Faculty and Staff

The IEP has excellent staff and professional teachers. All of our faculty and staff members have lived in other countries around the world. Our faculty have at least a Masters degree, and many have experience teaching in other countries and speak more than one language.

	MICHELLE ÁLVAREZ IEP Executive Director MA Linguistics, University of Florida BA TESOL, Eckerd College I have been working at the University of Miami Intensive English Program since 1988. I have been an IEP faculty member, Level Coordinator and Assistant Director for Academics at the IEP. It has been an extraordinary experience that has allowed me to meet many wonderful students from all over the world. I enjoy making sure that these students make the most of their learning opportunities at the IEP. We have a high quality academic English program that provides students with an education experience that will last a lifetime. I look forward to welcoming you to the IEP at UM!
	IDALIS ÁLVAREZ-PERKINS Faculty MA TESOL, Florida International University BA Elementary Education, Rowan University I was born and raised in southern New Jersey. From an early age, I knew I wanted to be an educator. I have a BA in Elementary Education from Rowan University and an MA in TESOL from Florida International University. I have over ten years of teaching experience with English Language Learners, ages three to sixty three! I have had the opportunity to travel and volunteer in many countries, including those in Europe, Asia, and Australia. I feel lucky to be able to blend my passions for learning about new cultures with teaching English.
	DAWN ARROL Faculty MA English Language/Linguistics-TESOL, University of Arizona BA Sociology, University of Florida Relatively new to the University of Miami and the Miami area, I'm thrilled to discover for myself the broad range of cultures and people in this lush city of cities. My younger years were spent in small town Michigan and Gainesville, Florida. Since the last time I lived in Florida, the appeal of assisting others, delving into the richness of language, and exploring different cultures has led me to teach survival, academic and/or intensive English to speakers of other languages in Arizona, California, Arkansas, The Czech Republic, Bahrain, and The United Arab Emirates. I am enjoying teaching a variety of learners from round the world here at UM's Intensive English Program. I endeavor to help my students discover and employ their strengths along with different methods of overcoming their weaknesses as they push themselves to be stronger students in both English and content courses.
	BARBARA BARRETT Faculty MS Multilingual Multicultural Education, Florida State University BS Art Education, Florida State University I was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Maryland. My grandmother's grandmother was Cherokee (American Indian), so people here in the U.S. often tell me I have an exotic look. I was raised in a multicultural environment, and have been interested in learning new languages and new cultures for as long as I can remember. My family moved to Florida in 2003. I taught English in Japan for three years, and can speak Japanese. Helping students to have successful academic and professional careers is rewarding, but I think the best part of teaching at the IEP is the chance meet people from all over the world.
	BRUCE BENTLEY Faculty MA TESOL, University of Miami BA Latin American Studies, Trinity University I grew up in Daytona Beach, Florida but I have traveled to many countries and have lived in Germany, Brazil and the west coast of the U.S. My life has included working in the military, working as a river boat captain in the Amazon, managing a large retail store and now teaching. My interests are varied. I enjoy my students, silversmithing, bicycling, magic, my accordion and investing in the stock market. My Brazilian wife and I are very involved with Brazil and we travel to and from there frequently.
	STEFANIE CARRASCO Administrative Assistant I was born and raised in Miami to a Cuban and Chilean family. Being of both Caribbean and South American heritage has taught me to value, embrace and learn from the differences that make Miami and the University of Miami community so unique. So far, I have traveled to Bermuda, Chile and many parts of Canada and the United States. I hope to visit Europe, Asia and Africa in the years to come. I am a lover of cooking, travel, camping and anything that involves the ocean. As a member of the Intensive English Program's staff, I am pleased to contribute to our students' language education. They are truly the heart of our program.
	AMANDA DE VARONA Faculty Ed.D Curriculum and Instruction for ESL and Modern Languages (ABD), Florida International University MA Spanish, Florida International University BA Spanish, Georgia Southern University I was born and raised in Savannah, Georgia. Even as a young child, my family traveled constantly and I loved to see new places. It was not until I began taking Spanish in high school that I discovered a love for languages as well. During my studies, I have had the opportunity to study and travel abroad in Costa Rica, Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, and the Dominican Republic. I love working with students from all over the world, and it is truly a pleasure to be a part of the IEP at UM.
	JESSICA DRIEMEIER Student Services Manager BA International Affairs and History, Florida State University I grew up in southwestern Illinois in a very small town with no stoplights near St. Louis, Missouri. I moved to Florida to attend Florida State University, where I met many new and interesting people from all over the world. Through FSU, I was able to study abroad in Valencia, Spain and London, England which gave me an appreciation for services provided by international offices. Some of my hobbies are playing sports, hand games, and knitting, but I love trying new activities and learning new things, so feel free to drop by my office and tell me something about your home culture or teach me a new game!
	LORI GILES Faculty MA TESOL, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale BA English Literature, Murray State University I was born and raised in Southern Illinois. I also spent several years in Southern California outside of Los Angeles. I lived in the Middle East for seven years, teaching two years in Kuwait at the Faculty of Medicine and five years in the United Arab Emirates at both the University of Sharjah and the Military Language Institute in Abu Dhabi. During my time in the Middle East, I traveled to many of the neighboring Gulf countries such as Bahrain and Oman, as well as Malaysia and Cyprus. My favorite subjects to teach are reading and grammar. I enjoy doing yoga and spending time with my grandson.
	CALLA GUDHEIM Faculty MA TESL, Boston University BA Retail Management, Simmons College My love for teaching English to speakers of other languages began when I was living in Boston and helping those most in need learn to read and write in their second language. It was there that I worked to develop an ESL program to serve disenfranchised women in the community. Since then, I have taught in a variety of educational settings and have raised my own son to be bilingual. I have started my own business, studied and lived abroad, and struggled to perfect my own second language. It is my diverse background in business, combined with my studies and travel abroad, that enables me to bring a unique perspective of the world into my classroom each and every day.
	MATT KAEISER Faculty and Testing Coordinator M.S. Ed. in Enrollment Management, University of Miami, Florida Graduate Certificates in Enrollment Management and Student Life and Development, University of Miami MA TESOL, Monterey Institute of International Studies BS Speech Pathology and Audiology, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee I have almost twenty years of experience teaching English as a second language, and I have also earned a lot of graduate credits in counseling. Therefore, I have a real interest in cross-cultural issues. My teaching interests include utilizing active and accelerated learning strategies and using different techniques to help students enhance their memory. My travel experience includes nearly two years in Honduras and extensive travel and study experience throughout Central America, Mexico, and Japan. My hobby is music, and I composed the background music for a professionally produced CD which is used to help relax cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
	DAVID KRAMER Faculty MA Modern Foreign Languages, University of Wisconsin BA Spanish, University of Wisconsin I have been working in the ESL world for many years in numerous places. I worked in Madrid, Spain, at the North American Cultural Center, ACHNA. Later I returned to the United States to teach English for Academic Purposes at Boston University, CELOP and Harvard University, IELP. Before coming to the University of Miami, I taught Academic English at the University of Sydney in Australia. This extensive teaching experience has given me greater insights to work successfully within an international community. I strive to instill a sense of internationalism in all the classes I teach.
	KIMBERLY McGRATH MOREIRA Faculty and Level 5 Coordinator MA TESOL, The University of St. Mary's Graduate Certificate in Enrollment Management, University of Miami BA Political Science, The University of Western Ontario Before coming to The University of Miami, I taught, developed curriculum, and trained teachers in a variety of English language institutions, including Harvard University, Boston University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Cambridge College, and the Arthur D. Little School of Management at Boston College. Though I am a native of Canada and earned my degrees there, I have lived and worked outside my country for many years in places such as the US, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Nigeria, and South Africa. My lifetime of experience living and working abroad has taught me that the world is a place where cross-cultural communication and exchange is as important as the language we study.
	DIANE MAHIN Faculty and Resources Coordinator MA in English as a Foreign Language, Southern Illinois University BS in Elementary Education, Illinois State University As both a teacher and a resource coordinator, one of my jobs in is to teach the wonderful international students who come to study in the University's Intensive English Program. My other job is to make sure that everything in the program's computer labs is working properly. I have been teaching English as a Second Language for more than 20 years in Brazil, Spain and the United States. I am originally from Chicago, but I have been living in South Florida since 1994.
	SAGHAR LESLIE NAGHIB Facutly MS TESOL, Barry Univeristy BS Psychology, Barry University BA English Literature, Barry University My career began with teaching English Literature, Intensive Reading, and English as a second language at an inner-city high school in North Miami. Since then, I have continued teaching English as a second language to students from diverse backgrounds as well as training pre-service teachers earning an ESOL endorsement for their teaching certificate. I love learning as much as teaching and am currently working on earning a PhD and improving my Farsi. Originally a Miami native, travelling to Europe and North Africa has deepened my appreciation for culture and helped me expand my Persian heritage. I am happy to be teaching at UM's IEP.
	HELEN PARK-CAVALLIN Faculty and Levels 1 and 2 Coordinator MA TESOL, Hunter College (CUNY) MA Classical Art & Archaeology, University of Michigan BA Classics & Fine Arts, New York University I was born in Seoul, South Korea, but I grew up in New York City. I came to teaching after I had spent time studying and working on the archaeological field in places such as Tunisia and Cyprus. Now, after various international travels and teaching English as a second language in New York, I am living in Miami with my Argentinean husband and having a wonderful time teaching at the IEP. I look forward to continuing my work with the wide array of students that walk through my classroom door.
	PATIENCE PHILLIPS Faculty and Level 4 Coordinator MA Education (TESL), University of Delaware MA English, University of Delaware BA English, Indiana University I was completing work on a degree in English literature when I began working in ESL as a part time tutor. The experience of working with international students was so compelling to me that I changed course and decided to make ESL my career. I completed a second degree in education, specializing in teaching ESL. I then taught English at University of Delaware for ten years, finally leaving in order to teach in Korea, where, as it happened, the majority of my students at Delaware came from. Their stories had enticed me! I taught and eventually coordinated the English program at a large university in Seoul for five years. I love teaching and feel lucky to be able to experience the wider world vicariously through the fascinatingly diverse students I meet in my classroom every day.
	MARISSA PIPINO Faculty MA TESOL, Stony Brook University BS, St. John's University A native of New York City with over ten years of teaching experience, I recently relocated to Miami. While living in New York, I worked in multiple school settings with students of various ages and backgrounds. During that time, I also had the opportunity to travel throughout Europe and South America. There, I deepened my appreciation for teaching English as well as learning about different languages and cultures. Now, as a faculty member here in the IEP, I truly enjoy all that I get to learn from my students each day.
	ETHAN TALMADGE Faculty and Level 3 Coordinator MA TESL, St. Michael's College BA, University of Denver Born in New Hampshire and raised in Vermont, I have been involved in ESL / EFL since 1993. I studied English Literature at the University of Denver in CO, and later received an MA TESL degree from St. Michael's college in Colchester, VT. I have lived and taught in Italy, Japan, Spain, Thailand, and Brazil, while gaining a degree of understanding of each culture and their people. In 2006, I returned to the US after nearly 13 years abroad and worked as the Academic Director of an intensive ESL school in Boston, MA for two years before moving to the pleasant climes of Miami, FL. I have always enjoyed teaching, and it is a great pleasure to be a part of UM's IEP.
	JENNY VARGAS Associate Director MA International Administration, University of Miami BA Social Thought and Political Economy, University of Massachusetts at Amherst BA Anthropology, University of Massachusetts at Amherst As the Associate Director of the Intensive English Program, I have the pleasure of assisting students with questions about immigration, payments, cultural adjustment, other UM offices and services around Miami. I enjoy working with students from around the world and learning about their countries and cultures. Before coming to Miami, I lived in Mexico for four years, where I taught and coordinated English programs for children and adults. In my freetime, I enjoy swimming, hiking and traveling.
	CARA D. WENIG MORI Director of Curriculum and Faculty M.S.Ed. in Higher Education Administration - Student Life and Development, University of Miami MA TESOL, Eastern Michigan University BA Political Science/Social Relations, Michigan State University I have been involved in the field of English as a Second Language for over a decade. Before my arrival at the University of Miami in 2006, I taught in Chile and Ecuador and was a teacher / curriculum coordinator at an intensive English program in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Traveling throughout South America and Europe has shown me the importance of learning other languages to succeed, and it is a pleasure to know that teaching English as a Second Language will contribute to students' future opportunities.