Concierge Navigation Program for Faculty

In this unprecedented and quickly-changing time, every course will need a virtual plan that is flexible and agile. GW Libraries and Academic Innovation (LAI) is committed to offering faculty the training and development opportunities they need to teach effectively, regardless of the manner of delivery.

As a key component of that initiative, LAI has formed concierge navigation teams to simplify support and offer personalized assistance for instructors. The teams, made up of an instructional, technological, and/or library professional, are dedicated to connecting faculty with all of the services of LAI. This can include academic and instructional technology assistance, questions about teaching in a virtual environment, consultations on new research tools, and general library questions.

Check below for a list of the concierge navigation team members assigned to each department. Please feel free to contact them with any questions or feedback.

Columbian College of Arts & Sciences
Elliott School of International Affairs 
Graduate School of Education and Human Development
School of Business
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Columbian College of Arts & Sciences

American Studies 

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

Anthropology 

Shmuel Ben-Gad, Librarian
Ann James, Data Services Librarian
Leah Richardson, Research and Outreach Librarian

Applied Science 

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

Art & Art History

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Art Therapy 

Eugene Abedejos, Multimedia Producer, Animation
Patrick Hart, Audiovisual Technician
Dolsy Smith, Software Developer, ILS
Mark Yoffe, Russia, Eurasia, Eastern, and Central Europe Resource Center Librarian

Biological Sciences 

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

Chemistry

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

Classical & Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations

Amal Cavender, Middle East & North Africa Librarian
Jennifer King, Collections Coordinator & Manuscripts Librarian
Felipe Rivera, Audiovisual Technician
Lauren Tidmore, Instructional Designer

Classical Acting

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Organizational Sciences and Communication 

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

Corcoran School of the Arts and Design (all departments)

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Data Science 

Luis Aviles, Senior Audiovisual Technician
Megan Potterbusch, Data Services Librarian
Caitlin Savoldelli, Instructional Designer

East Asian Lang & Lit 

Kelly Chen Andres, Lead Graphic Designer
Yan He, China Documentation Center Librarian
Keith Williams, Audiovisual Technician
Laura Wrubel,Software Developer

Economics  

Kelly Chen Andres, Lead Graphic Designer
Yan He, China Documentation Center Librarian
Keith Williams, Audiovisual Technician
Laura Wrubel,Software Developer

English 

Daphna Atias, Educational Developer
Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Mitsuyo Sato, Okinawa Collection/Japan Resource Center Librarian

Film Studies

Kelly Chen Andres, Lead Graphic Designer
Yan He, China Documentation Center Librarian
Keith Williams, Audiovisual Technician
Laura Wrubel,Software Developer

Fine Arts

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Forensic Sciences

Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Brigette Kamsler, University Archivist
Matthew Schweighart, Senior Programmer Analyst

Geography 

Shmuel Ben-Gad, Librarian
Ann James, Data Services Librarian
Leah Richardson, Research and Outreach Librarian

Geology

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

History

Fasil Getachew, Audiovisual Technician
Leah Sims, Graphic Designer and Animator
Cathy Zeljak, Director of Global Resources Center

Judaic Studies

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

Mathematics

Luis Aviles, Senior Audiovisual Technician
Megan Potterbusch, Data Services Librarian
Caitlin Savoldelli, Instructional Designer

Music 

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Peace Studies 

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

Philosophy

Daphna Atias, Educational Developer
Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Mitsuyo Sato, Okinawa Collection/Japan Resource Center Librarian

Physics 

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

Political Science

David Ettinger, Librarian
Shakeeb Shakeeb, Technical Support Associate
Alex Zebango, Assistant Director of Application and Development Support

Professional Psychology Program

Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Brigette Kamsler, University Archivist
Matthew Schweighart, Senior Programmer Analyst

Psychology 

Eugene Abedejos, Multimedia Producer, Animation
Patrick Hart, Audiovisual Technician
Dolsy Smith, Software Developer, ILS
Mark Yoffe, Russia, Eurasia, Eastern, and Central Europe Resource Center Librarian

Religion

Eugene Abedejos, Multimedia Producer, Animation
Patrick Hart, Audiovisual Technicianr
Dolsy Smith, Software Developer, ILS
Mark Yoffe, Russia, Eurasia, Eastern, and Central Europe Resource Center Librarian

Romance, German & Slavic Languages & Literature 

Kelly Chen Andres, Lead Graphic Designer
Yan He, China Documentation Center Librarian
Keith Williams, Audiovisual Technician
Laura Wrubel,Software Developer

Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration

David Ettinger, Librarian
Shakeeb Shakeeb, Technical Support Associate
Alex Zebango, Assistant Director of Application and Development Support

Sociology

Shmuel Ben-Gad, Librarian
Ann James, Data Services Librarian
Leah Richardson, Research and Outreach Librarian

Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences

Debbie Bezanson, Senior Librarian for Science, Engineering, and Assessment
Nicole DeMuro, Instructional Development Specialist
Angie Sylvester, Audiovisual Assistant

Statistics 

Luis Aviles, Senior Audiovisual Technician
Megan Potterbusch, Data Services Librarian
Caitlin Savoldelli, Instructional Designer

Theatre and Dance

Shira Eller, Art and Design Librarian
Nikodimos Fikru, Instructional Multimedia Producer
Mihir Kochhar, Audiovisual Technician

Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Shmuel Ben-Gad, Librarian
Ann James, Data Services Librarian
Leah Richardson, Research and Outreach Librarian

Elliott School of International Affairs 

Special Topics

Fasil Getachew, Audiovisual Technician
Leah Sims, Graphic Designer and Animator
Cathy Zeljak, Director of Global Resources Center

All Other (Not Special Topic)

Amal Cavender, Middle East & North Africa Librarian
Jennifer King, Collections Coordinator & Manuscripts Librarian
Felipe Rivera, Audiovisual Technician
Lauren Tidmore, Instructional Designer

Graduate School of Education and Human Development

Counseling & Human Development

Dorinne Banks, Education Librarian
Brent Delaney, Senior Technical Support Associate
Kevin Knudsen, Director of Academic Commons

Curriculum & Pedagogy

Ben Bricker, Manager, IT Service Delivery
Stephanie Mihalik, Senior Library Associate
Margaret Appleby, Instructional Designer
John Taylor, Global Resources Center Manager

Educational Leadership

Avery Krauss, Technology Support Coordinator
Vakil Smallen, International Brotherhood of Teamsters Labor History Archivist

Human & Organizational Learning

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

Special Education and Disability Studies

Shelly Buring, Rare Books and Research Specialist
Jesse Gershuny, Instructional Designer
Claire Morra, Audiovisual Technician
Monecia Samuel, USIP Librarian

School of Business

Finance

Shmuel Ben-Gad, Librarian
Ann James, Data Services Librarian
Leah Richardson, Research and Outreach Librarian

Information Systems & Technology Management

Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Brigette Kamsler, University Archivist
Matthew Schweighart, Senior Programmer Analyst

All Other (non-FINA)

Ashley Blount, Administrative Associate
Joel Blumenthal, Assistant Manager of Foggy Bottom Campus Technology Operations
Barrett Matthews, Compliance Officer, Copyright & Scholarly Communications

School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Biomedical Engineering

Dan Kerchner, Senior Software Developer
Daniel Oliver, Assistant Director of Application Development and Support

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Daphna Atias, Educational Developer
Calaway Childress, Audiovisual Technician
Mitsuyo Sato, Okinawa Collection/Japan Resource Center Librarian

Computer Science

Dan Kerchner, Senior Software Developer
Daniel Oliver, Assistant Director of Application Development and Support

Electrical & Computer Engineering

Dan Kerchner, Senior Software Developer
Daniel Oliver, Assistant Director of Application Development and Support

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering

Dan Kerchner, Senior Software Developer
Daniel Oliver, Assistant Director of Application Development and Support

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

Dan Kerchner, Senior Software Developer
Daniel Oliver, Assistant Director of Application Development and Support