Volume 6, Issue 1 (2014)

About the Contributors

Frank Trocco,Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in Lesley's Interdisciplinary Studies program. He is the co-founder of the National Audubon Society Expedition Institute. His scholarship is centered on the application of science in popular culture and conflicts between the popular and orthodox conceptions of science.

Nicky Duenkel, Ph.D., is currently Assistant Professor of Community Studies at Cape Brenton University. Her interests and expertise vary widely, including spirituality and contemplation, leadership as a spiritual practice, and the transformative potential of community. She has an elemental desire to live simply and to be in deep relationship with the rest of the natural world. Perhaps most importantly, Nicky's teaching and facilitation stem from an enduring place of hope.

Anne Elezabeth Pluto, Ph.D., is a Professor of Theatre and Literature at Lesley University. She strives to facilitate creativity in the classroom through mutual respect and diligence. Professor Pluto developed Lesley's Drama Minor and Drama track, and is the director of the Oxford Street Players Shakespearean theater troupe.

Bryson Dean-Gauthier, MFA, has been an artist since childhood, and as an adult has worked in the fields of graphic design, corporate communications, television and education. She has been a graphic design teacher for 15 years, currently with the Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, and is also an instructional design consultant at the New England Institute of Technology in Rhode Island.

Bryson's current creative work explores photography, digital imaging and mixed media, and takes inspiration from the intersections of fine art, design, mystery, spirit, the natural world and technology.

Estelle Archibold is a consultant and coach to leaders in schools and school districts in the area of restorative justice and school change. She previously served as a systems-level leader in a charter district with schools in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts. Estelle is currently a doctoral student in Organizational Behavior at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University. She received her BA from Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, and an MA in Ethics (with an emphasis in Health Policy and Bioethics) from Georgia State University, her Master of Divinity from the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and a Religion & Conflict Transformation Certificate from Boston Theological Institute. Estelle has more than 15 years of experience as a conflict transformation, education and community health consultant and professional with government agencies, faith-based institutions, not-for-profit/community organizations and educational institutions (both public and private). Estelle has applied her study and practice internationally in Liberia, West Africa with religious leaders in partnership with Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in Ghana studying spirituality and health, and in the United Arab Emirates with the Abu Dhabi Council of Education as a consultant in public education.

Carmen N. Veloria, Ed.D., has been an urban educator in the P-16 system as a classroom teacher, college access program administrator, and currently as an Assistant Professor. She holds an Ed.D. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and has published on pedagogical approaches to promoting access, equity and social justice. She focuses on systemic issues that negatively impact the educational trajectory of students of color, and brings this lens to her restorative justice work. Veloria teaches restorative justice at the college level and is also interested in college access initiatives for underrepresented students as well as persistence and retention efforts in higher education. her research interests include urban sociology/education, intersection of race, class, ethnicity, and gender, juvenile justice, and language usage and culture. Her most recent publications include Veloria, et al., (2014) Searching for Heroes: A Critical Examination of Student Emotional Responses Following Mandatory Social Justice Training Workshops, Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis. 2(2), Article 7 and Veloria, C., (2014) Attending to Small Talk in the Classroom: An Issue of Answerability/Responsibility. Pedagogy and the Human Sciences, 1 (4), 51-60.

Carolyn Boyes-Watson, Ph.D., is a Professor of Sociology at Suffolk University and founding director of the Center for Restorative Justice at Suffolk. She holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University and has published numerous articles and books on restorative justice, juvenile justice and the criminal justice system. Boyes-Watson is a national trainer in the BARJ model of restorative justice and has worked with schools, juvenile justice systems, youth-serving organizations and communities throughout New England to implement restorative justice. Her most recent publications include Peacemaking Circles and Urban Youth: Bringing Justice Home, Living Justice Press: MN and Heart of Hope: A Guide for Using Peacemaking Circles to Develop Emotional Literacy, Promote Healing & Build Healthy Relationships,with co-author Kay Pranis

Bryan Brophy-Baermann, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of political science, and Chair of the Social Sciences Division at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. His training and experience are largely within the sub-fields of international relations and comparative politics, with emphases on political violence and terrorism, U.S. foreign policy, and environmental politics.

Leila Bozorg, MA, holds a MA in City Planning form the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a BA in Government Studies from Wesleyan University. She is an urban policy and development practitioner in New York City, where she currently works as the Chief of Staff for Development at the NYC Department of Housing, Preservation and Development. She previously worked at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington DC as a Policy Advisor and Presidential Management Fellow.

Abbilyn Miller, Ph.D., holds a Ph.D. in Landscape Architecture from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Her research has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development with a 2010-2012 Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant and a 2013 appointment as a Presidential Management Fellow. She currently works for HUD in their Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs on homeless policy and programs.

Alexander Zhitnik is an honors student in Professor Mary Mindess’s Child Psychology class. His submission is an honors thesis. He also presented this paper at the Lesley University Community of Scholars day.