View more about the members of the Community-Engaged Teaching and Learning Fellows Program for the Academic Years 2022 – 2023 below.
Assistant Professor
Department of Family Science & Human Development
Office Location: University Hall 4039
Email: nesteruko@montclair.edu
Olena Nesteruk is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family Science and Human Development. She earned her Ph.D. in Human Ecology from Louisiana State University and joined Montclair State in 2007. Her main research interest is in studying immigrant family dynamics over the life course and across generations. She has published and presented work on acculturation and intergenerational relationships; development of heritage language and ethnic identity; as well as transnational bereavement and immigrants in middle and later life. Professor Nesteruk teaches courses on individual and family development, family theories, and immigrant families. Through various projects and initiatives, she has been engaging her students in work with communities, both local and international. Dr. Nesteruk is committed to bridging classroom experiences with community engagement and scholarship.
Assistant Professor, Department of World Languages and Cultures
Email: lafountainp@mail.montclair.edu
Pascale LaFountain is an Associate Professor of French and German. Her Research is largely on German and French theater from the eighteenth century to the present, and she teaches courses from 101 through the Masters level. Dr. Lafountain is passionate about learning both inside and outside the classroom, and has been insturmental in establishing a very active German garden plot at the Montclair Community Garden Plot on campus, as well as a “SPARK for German Lab” at which about fifteen students per semester teach German in local elementary schools enrichment programs.
Director
Global Center for Human Trafficking
Office Location: Conrad J. Schmitt Hall
Email: boaka@montclair.edu
Ali Boak (she/her/hers) is the Director of the Global Center on Human Trafficking located within the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Montclair State University. Ali is a passionate leader in the global movement to end human trafficking. For more than 25 years, she has worked alongside survivors of all forms of trafficking to develop innovative, survivor driven approaches to prevent and address human trafficking across the United States, Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Asia. She began this journey when she discovered that traffickers were recruiting children and youth out of the schools, universities and orphanages where she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer and Fulbright Scholar in the Baltic States. As a pioneer in the anti-trafficking movement, Ali co-founded several organizations, networks, and coalitions at the forefront of the anti-trafficking field today including the International Organization for Adolescents (IOFA), Freedom Network USA, the Westchester County Anti-Trafficking Task Force, and the National Human Trafficking and Disabilities Working Group. A recognized expert on the issue of child and adolescent trafficking and exploitation, she has provided training, technical assistance and capacity building support to hundreds of criminal justice, social service, and community organizations in more than 12 countries. Ali is a frequent lecturer, keynote speaker, and advisor to numerous organizations including Catholic Charities USA Advisory Task Force on Domestic Child Trafficking, the National Child Welfare Advisory Board, the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Victims of Crime Expert Working Group on Trafficking of Minors, and the U.S. Department of Justice, President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice. Ali graduated Magna Cum Laude from the State University of New York at Albany with a B.A. in Political Science, International Affairs concentration and earned a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, the Division for Population and Family Health.
Adjunct Professor, Writing
Email: mccormickmi@montclair.edu
Michele McCormick received her master’s degree in Teaching of English from Teacher’s College, Columbia University. She worked as a high school English teacher for over a decade before joining Montclair State University in 2018 to teach WRIT105 and WRIT106. She also teaches First-Year Writing Courses at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Florham. Her pedagogy is informed by strong student/professor relationships and creating community within her courses. She takes pride in helping students develop personal voice in their writing and creates safe spaces for them to tell their unique stories. Her interests and research include extending opportunities for students to publish their writing beyond the traditional confines of course spaces.
Assistant Professor, Department of Counseling
Email: killiant@montclair.edu
Dr. Tom Killian (he/him/his) is an Assistant Professor of Counseling in the Department of Counseling in the College of Education and Human Services. Dr. Killian earned his PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision with a minor in Applied Statistics and Research Methods from the University of Northern Colorado. He is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in New York, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in New Jersey, and a National Certified Counselor (NCC). Dr. Killian has over a decade of clinical experience. He has worked for university counseling and psychological services, a university athletic department, and a residential facility. Broadly, his research agenda focuses on multicultural and social justice competency development within counseling and counselor education, which is evaluated and disseminated through community-engagement. He views his research as opportunities to work with communities, by breaking down academic silos and barriers to communal access and through the active joining of diverse perspectives. Specifically, through the Community-Engaged Teaching and Learning Fellow’s program, he plans to develop a school-based mental health counseling training pipeline, through Montclair State University, in partnership with local school districts.
Associate Professor, Program Head of Fashion Design and Merchandising
Department of Art and Design
Office Location: Life Hall 0424
Email: chaem@montclair.edu
Dr. May Chae, an associate professor of Fashion Design and Merchandising (FADM) in the Department of Art and Design, is not just a researcher and educator but an active member of the fashion design and merchandising community. She received a Ph.D. in Clothing and Textiles from Virginia Tech, specializing in functional design. Her research interests are centered on fashion and adaptive and inclusive design for people with physical disabilities. Her work is a beacon of empathy and understanding, aiming to make fashion accessible to all. Her background and experience in research and teaching are embraced with community-engaged pedagogies, scholarship, and project work. She continuously incorporates her research into teaching to benefit learning outcomes that can result in fashion design students being more creative, engaged, and critical thinkers. She has presented and published her work at various conferences and journals internationally and nationally. Additionally, she has been awarded several grants from Cotton Incorporated to identify clothing issues and develop prototypes reflected by the needs of her research participants, such as people with physical impairments, baby boomers for golf and tennis wear, and juniors for golf wear. Her active involvement in the International Textile and Apparel Association, the Costume Society of America, and the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences further connects her to the broader fashion design and merchandising field. As a CETL fellow, Dr. Chae fosters a collaborative environment by integrating a project-based learning research project with fashion design senior students. This allows them to delve into the clothing needs of senior citizens, an underserved population living with physical challenges. The students and seniors form pairs to work together. The culmination of their efforts is showcased at the FADM annual fashion show, where senior citizens model the finished garments designed by the fashion students.