SharkWrites: About SharkWrites

PhD in Teaching and Learning, early intervention focus, University of Miami
MA in Early Childhood Special Education, University of Miami
MS in Special Education, University of the Virgin Islands
BA in Elementary Education and Theatre, Rollins College

Dana Fredebaugh spent her first 15 years in Newbury, Ohio, before her family moved to St. Thomas, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. She finished high school there, completed her BA in Florida, and then returned to St. Thomas, where she taught second grade, kindergarten, and early childhood special education students, and was then the Coordinator for the ECSE program. She moved to South Florida to pursue graduate school. She joined Nova in 1995.

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Maureen McDermott, Ed.D., joined the FCE in the Secondary English department in January 2005. Her research and publications focus on writing process methods, technology integration into the language arts curriculum, and challenging stereotyping to reduce stigma of marginalized populations. Since publishing her Master’s thesis about the writing process in 1993, she has continued to research and redefine her own approach to writing while sharing her work with others in the classroom and at local, state, national, and international conferences. Dr. McDermott has been a certified teacher consultant with the National Writing Project since 2003 with almost two decades of experience in the K-12 environment before coming to NSU.

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Gabriela Mendez was born in Uruguay and raised in Argentina. She has taught at most educational levels including as a teacher and high school principal. She excelled at training school teachers, principals and superintendents. In 1998, Dr. Mendez received a Fulbright scholarship that helped her to obtain her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a minor in Supervision from Pennsylvania State University. She completed her Ph.D. degree in Curriculum and Instruction and taught curriculum and language classes at Penn State.

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B.A. Library and Information Sciences, University of Havana
M.L.I.S. Library and Information Sciences, University of South Florida

Joana Fernandez received a bachelor’s degree in Library and Information Sciences from the University of Havana in her homeland of Cuba, and once in the United States she earned a master’s degree in Library and Information Sciences from the University of South Florida. She has been working in both public and libraries for the last decade and is now a part of the Reference and Instructional Library Services department in NSU’s Alvin Sherman Library. Joana really enjoys working in libraries and helping people to connect with the information they need.

Dr. Silvia Orta, BA, MIBA, EDD, holds a Bachelor a degree in Economics from the University of Havana, a Master of International Business Administration (MIBA) degree from the NSU Huizinga School of Business; and a Doctor of Education, NSU Abraham S. Fischler School of Education with dual concentration in Higher Education and Organizational Leadership.

She has taught at the graduate level for over 30 years. From 2000 to 2006, as she transitioned into a new career in the United States, Dr. Orta worked in several Student Services roles, which allowed her to further develop her passion and abilities for supporting students. In 2009, Dr. Orta resumed her teaching career as a bilingual faculty member for the Doctor of Education program.

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Dr. David B. Ross has many years of experience in adult education, leadership, ethics, policy, curriculum development, and classroom instruction. His courses focus on current trends and issues that are relevant to today’s society. He has written articles on leadership, power, narcissism, plagiarism and fraud, policy development, professional development, and areas of homeland security. He has learned many perspectives and philosophies from mentors while attending Northern Illinois University, the University of Alabama, and Florida Atlantic University.

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