Office and People Directory

Anie Sklar

Biography

Anie Sklar has been a Champlain College Online Adjunct Faculty since 2008. Anie’s classrooms emphasize self-reflection and applying topics to real life experiences. Some of Anie’s favorite comments from students are times when students’ real life personal and professional relationships improved because of what they learned in class. And students saying they appreciate Anie’s active engagement in class discussions resulting in them feeling heard, getting valuable feedback and resources, and saying they feel cared about which makes students want to care too. Anie’s teaching is always evolving including finding ways to incorporate appreciative inquiry strategies into her classroom. Increasing student engagement and identifying ways to help students thrive, excel and enable them to flourish.

Anie Sklar is a Vermont licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Therapist. For more information checkout her website at https://ottercreekcounseling.com/ There are similarities between Anie’s positive psychology approach with clients and the appreciative inquiry approach at Champlain College. Both focus on people’s strengths and successes.

Anie has been teaching bachelor level college classes since 2003. Courses include Introduction to Psychology and Interpersonal Communication.

Distinctions & Awards

Anie Sklar was the first Adjunct Faculty featured in the Champlain Online Faculty Newsletter. She has also been nominated multiple times for her Teaching Excellence at Vermont State Colleges.

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Aubrian Smith

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Brendan Smith

Biography

Brendan began his career in Admissions at Champlain College in July 2023 after graduating from Champlain with a B.S. in Game Production Management only a few months prior. He still finds himself very active in the Game Studio community today, and loves to offer advice to any incoming or current students! He is excited to speak to prospective students and encourage them to follow their passions while in college and beyond.

Brendan can be found at any of the local bookstores, on the bike trail, or at Muddy Waters Cafe when not working in the Admissions office. If you see him out and about, be sure to say hello!

Territory

Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts (Hampden), Rhode Island

Favorite things to do in Vermont

Martone’s Market, Papa Frank’s, Pingala Cafe

Biking, skiing, and checking out local eateries

Hobbies

Biking, cooking, hiking, swimming, gaming

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John St. Hilaire

Biography

Senior-level operations and financial executive with 32 years of experience in the natural gas industry and over 25 years in the credit union industry. Provided strategic leadership in growing Green Mountain Credit Union from a $4 million to a $95 million financial institution. Proven leadership in the Energy industry with a diverse team across the Engineering, Construction, Maintenance, Field Services, and special projects areas. Successfully operated 118 miles of transmission and 850+ miles of distribution pipelines with dynamic teams who were focused on the safe operations and integrity of the systems. Proven track record of developing teams, delivering results, and managing budgets to support financial objectives.

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Elaine St. Jean

Biography

Elaine holds a Master of Science in Leadership and a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Development and has worked in the training and talent development field for over 25 years. She is passionate about developing innovative and effective learning opportunities which utilize adult learning theory, brain science, and proven training methodologies. She enjoys sailing, kayaking, hiking, and is involved in community theater.

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Matthew Stattel

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Holly Steeves

Biography

Holly Steeves worked for more than twenty-six years as a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) before retiring at the end of 2021. She began her career in the Los Angeles Division working multi-million-dollar financial crimes, before transferring to the Boston Division where she began her journey into the work of cybercriminal activity. Working cybercrime launched her focus into digital forensics and lead to her obtaining FBI Digital Forensic Certification(s) (as well as numerous others) and the title of Special Agent ““ (Digital) Forensic Examiner. She spent the last fifteen years of her career in this role as well as the role of Computer Analysis Response Team (CART) Coordinator, responsible for running a small computer forensic laboratory. She now works as a Digital Forensics Consultant and teaches for a forensic software company.

Distinctions & Awards

The United State Attorney Director’s Award for Superior Performance

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Dana Steinhoff

Biography

Dana Steinhoff is Program Director of Game Business and Publishing, and Game Production Management in the Game Studio at Champlain College. She holds an MFA in Emergent Media from Champlain. Her specialization is in teaching interdisciplinary teams to create interactive digital products while learning about leadership, interactive design, team dynamics, and agile project management methodology.

Steinhoff co-founded and served as the Executive Director of Rad Magpie, a Vermont-based non-profit organization that is doing its part to dismantle the patriarchy and white supremacy in video games by radically empowering underrepresented voices through video game development. Previously, she managed the Exquisite Corpse Company, an avant-garde immersive theater company in NYC.

Steinhoff enjoys renovating her Winooski home and acting, most recently with Vermont Stage. You may be able to catch her performing in her cover band Dana and the Dads (limited engagements).

Distinctions & Awards

Academic Innovation Award 2023, Champlain College: For work completed on Re/Imagining Science DEIBJ Committee

Publications & Abstracts

My reflection on the evolution of Rad Magpie, the nonprofit organization I cofounded to support marginalized video game developers.

Curriculum Vitae

READ MY CV

Favorite Quote

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”

—Anaïs Nin

Recommended Reading

Want to get a heads up on how we build games at Champlain? Read Clinton Keith’s: “Agile Game Development: Build, Play, Repeat”

Jonathan Haidt’s “The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion” is a must-read right now to better understand the massive political divide in this country.

Office Hours

Sign up for an appointment

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Laura Stevens

Biography

Dr. Laura L. Stevens has been active in higher education for over 20 years and has developed content for traditional, blended/hybrid, weekend, and online courses for the Social Sciences/Humanities. Her areas of focus include Humanities (Intro), Communications, Fine Arts, World Religions/Global Mythologies, and Art History. She has developed curriculum and assessments (as well as faculty training) with publishers to create e-Content and textbook support materials.

Her personal philosophy is “Success is measured by the quality of experience that makes you the person of your fullest potential.”

Distinctions & Awards

• F.A.T.E. Conference 2015
• Tablets to Twitter, Pearson Publishing Inc. New York, 2013
• Developing Outcomes, Praxis Conference, Argosy University, Tampa, 2012
• Faculty Perceptions of Online Rating Systems, Argosy University, 2011
• Vietnam Veteran War Memorial, “The Wall that Heals” exhibit, 2010

Publications & Abstracts

Faculty Front Door

Professional & Scholastic Affiliations

• IACBE
• Quality Matters

Recommended Reading, Listening & Viewing

• How the Other Half Lives, Jacob Riis
• The Glass Castle, Jeanette Walls
• The Trotula, ed. Monica Green

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David Stever

Biography

David Stever is a mission-led business leader and brand-builder. For over 25 years at the senior executive level, he has continuously driven growth in the consumer-packaged goods sector, culminating in his role as CEO of Ben & Jerry’s. As both a CEO and long-serving CMO, David led the global organization through transformative growth while expanding the brands impact. This growth was driven through meticulous attention to product innovation, commitment to brand reinvention, and a focus on maintaining the unique organizational culture of one of the most iconic, beloved, and counter-cultural brands in the world.

Prior to becoming CEO, David served as CMO of Ben & Jerry’s. Under his leadership, Ben & Jerry’s became the #1 brand in its category for brand power, digital commerce, and Gen Z affinity. He scaled global marketing, innovation, digital engagement, and public relations, creating breakthrough campaigns that earned 17B impressions in 2022 and “Genius” status in Gartner’s L2 Digital IQ index. In 2020, David received the Social Responsibility Award from the CMO Club.

A defining characteristic of David’s leadership has been a steadfast focus on organizational culture and mission. The successes noted here come from a commitment to creating a powerful team: to nurture creativity, encourage entrepreneurial spirit, and drive innovation while striving for ways to create real impact. This work bridging commercial success and values-led stewardship positions him uniquely to serve companies at the intersection of profit and purpose. He holds a Master of Science in Administration from Saint Michael’s College and a BA from the University of Vermont.

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Jennifer Stockwell

Biography

Jennifer Stockwell has been with the college since August 2008 and has held positions with Champlain College Online and the Registrar’s Office. She has experience in academic advising, adult education, and transfer students. Prior to joining Champlain College, she worked for 10 years at Vermont Student Assistance Corporation counseling students on the topics of college planning and financing.

Jenn has a Master’s Degree in Counseling from the University of Vermont and is committed to promoting access to education and advocating for students’ success.

What are your hobbies?

Camping, hiking, downhill skiing, walking the dog, traveling, eating maple creemees

Favorite local eateries

Jericho Cafe and Tavern, Shy Guy Gelato

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Tanya Lee Stone

Biography

Dr. Tanya Lee Stone started teaching at Champlain in 2008. As a professor, she encourages students to “prioritize process over product,” and “embrace the power of play” in their work. As a former editor and current author, Stone brings long-held connections in the publishing world into her classrooms, inviting authors, artists, editors, and agents to engage directly with students. She teaches Professional Pathways to Publishing, Intro to Writing and Publishing, Writing Children’s Literature, Middle-Grade and Young Adult Literature, and others.

Stone is the author of more than 100 books for children and young adults. She is best known for telling true stories of people who have been missing from our histories, with themes of empowering girls and women threaded throughout her body of work.

Her books have earned many awards, including an NAACP Image Award, Sibert Medal, Golden Kite, Boston Globe-Horn Book, NCTE Orbis Pictus, and NPR Best Books. Her YA novel, A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl, is an ALA Top 100 Banned Books of the Decade. Stone’s articles, essays, and reviews have appeared in The New York Times, The Horn Book, and Publishers Weekly. She often speaks on topics of writing, nonfiction, and censorship.

Some of Tanya Lee Stone’s Books

• Remembering Rosalind Franklin: The Discovery of the Double Helix Structure of DNA (Little Brown/Christy Ottaviano Books, 2024)
• Peace is a Chain Reaction: How World War II Japanese Balloon Bombs Brought People of Two Nations Together (Candlewick Press, 2022)
• Pass Go and Collect $200: The Real Story of How Monopoly Was Invented (Macmillan/Christy Ottaviano Books, 2018)
• Girl Rising: Changing the World One Girl at a Time (Penguin Random House/Wendy Lamb Books 2017)
• The House that Jane Built: A Story about Jane Addams (Macmillan/Christy Ottaviano Books 2015)
• Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles (Candlewick, 2014)
• Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors?: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell (Macmillan/Christy Ottaviano Books, 2013)
• Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream (Candlewick, 2010)
• The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll’s History and Her Impact on Us (Viking, 2010)
• Elizabeth Leads the Way: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Right to Vote (Macmillan/Christy Ottaviano Books, 2008)
• Sandy’s Circus: A Story about Alexander Calder (Viking, 2008)
• A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl (Penguin Random House/Wendy Lamb Books, 2006)

Distinctions & Awards

NAACP Image Award, Robert F. Sibert Medal

Recommended Reading, Listening & Viewing

• Gilbert, Elizabeth. Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. Artists, writers, creative folks of any kind–have this book on hand. You won’t regret it. There is nothing earth-shattering in here but it is filled with beautiful reminders and nudges to honor your own process and get unstuck when you feel stuck.
• Bayles, David & Orland, Ted. Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking. I have given this book to more people I can count. It’s one of those books you need on hand whenever you are experiencing imposter syndrome or feeling any pangs of “I’m not good enough” to create your art–whatever form it takes.
• Edited by Marcus, Leonard. Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom.
  This book contains a collection of letters that the innovative and inimitable editor Ursula Nordstrom sent to artists and writers she worked with over many decades. This collection lets us in to the often unseen world of communication and process that happens in that ever-important relationship between editor and artist.

Curriculum Vitae

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Favorite Quote

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

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William Stratton

Biography

Bill has been teaching at Champlain for 5 years now, and enjoys the classes, students, and faculty he is lucky enough to interact with.

Publications & Abstracts

I have scores of poems published, and two books in print.

Recommended Reading, Listening & Viewing

I am perhaps biased, but I enjoy reading a lot of poetry, science fiction, fantasy, and CNF. It’s hard to recommend only one or two, but I’m happy to expound given more space and time.

I also quite like audio books, where the performers make a big difference. Ray Porter is a favorite, as is Steven Pacey.

I’m pickier with my movies and TV shows, but I recently re-watched Mr. Robot and enjoyed it even more on a second viewing.

Favorite Quote

“In a minute there is time For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.”

—T.S. Eliot

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Robyn Stratton-Berkessel

Biography

Robyn’s first career was as a Teacher-of-English-as-a-second language (ESL) in the workplace in her homeland Australia. She loved the meaning and purpose of that contribution. She designed many programs under the umbrella of English for Specific Purposes such as English for Engineers, English for Medical Professionals, English for Administrators.

Robyn Stratton-Berkessel has enjoyed a career in human and organization development for nearly 30 years, focusing on whole system, participatory change methodologies.

Designer and Facilitator of Positive Change
Robyn is recognized for her strengths in designing and facilitating positive change. She collaborates with executives and teams across functional, cultural, and geographic boundaries, designing and delivering impactful change initiatives. Her work focuses on creating cultures of ownership, engagement, and inclusion. With strong leadership skills and experience in diverse arenas, she aims to create change at deep, transformational levels, resulting in sustainable and energizing outcomes.

Experience in Appreciative Inquiry
Robyn has extensive experience in applying Appreciative Inquiry across various sectors, including corporations, educational institutions, and government agencies in both Australia and the USA. She has facilitated large-scale summits and strategic planning sessions for organizations like Google, BAE Systems, and community colleges, focusing on leadership and visioning. Her consulting work has involved enhancing values and culture alignment for companies such as Sonos and improving employee engagement at Forrester Research. Robyn has also conducted numerous Appreciative Inquiry trainings, sharing her expertise in participatory change methodologies.

Qualifications
Robyn holds a Master of Organizational Behavior and Systems from Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Sydney, Australia. Additionally, she possesses numerous certifications and credentials in the field of human and organization development, including the Positive Business and Society Change Program from the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, along with several certifications in personality profiling and psychometric surveys.

Publications & Abstracts

Robyn is driven to share effective practices, as demonstrated in her book, “Appreciative Inquiry for Collaborative Solutions” (2010, Pfeiffer, Imprint of John Wiley, San Francisco), which offers 21 strength-based workshops. Her online training courses provide self-directed, video-based instruction on integrating positive emotions, strength-based approaches, and Appreciative Inquiry into various aspects of life, including home, work, and play. In 2014, she launched a podcast show (http://positivitystrategist.org/podcast), engaging with practitioners and thought leaders to share stories and experiences about positive change methodologies, with a strong emphasis on Appreciative Inquiry.

Appreciative Inquiry for Collaborative Solutions

Recommended Reading, Listening & Viewing

• TEDx Talk: “Playful Inquiry—Try this Anywhere”
• Positive Strategy Podcast

Curriculum Vitae

READ MY CV

Favorite Quote

Lao Tzu (604 BC–531 BC) said, “A leader is at their best when people barely know they exist.”

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John Stroup

Biography

John Stroup came to Champlain College in the fall of 2009, having received his PhD in Education from the University of Virginia and his BA from The University of the South. Before receiving his PhD, Professor Stroup taught Middle School and High School English and Social Studies in San Antonio, TX. Among his many responsibilities, he also coached the middle school boys basketball team.

Professor Stroup’s research focuses on teacher education, educational technology and civic education. His current research investigates the ways in which youth become engaged in political and civic activities. He is a scholar and teacher in Middle and Secondary Teacher Education. He is a member of the Executive Council for the Vermont Educator Preparation Inquiry Collaborative (EPIC) which oversees the the Vermont Licensure Portfolio Statewide Calibration System.

Professor Stroup notes that “Learning is the experience of developing, and often changing, previously held knowledge, aims and behaviors. Great teachers make learning possible by marshalling together the widest variety of issues and perspectives for in-depth exploration. This exploration is most valuable when students are confident to participate fully and creatively.”

About his teaching, Professor Stroup believes that “Teacher educators bear a crucial responsibility. As a teacher of teachers, I know that my influence goes far beyond my own classroom walls. My effort to educate future teachers impacts the learning communities of future generations. In this sense, I view my teaching responsibilities as my commitment to participate positively in my own community.”

Distinctions & Awards

Champlain College Service-Learning Faculty Award Recipient, 2019-2020.
Champlain College, Pay it Forward Diversity Award Recipient, 2014-2015.
Vermont Campus Compact, Campus Leadership for Civic Engagement Finalist, 2012.
Vermont Campus Compact, Engaged Scholar Finalist, 2010.

Publications & Abstracts

Stroup, J. (August, 2018). Vermont Creative Schools Initiative Year 1 & 2 Evaluation Report. Montpelier, VT: Community Engagement Lab. https://www.communityengagementlab.org/research

Stroup, J., Dodson, K., Elias, K., & Gewirtzman, A. (forthcoming 2015) A Passion for service? The motivations for volunteerism among first year college students. Journal of the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. View article here: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1102757

Jones, J. N., Warnaar, B. L., Bench, J. H., & Stroup, J. (2014). Promoting the development of moral identity, behavior, and commitment in a social action program. Journal of Peace Education, 1-21. View article here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17400201.2014.898626

Stroup, J. T., Bunting, H., Dodson, K., Horne, M., & Portilla, J. (2013). Promoting a Deliberative and Active Citizenry: Developing Traditional First Year College Student Political Engagement. College Teaching, 61(4), 116-126. View article here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/87567555.2013.809327

Jones, J.N., Bench, J.H., Warnaar, B.L., & Stroup, J.T. (2013). Participation as Relational Process: Unpacking Involvement in Social Action and Community Service. Afterschool Matters, 18(2), 9-16. View article here: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1016820

Curriculum Vitae

READ MY CV

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