The Faculty Coffee Break Podcast

From Fencing Master to Sports Psychologist: Dr. Gerard Shaw

Dr. Gerard Shaw [https://www.sfc.edu/academics/faculty-directory/gerard-shaw] has held many titles over the years, including Maitre d'Armes (Fencing  Master) and psychoanalyst. For the past 16 years, he has taught physical  education at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, NY. In this conversation with CAFE director Molly Mann, Dr. Shaw talks  about how he has built a "fabulous life" pursuing what he loves, and how  he encourages his students to follow their passions as well.

From Restaurants to Creative Writing: Theo Gangi

Theo Gangi is a novelist and writing teacher based in Brooklyn. He’s the author of acclaimed novels such as Bang, Bang and A New Day in America. His latest novel Kingston and the Magician’s Lost and Found is in development as a movie on Disney Plus. He writes far-out adventures that happen right next door. Theo directs the MFA Program in Creative Writing at St. Francis College and lives in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn with his wife and son and their dog. His next book with Rucker Moses, Encounter at Owl Rock, is coming soon from Penguin/Random House. In this episode, we discuss his journey to making a full-time career as a writer, his thoughts on what it takes to become a great writer, and the intersections between teaching and writing.

Public Health Doctor, Physician Journalist, and Professor: Dr. Shamard Charles

Shamard Charles, MD-MPH, is a public health doctor and physician journalist with nearly ten years of experience in health promotion and health communications. Currently he is a United Nations Global Press fellow, a frequent contributor to theGrio, and host of The Revolutions Within Us podcast, a monthly health podcast. Prior to joining the SFC faculty he served as senior health journalist for NBC News, leading the network’s health and medical coverage including groundbreaking reporting during Hurricane Maria and Hurricane Harvey. He is also no stranger to the broadcast booth, having previously been featured on CNBC and NPR, for his reporting on the dearth of Black men in medicine. More recently, he expanded his coverage internationally, writing and producing stories in Nigeria, covering a variety of public health topics including vaccine-hesitancy and vaccine-preventable diseases. His work can be found on the NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, NBC News Now [https://www.nbcnews.com/now/video/shaq-talks-heart-health-61807685729], TODAY, and NBCNews.com [https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/nigeria-brink-eliminating-polio-thanks-women-n1030426]. In our conversation, Dr. Charles shares his journey toward a multi-faceted career in public health, journalism, and more, as well as how he balances it all.

The Underground Crafter: Dr. Marie Segares

Dr. Marie Segares is a long-time intrapreneur in the non-profit health and education industries. She has launched or expanded programs in every full-time job she has held during her career. Her experience includes managing a federally-funded public housing community health center for an academic medical center in the South Bronx, co-founding a public high school in Downtown Brooklyn, and developing an online, bachelor’s degree completion program for a faith-based, historically Black college in Texas. Dr. Segares earned her AB in Sociology from Barnard College, her MPH in Sociomedical Sciences with a concentration in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention from Columbia University, her MBA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Leadership and Change Management from New York University, and her EdD in Organizational Leadership Studies from Northeastern University. Dr. Segares has taught entrepreneurship, human resources, management and organizational behavior, marketing, health education and public health, and health care management courses at the undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate levels in traditional/face-to-face, online, and hybrid learning environments. She joined the faculty of St. Francis College in 2017 and is the founding director of the MS in Management. In this episode, Dr. Segares shares her journey as an intrapreneur and talks about her side hustle as the "Underground Crafter."

From Navy SEAL to NASA: Dr. Cesar C. Navarrete

Dr. Cesar C. Navarrete is Assistant Professor of Education at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, New York. He has served as a US Navy SEAL and worked in astronaut crew training at NASA in the Space Shuttle program. He received a Masters and a Doctorate in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Texas at Austin. He has taught graduate level courses at the New York Institute of Technology and University of Texas at San Antonio. Research interests include learning technologies, English language learner education, learner intrinsic motivation, creative thinking, computational thinking, and cybersecurity education. He serves on the Board of Directors for Families in Nature organization and as a counselor for the St. Francis College Kappa Delta Pi, Xi Rho Chapter. His hobbies include playing baritone and alto saxophone, guitar, and bass. In this episode, Dr. Navarrete shares his unique journey into academia and talks about how a lifelong love of learning has led him from military training to NASA and even the ballet.