Faculty and Staff
Department Chair | Dept. Administrative Aides | Full-time Faculty | Part-time Faculty
The English and Reading Department is located in P3, Suite 122.
Department Chair
Email: charmaine.weston@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1680
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 122E
Biography
Because of her passion for Technical Communication, she helped evaluate and rethink the Technical Writing Program and English 103; she also served as the TP/SS English 102/103 coordinator and the collegewide distance learning English 103 coordinator in addition to serving on numerous collegewide committees. When inspiration strikes her, Professor Weston proposes study abroad trips. So far, has designed trips to Morocco, Iceland, and Italy; she co-led the Iceland trip. She even taught English in Macau. Furthermore, she enjoys collaborations with Montgomery County Public Schools to support underperforming students as well as with University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Georgetown University, and MC instructors on a National Institutes for Health program for Biology majors called Bridges to Baccalaureate.Hobbies: reading paranormal romance and rpg lit, writing short stories and other fiction, plus kayaking and ziplining
Educational Background
AA, Liberal Arts, Thomas Nelson Community CollegeASBS, Business Administration, Thomas Nelson Community College
BA, English–writing, Christopher Newport University
MA, English and Book Publishing, Rosemont College
Courses Taught
All writing all the time!
ENGL 101/A—Intro to College Writing
ENGL 102—Critical Reading, Writing, and Research
ENGL 103 (often)-- Critical Reading, Writing, and Research at Work
ENGL 110--Grammar
Email: urvi.mistry@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-3886
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 122G
Educational Background
BS, Accounting/Business Management, UMUCAA, Business, Montgomery College
Full-time Faculty
Email: shayla.atkins@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1667
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 114
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Dr. Atkins teaches and has taught at several colleges and universities, which include
undergraduate courses in freshman composition, African American literature, introduction
to college composition, business writing, film and literature, introduction to literature,
American literature, and a graduate course in African American literature. Prior to
teaching on the collegiate level, Dr. Atkins taught seventh grade Language Arts. Her
research interests are family dynamics, sites of trauma, performance, 20th- and 21st-century
African American literature and drama, and women's literature and drama.
Beyond the classroom, Professor Atkins enjoys reading books or plays, seeing plays,
watching movies, traveling the world, and hosting family and friends’ gatherings.
For the last few years, she has served as a volunteer usher at Arena Stage in Washington,
DC. In the summer, she also teaches writing in the sciences and professional writing
for academic enrichment programs.
Educational Background
BA, English, Education minor, Florida A&M UniversityMA, English Language & Literature, University of Maryland
PhD, English–African American literature and drama specialization, Howard University
Specialty and Favorite courses
African American Literature (ENGL 227)Film and Literature (ENGL 235)
College Writing (ENGL 101A)
Critical Reading, Writing, and Research (ENGL 102)
Email: cinder.cooper@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-3881
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 124
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Barnes is a fellow with the Global Humanities Institute and former recipient of
a Faculty Outstanding Service Award. She currently serves as the Co-chair of the
General Education Standing Committee. A native South Carolinian, she is interested
in African American history and ancestry, southern lore, and gothic literature. Her
passion is social justice, womanism, and traveling.
Professor Barnes writes non-fiction prose along with poetry. For the past four years,
she has served as a member of the Victims Services Advisory Board and as an outreach
volunteer with Montgomery County’s Victims Assistance and Sexual Assault Program.
Some of her writing can be found at Medium.com.
Educational Background
BA, English, University of South CarolinaMA, English, Northern Illinois University
Email: joseph.couch@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1352
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 119
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
A first-generation college student who had to balance work and school from day one, Professor Couch is living proof that the writing process really can make anyone into a solid writer with time, patience, and persistence. When not teaching composition or literature, he often works on his own writing, and he also enjoys plays, films, music, and art. Helping his students to improve their writing skills in preparation for graduation to four-year institutions like UMD and elsewhere, as well as for everyday applications to their professional growth, is his professional passion.Educational Background
BA, Radio, TV, and Film; and English, University of MarylandMA, English, Florida State University
PhD, English, University of Maryland
Email: matthew.decker@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-5807
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 118
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Since 2011, Matthew Decker has taught developmental and credit-level English composition courses as well as Introduction to Literature and Film and other literature courses at Montgomery College. During his time at MC, he has been a faculty associate for the E-Learning, Innovation, and Teaching Excellence professional development organization; a course coordinator for ENGL 102, Critical Reading, Writing, and Research; a member of the Global Humanities Institute Seminar Abroad to India; and, most recently, a special projects coordinator for the Paul Peck Humanities Institute, an opportunity that allows him to explore innovative pedagogy, like digital storytelling, with the Smithsonian Learning Lab.Educational Background
BA, English, St. Mary’s College of MarylandMA, Literature, American University
Email: rita.kranidis@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1617
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3, Room 216
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Kranidis has taught at the college level for more than 30 years. Her training and expertise are in teaching college writing, British and American Literature, cultural studies, literary theory and criticism. She also has expertise in global learning and in teaching the humanities with a global focus.She has served the College, her discipline, and her campus: as chairperson of the English Department on the Takoma Park Campus; as Women’s Studies campus coordinator; as collegewide Writing in the Disciplines director; as director of the collegewide Global Humanities Institute, and as co-lead of the Many Voices, One College fellowship program, both funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Her research and teaching interests include bringing the world into the classroom and preparing students to be global citizens. Other interests are utopian visions, consumerism, issues of global concern, interdisciplinary collaborations, and collaborations with colleges and universities abroad. She is an immigrant from Greece and started to learn English at the age of 12; teaching immigrant students is a priority for her personally and professionally.
Educational Background
BA, English and Women’s Studies, Mount Holyoke CollegeMA, American and British Literature, CW Post Center, Long Island University
PhD, Victorian Literature and Culture, Feminist Theory and Criticism, Stony Brook University
Specialty and Favorite Courses
Introduction to the Short StoryIntroduction to Women's and Gender Studies
English 101A.
Email: michael.leblanc@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1382
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 207
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Since he came to MC, Professor LeBlanc has championed creative writing at the college, serving as the creative writing coordinator and the literature coordinator, teaching a range of general education arts and humanities classes, coordinating TP/SS Humanities Days, organizing readings, and editing the award-winning The Potomac Review and The Sligo Journal of Arts and Letters. He has been a recruiter and instructor for the Renaissance Scholars Program for seven years to date and a leader in developing open educational resources for the core writing classes for three years to date.Educational Background
BS, Psychology, University of FloridaBA, English, University of Florida
MA, Fiction Writing, Florida State University
PhD, English Literature, University of California, Riverside
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 122B
Biography
Professor Pinkard, native of Georgia by way of Tennessee, has taught at several community colleges. With over 15 years in education, her training and proficiency are in teaching Developmental English, ESL, freshman composition, introduction to literature, topics in literature and African American Literature. Prior to teaching at the collegiate level, she began her career in secondary education.
Professor Pinkard had the privilege of being featured on the Emmy nominated Netflix docu-series Last Chance U. She has written and published her 1st children’s book in a series, “Nate and His Magic Lion.” Her interests are to help people become the best versions of themselves; whereby, she became a Certified Life Coach and a RYT-500 Yoga Instructor. She has assisted her community by volunteering with non-profit agencies teaching native & non-native adults how to read, as well as being a liaison working to eradicate poverty through literacy.
She enjoys the arts: museums, plays, music, strolling through nature, a good book, comedy, traveling and living her best life.Educational Background
Master of Science in Post-Secondary, English, Troy State University
Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education, English, Georgia State University
Email: lynn.roessner-ankney@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-3918
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 121
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Prof. Roessner-Ankney has been teaching English (primarily developmental and first-year writing) since 2006. She started her teaching career at Harold Washington College, a part of the City Colleges of Chicago system, as well as Columbia College Chicago and East-West University before moving to Montgomery College in 2010. At MC, Prof. Roessner-Ankney has been a coordinator of developmental English at Takoma Park/Silver Spring as well as a Smithsonian Fellow.Educational Background
BA, English and Political Science, Belmont UniversityMA, English Literature, DePaul University
Email: stephanie.sabourin@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1687
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 203
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Sabourin most appreciates that students trust her to discuss their feelings of depression and intimate problems. She has dedicated herself to teaching developmental classes and integrating service learning into her classes.Educational Background
BA, English, University of Texas, Pan AmericanMA, English, University of Texas, Pan American
Email: esther.schwartz-mckinzie@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1367
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 117
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Esther Schwartz-McKinzie has taught Composition, Literature and Women’s Studies at Montgomery College as a full-time faculty member since 2001. She earned her Ph.D. in British and American 19th Century literature from Temple University, and her research and published work has focused on recovering “lost” women’s voices—especially those who used popular media as a venue to speak out against injustice. At the Takoma Park/Silver Spring campus, she has served as Women’s Studies coordinator, department chair, and chair of chairs. College-wide, she has served as Paul Peck Humanities Institute Director, Bringing in the Bystander coordinator, and as the Academic Area’s Title IX representative. Her film, “In Their Own Words, Montgomery College Student Veterans,” completed as a sabbatical project, helped to increase awareness of the special needs of student veterans. Dr. Schwartz-McKinzie has mentored students completing PPHI internships at the Library of Congress and at the Smithsonian since 2007, and she has participated in the Program for the Advancement to College English since 2012. She graduated from the HERS Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education in 2014, traveled as an awardee of the MC Global Humanities Institute Faculty Fellowship Program to China in 2016, and completed an Honors Faculty Fellowship in 2018. Part of the first cohort to complete Safe Zones training at MC, she is a proud LGBTQ ally.Educational Background
BA, English, Bard CollegePhD, 19th Century British and American Literature, Temple University
Email: miriam.simon@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1663
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, NP 231
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Simon has taught every course in ESL, English, and reading at Montgomery College. She developed the earliest learning communities, contributed to redesigning developmental education at MC, and for four years advised the award-winning student newspaper Excalibur. For three years to date, she has advised students as a cadre counselor.Educational Background
BA, Psychology and Art, University of VermontMA, Theoretical Linguistics, San Francisco State University
Email: deborah.taylor@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1619
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 208
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Taylor has taught all ages—from Johns Hopkins’ Talented Youth Program to the University of Maryland’s English Department, with several years’ teaching American Studies and literature in Beijing, China. As a board member of Global Humanities and a coordinator of Women’s Studies, she teaches GHUM 101 and WMST 101 regularly. She advises students as a cadre counselor.Professor Taylor is an avid biker hiker with her dog, Duncan, and a Tai Chi practitioner.
Educational Background
BA, Women’s Studies/History, Bates CollegePhD, English Language and Literature, University of Maryland
Email: gregory.wahl@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1554
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 202
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Educational Background
BA, English, University of Northern IowaMA, English, University of Northern Iowa
PhD, American Studies, University of Maryland
Email: sharon.teuben@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1346
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P4 205
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Professor Teuben-Rowe has a varied background including high school English teacher, ESU administrator, academic counselor at UIUC, lecturer at UMCP, and researcher for the National Reading Research Center at UMCP and UMBC. She has been at MC since 1996 and recently assisted with the curriculum redesign for developmental English and Reading.
Educational Background
BA, ESL, Linguistics and Spanish, University of California, Los AngelesMEd, Teaching of Reading and Writing, East Stroudsburg University
PhD, ABD, Reading Education and ESL, University of Maryland
Coordinator Duties
IERW Coordinator in the English-Reading Department, TPSS campus.
Part-time Faculty
Email: victoria.baldassano@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-389-8432
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, RC 111
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
President, Montgomery College Part-Time Faculty Union (SEIU Local 500)Educational Background
BA, Economics and Journalism minor, American UniversityMA, Writing, Johns Hopkins University
Educational Background
BA, English Education, University of Delaware
MS, Adolescent Literacy, Walden University
Biography
Joshua Bangera-Young was an English teacher at College Park Academy, a college-prep charter school in Prince George’s County, for ten years. There he taught courses in Creative Writing, Language and Literature, AP Language Composition, and AP Capstone Seminar. In 2022 he was named “Educator of the Year” by the Maryland Charter School Alliance. When he is not revising his latest novel or blogging about science-fiction, Joshua enjoys theatrical plays, movies, video games, and hiking.
Email: windy.jefferson-jackson@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-1383
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, P3 120
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
In addition to leading analyses and reforms in Montgomery College’s reading program, Outstanding Faculty Award-winner Professor Jefferson-Jackson has served as a master teacher, consultant, curriculum developer, trainer, and writer for the Library of Congress, the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development, TRIO, Merlot, the Universities at Shady Grove, the University of Maryland College Park, the US Department of Education, and the American College Testing Program, Inc.Educational Background
BS, Elementary Education and English, Adelphi UniversityMA, Educational Psychology/Reading, Teachers College, Columbia University
Graduate Certificate, Computer/Web Based Instruction, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Certificate of Attendance, Summer Program–Psychology, Cambridge University (UK)
Email: lisa.nevanslocke@montgomerycollege.edu
Phone: 240-567-5869
Office Location: Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus, RC 112
Office Hours: Contact the professor or check your syllabus.
Biography
Prof. Nevans Locke is an award-winning newspaper editor and reporter who has covered everything from local and state politics to the White House and Capitol Hill. She has published thousands of articles in newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and on websites, including the New York Daily News, Washington Times, Scholastic.com, Bethesda Magazine, and The74Million.org. She co-edited Going Places with Children in Washington, D.C. and currently writes for MarylandMatters.org.She is in her 16th year teaching English at Montgomery College, where she is involved in student success programs including the Writing, Reading, and Language Center; Achieving the Promise Academy; and ACES. She is the recipient of the Outstanding Part-Time Faculty Award.
Educational Background
BA, English Phi Beta Kappa, Wesleyan UniversityMS, Journalism, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism