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Topic: Children/Youth Issues

Jenn Zukowski-Boughn

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Jenn Zukowski-Boughn, MFA, is an affiliate professor in the Department of Theatre at Metropolitan State University of Denver. Her areas of expertise include children’s literature, fantasy and science fiction, folklore (fairy tales, mythology), theatre and performance of literature, and Harry Potter. She currently teaches Staging Culture: Theatre.

Zukowski-Boughn teaches courses in writing, literature, visual arts, performing arts, movement and stage combat. She also has been working as a freelance fight choreographer for 22 years, consulting, directing, choreographing and coordinating stunts and theatrical fight scenes for theatre productions and film companies in metro Denver.

She is the author of “Stage Combat: Fisticuffs, Stunts, and Swordplay for Theatre and Film,” published by Allworth Press. She can be seen performing on stage and in classrooms in the Boulder/Denver area and online at Daily Cross-Swords and Writers’ HQ. Her work also is archived on the defunct sites Nerds in Babeland, Your Boulder and Sherlock’s Home.

She received her master’s in Fine Arts in Writing and Poetics from Naropa University in 2001. She received her bachelor’s in English and Theatre from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1995.

Shawn Worthy

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Shawn Worthy, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Human Services at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Worthy began his career as an instructor at Northern Illinois before working in many clinical settings for behavioral and therapeutic services. He joined MSU Denver in 1995 and received tenure in 2002. Worthy has served as the chair of the Human Service Department, as well as the interim vice president of the Student Services Division and has also worked as the director of Mentoring and Summer Bridge Programs with Student Services at MSU Denver. He currently serves as the MSU Denver NCAA Faculty Athletic Representative. Worthy has also worked as a clinician and psychotherapist at the Children’s Hospital of Denver and The Urban League of Denver.

He has done research and published work extensively about sports psychology on how all levels of skiers cope with fear. Additionally, Worthy has conducted research on domestic violence, teen suicide and other issues related to children and families. He has worked clinically with adults and teens infected with HIV. Worthy has researched, published and presented at many conferences and workshops striving to understand diversity as it pertains to engaging people of color. He currently serves on several community boards and commissions, which focus on youth and violence.

Worthy received his doctorate and master’s in clinical psychology from Northern Illinois University.

Eileen Starr

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Eileen Starr was born and raised in Newark, Delaware and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (Delaware; Maryland; Colorado). She received her PhD and Master’s Degree in clinical social work from Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania, and did her dissertation research in Northern Ireland. While in Northern Ireland, Eileen also facilitated seminars dealing with challenging families and children/adolescents in the Social Work Department at Queen’s University, Belfast, NI.

Eileen has been a community social work practitioner most of her career at Upper Bay Counseling and Support Services Inc. (UBCSS), a private, non-profit agency in Cecil and Harford Counties in Maryland. At UBCSS, Eileen developed and was the supervisor of the School Based Mental Health Program (SBMH). She continues her private practice through tele-psychiatry with Mid-Atlantic Behavioral Health (Delaware) on a part-time basis. Eileen has been an adjunct professor since 2000 teaching undergraduate and graduate social work classes at Widener University, Chester, Pa, Salisbury University, Md. and the University of Delaware in the sociology and criminal justice departments.

Eileen is behavioral in her teaching style and clinical work, describing her style as “very interactive in partnership with her students, clients & families to help them meet their goals established in the classroom and in the therapeutic process.” She believes a reciprocal therapeutic relationship cultivates the best possible outcomes in her students as well as her clients.

In her “off time,” Eileen enjoys outdoor recreation and has coached and officiated girls’ basketball at the Middle and High School levels, taking her High School teams as an assistant and head coach to regional and state championship games. She is hoping to coach again in the Denver area.

Dorothy Shapland

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Dorothy Shapland, Ed.D., is an assistant professor at MSU Denver, with expertise in a multitude of areas concerning early childhood education. She has more than 30 years of experience as an early childhood educator. Her research includes relationship building with students and families, social-emotional skill development in the early grades, and creating inclusive learning communities in the early grades. She has presented on a number of topics, such as “Born Scientists: Encouraging and Developing Scientific Inquiry with Young Children,” and “Reducing Challenging Behavior & Supporting Young Children’s Social Emotional Development.” She is a founding member of the VOICES Diversity Council, Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children, and a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children as well as the Association for Childhood Education International.

Susie Ryder

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Susie Ryder, M.S.W., is the director of undergraduate and graduate field education in the Department of Social Work at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Ryder started her career in social work at Cleo Wallace Centers where she worked for 7 years in various positions including inpatient social worker, residential clinician, inpatient manager and clinical director. She then continued her work with children, adolescents and families at Mental Health Partners for 16 years. At Mental Health Partners, Ryder was the solution focused therapy trainer for the center for several years and most recently senior program manager for the Prevention/Intervention and School Based programs in the Boulder Valley and St. Vrain School Districts with oversight of 35 therapists.

She has been a faculty field advisor, admissions reader, integrative seminar co-leader and lecturer in the continuing education for advanced clinician program at Smith College School for Social Work. In addition, Ryder has a private practice in Boulder working with individuals, couples and families. She currently serves on the board of a suicide prevention program for adolescents and offers presentations in Boulder county on this topic.

Ryder received her Master of Social Work from Smith College School for Social Work and a bachelor’s from Oberlin College. She is a licensed social worker and a licensed addiction counselor.

Marc Rodriguez

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Marc Rodriguez, M.A., is the Parents as Teachers Coordinator and Parenting Coordinator in the Family Literacy program at Metropolitan State University of Denver. His areas of expertise include K-12 education, parenting skills, Sheltered (ESL) Instruction, and educational administration.

Rodriguez has been with MSU Denver for 10 years. In addition to working at MSU Denver, Rodriguez works as a Teacher Effectiveness Coach at Denver Public Schools.

Rodriguez received both his master’s degree in educational administration and his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from University of Colorado – Denver in 1995 and 1990, respectively.

Jessica Ritter

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Jessica Ritter, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Social Work at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Her career as a social worker and academic has been dedicated to child welfare and children’s rights as well as political advocacy related to issues of social and economic justice. Ritter has been teaching social work at the college level for 13 years.

She is a Fulbright scholar and is the author of two books—101 Careers in Social Work, 2nd ed. (2015) and Social Work Policy Practice: Changing our Community, Nation, and the World (2nd edition is In Press).

Ritter received her doctorate, master of social work and bachelor of social work from University of Texas, Austin.

Aaron Richmond

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Aaron S. Richmond, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

With almost a decade of professional teaching experience, he has taught over a dozen different psychology and education courses. Richmond has garnered several awards for excellence in teaching and mentoring, including the Psi Chi Excellence in Teaching Award, the Psi Chi International Regional Faculty Advisor Award for the Rocky Mountain Region and the Society for Teaching of Psychology Jane S. Halonen Award for Excellence in Teaching. He is a member of several professional associations. Richmond served as the Vice President for Programming for the Society of the Teaching of Psychology and is past-president of the Northern Rocky Mountain Educational research association. He currently holds several positions on editorial boards including the journals Teaching of Psychology, Journal of Educational Psychology, and the Journal of Experimental Education.

In more than 70 peer reviewed journal articles, books, and book chapters Richmond has explored effective pedagogical approaches to instruction in both k-12 and higher education. He specifically investigates cognitive and elaborative processes, model teaching competencies, the efficacy of instructional strategies, and various other topics in the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Richmond received his doctorate in educational psychology from the University of Nevada-Reno in 2006, a master’s in applied cognitive psychology from Montana State University in 2002 and a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Montana in 1999.

Marina Pereira

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Professor Marina Pereira has taught graduate courses in the Graduate Social Work program as MSU Denver. She has taught at Metropolitan State University of Denver since 1999.

Professor Pereira is well versed in topics of mental health and families. She has special interest in issues of acculturation, diversity and first-generation Latino students. She was an advisor for the Student Association of Social Workers (SASW), a student organization that helps students develop and increase their sense of civic responsibility and community engagement by service learning activities.

Before teaching at MSU Denver, Pereira worked in the areas of medical social work and mental health, where she specialized in treating and advocating for children and families with a history of domestic violence, sexual and physical abuse.

Nhu Nguyen-Siedem

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Nguyen-Siedem, Ph.D. is a physical education professor in the School of Education at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She is an avid outdoors enthusiast, mother and teacher, and developed a progressive secondary methods course that became a part of required course curriculum for a K-12 physical education program. The program includes activities such as skateboarding, takraw, rugby, tchoukball and speedball.

When she isn’t teaching and advising her students, she can be seen coaching USA junior national volleyball, or playing the game herself.

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