of Maryland.

Biography

Michelle Moran graduated from Loyola University New Orleans with a B.A. in Communications (Print Journalism) and History. After working as a historian for a cultural resource management firm in Maryland, she earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in history and a graduate certificate in women’s studies from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Campaign. She taught at the University of Nevada in Reno before coming to Montgomery College, where she has offered courses in world history, women’s history, U.S. history, and U.S. and world affairs. Michelle was a Smithsonian Faculty Fellow and has worked with the Paul Peck Humanities Institute Internship Program, mentoring student interns at the Smithsonian and Library of Congress. She also helps organize the annual Humanities Students’ Cherry Blossom Conference. Her research interests in public health policy, disease, and the body continue to teach her about the vital need for close collaboration between STEM and humanities disciplines. She is the author of Colonizing Leprosy: Imperialism and the Politics of Public Health in the United States.

Biography

Ilsa Xiaoshan Yin received her Ph.D. degree in Ethnomusicology from the University of Maryland and her Master’s degree (with distinction) in Ethnomusicology from SOAS, University of London. Her research focuses on the social conceptualizations and practices of the Chinese seven-string zither guqin in the twenty-first century. Her work has been published in Asian Music, and she has presented her research at the 2019 ICTMD World Conference and the 2019 and 2021 Society for Ethnomusicology Annual Meetings. She has given guest lecturers at various venues including the Smithsonian. Yin is an active guqin player herself.

Biography

Dr. Andrée “Dre” Betancourt is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies at Montgomery College; she joined the MC faculty in 2015, and previously taught
at the University of South Alabama, Louisiana State University, and Northern Virginia Community College. Dr. Betancourt is an honors coordinator and advisor,
and helps lead the honors faculty fellowship program, workshops, and events. She is a Maryland Collegiate Honors Council board member and participates in
National Collegiate Honors Council Conferences. She has published book chapters in academic collections on topics including: female protagonists in HBO series;
YouTube and mindfulness; taboo women’s health narratives; and the TV series Mad Men. Dr. Betancourt earned her Ph.D. in Communication Studies at Louisiana
State University, her M.A. in Film Studies at University College Dublin in Ireland, and her B.A. in Psychology (Spanish minor) at Smith College. She has worked in
the film industry and for numerous arts and cultural institutions (including a film archive and several museums). Dr. Betancourt loves movies, traveling, reading novels and memoirs, and photography. She also workshops short pieces in creative writing groups, and hopes to write a memoir and/or young adult novel someday.

Biography

Lauren Wolf Strawbridge has worked at Montgomery College since 2017, teaching English composition and communication as well as acting as the interim program coordinator for the Achieving the Promise Academy. Before joining the College, Professor Strawbridge was the junior editor for a global advertising agency based in DC. She has been an active member of the community, serving on the Board of Directors for EveryMind, Montgomery County’s mental health association, and partnering with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission to bring attention to Mental Health Awareness Month. She urges her students to discover their own passions and use their writing skills to support the causes they believe in. Professor Strawbridge’s publications include journalism, creative nonfiction, and poetry. Her greatest accomplishment, however, is being a mother to two beautiful children.

Biography

Dr. Nathan Zook earned his Bachelor's degree with a double major in International Studies and Political Science at Towson University where he graduated from the Honors College as Valedictorian with the Meritorious Scholar Award. He also studied Central European culture, politics, and economics at the Technical University of Budapest. He earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science at Indiana University. His doctoral dissertation was on the impact of domestic groups on U.S. foreign policy toward Cuba. Dr. Zook has taught at the University of Tennessee, Towson University, the University of Wisconsin-Rock County, UMBC, Indiana University, and Montgomery College.

In addition to being a professor, Dr. Zook is the coordinator for the International Studies program at Montgomery College and the faculty advisor for the International Studies Club. He won a grant to organize the first Model United Nations teams from Montgomery College and was proud to have Montgomery College win the Distinguished Delegation Award at the National Model UN. He is particularly interested in the taboo subjects of religion and politics and how they interact to create foreign policy. Due to this fascination, he has visited over 30 countries.

PhD, Indiana University
MA,Indiana University
BA, Towson University

Biography

Born and raised on the island of St. John, Virgin Islands, Victor Provost is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading voices on the unique, and often misunderstood, steelpan. Through appearances at concert halls, clubs, and stages throughout the world, he has developed a reputation as a “dazzling” soloist, crafting an impressive improvisational voice and style.
 
With a strong foundation in Bebop, a contemporary sensibility, and deep roots in Caribbean music, he seamlessly melds and mixes genres. The Washington D.C. City Paper’s “Jazz Percussionist of the Year” six years in a row, his most recent recording, Bright Eyes, debuted at #5 on the iTunes Top 40 Jazz Charts and was met with praise from The Washington Post, Downbeat Magazine, and Jazz Times.

Victor has performed and recorded with luminaries such as Hugh Masekela, Paquito D'Rivera, Monty Alexander, Joe Locke, Nicholas Payton, David Sanchez, Terell Stafford, Dave Samuels, Steve Nelson, Ron Blake, and Wycliffe Gordon, among others.

An active educator, Victor is an Adjunct Professor of Music at George Mason University in Virginia and Montgomery College in Maryland.  He conducts residencies and master classes at universities and high schools throughout the United States and the Caribbean. He is also an Arts Ambassador to U.S. Virgin Islands, which honored him with a Special Congressional Recognition in 2014, and to which he returns frequently to perform and teach as part of Dion Parson’s community-based arts initiative, the United Jazz Foundation.  Victor holds BM and MM degrees in Performance with an emphasis on Jazz Studies from George Mason University.

Biography

Alzira Lena Ruano, born in Washington, D.C., is a distinguished interdisciplinary artist, scholar, and educator. With a journey deeply rooted in artistic exploration, Ruano's evolution as an artist showcases a rich blend of academic pursuits and creative ingenuity delving into the complex interplay of gender, body, heritage, relationships, memory, socioeconomic structures, and domesticity. These themes reveal her profound insights into the human experience and societal narratives. Beyond her artistic accomplishments, Ruano's role as an educator and scholar empowers emerging artists, fostering meaningful dialogues that transcend traditional boundaries. Her diverse background and contributions make her significant in the artistic and academic realms.

Biography

Assistant Professor Maria Abasi has over ten years' experience in education. Prior to Montgomery College, she served as a counselor at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) for the Pathway to the Baccalaureate Program and as an advisor for the Great Expectations Program. At NOVA, she taught student success courses and provided academic, career, and financial aid advising. She joined the Montgomery College Community in 2019 as a Student Success Coordinator for the Achieving Collegiate Excellence and Success Program (ACES). Assistant Professor Abasi earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a minor in Biology from Xavier University of Louisiana, and a Master of Social Work with a Clinical Concentration and Children & Families Specialization from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She is a DC area native and Magruder High School Alum. She is the proud daughter of Nigerian immigrants and a first-generation college graduate. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants, going to concerts and spending time with her family and friends. 

Biography

Professor Kelly Kleine has been a member of Montgomery College’s counseling faculty since 2001 and has served as a Montgomery Scholars counselor since 2010. Previously, she was the Assistant Director of the Clark School of Engineering Undergraduate Student Affairs Office at The University of Maryland. She is a proud Tar Heel, having earned a B.A. in history as a Morehead-Cain Scholar at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also holds a Master of Arts degree in college student personnel from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. She enjoys traveling to national parks with her husband and two children, is on a quest to visit every MLB ballpark with her son (19 down, 11 to go!) and loves spoiling her black lab rescue.

MA, Bowling Green State University
BA, The University of North Carolina