Welcome New CHSS Faculty & Staff

We are excited to welcome the talented faculty and staff who have joined CHSS this year. Each brings unique expertise, perspectives, and passion that will strengthen our classrooms, programs, and scholarship. We look forward to the contributions they will make as we continue to grow and thrive together.

Jason Abbott
Professor, Political Science and Law

Dr. Jason Abbott began his academic journey with a BA (Hons) in Politics and History from the University of Newcastle in 1992, followed by a PhD in Political Economy from Nottingham Trent University in 1998. His professional career spans several prestigious institutions, including roles as a lecturer and research fellow at universities in the UK, Slovenia, and the United States. Before joining Montclair State University Dr. Abbott held the Aung San Suu Kyi Endowed Chair in Asian Democracy at the University of Louisville and served as the Director of the Center for Asian Democracy. Dr. Abbott’s courses cover a wide array of topics, such as Comparative Politics, Environmental Politics, the Government and Politics of East Asia, International Relations, and the Political Economy of the Internet and Social Media, reflecting his diverse expertise. Dr. Abbott’s scholarly work is widely recognized, with numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters focusing on digital political engagement, censorship, and the socio-political impacts of new media in Asia. He has also authored and edited several books, including Developmentalism and Dependency in Southeast Asia and State Strategies in the Global Political Economy. An active participant in the academic community, Dr. Abbott has presented his research at numerous conferences and has served as an editor for Sage Open. Over his career, his expertise has been frequently sought by media outlets such as the BBC, CNN, and Al-Jazeera for commentary on Southeast Asian politics and related topics.

Giselle Balfour
Assistant Teaching Professor, Social Work and Child Advocacy

Giselle Balfour, PhD is a native of Trinidad and Tobago, who has spent the last decade working with children and adult survivors of human trafficking. Prior to joining the Department of Social Work at Montclair State University, Dr. Balfour served as the Head of Programs at an international NGO seeking to end the conditions that allow modern slavery to exist, and as the Project Director of the Envision Project at the Georgia Center for Child Advocacy, providing specialized programming to aid in the reintegration of survivors of child sexual exploitation in Georgia. Both of these roles were a direct extension of Dr. Balfour’s doctoral research, which centered on the intervention and reintegration experiences of trafficking survivors and at-risk women in Ghana.  Dr. Balfour has also served as a contributing faculty member at Walden University’s School of Social Work for the past 7 years and an adjunct instructor at the University of Georgia’s School of Social Work where she earned both her MSW and PhD.

Precious Benally
Director, New Jersey Center for Indigenous Justice

Precious Benally (she/her), Director of the New Jersey Center for Indigenous Justice, collaborates with colleagues in the Native American and Indigenous Studies program to create educational environments that center Indigenous knowledge and perspectives. A citizen of the Diné (Navajo) Nation, she brings both lived experience and expertise in program development, tribal justice, and Indigenous nation-building. Before this role, she worked as a tribal law and policy consultant supporting Native Nations, tribal communities, and government agencies on issues such as economic development, justice system enhancement, and traditional dispute resolution. Precious also teaches Native American Law at Columbia and Brooklyn Law Schools and NAIS 101 at Montclair State. She holds a B.A. in Native American Studies and Philosophy from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Columbia Law School, with specializations in Federal Indian Law and Policy, tribal law and justice, and Indigenous forms of dispute resolution.

Melody Benedict
Assistant Professor, Social Work and Child Advocacy

Melody Benedict (She/Her/Hers) is an assistant professor in the Department of Social Work and Child Advocacy. She possesses extensive social work direct practice experience with adults diagnosed with mental health disorders, particularly in inpatient psychiatric settings, which informs her research, teaching, and practice. Benedict is a critical scholar-activist; her research focuses on addressing racial trauma and promoting racial healing through restorative practices for marginalized individuals.

Benedict employs qualitative methodologies, including interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) research, and art-based research such as Blackout poetic inquiry. Benedict’s research primarily focuses on innovative strategies designed to promote equity within the United States healthcare system, addressing systemic issues at the macro, mezzo, and micro levels of social work practice. At the macro level, she investigates policies and institutional frameworks that perpetuate disparities in health outcomes, advocating for reforms that ensure equitable access to healthcare services for marginalized populations. At the mezzo level, she explores the dynamics within community organizations and healthcare systems, aiming to design effective programs that foster collaboration and support for diverse populations. At the micro level, Benedict is dedicated to developing specialized therapeutic approaches tailored to the mental health and well-being of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). Overall, Benedict’s multifaceted approach strives to create a more equitable healthcare landscape. Dr. Benedict holds a PhD and MSW from the University at Albany.

Elizabeth Chan
Assistant Professor, Psychology

Elizabeth Chan, Assistant Professor, earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Florida State University and completed her doctoral internship at Johns Hopkins Medicine/Kennedy Krieger Institute. Her research utilizes strength-based approaches to enhance the quality of life for individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) across the lifespan. Dr. Chan’s current work focuses on supporting emerging adults with ADHD, particularly in achieving educational success and transitioning into the workforce. She teaches courses in introductory psychology and clinical interventions.

Chrysten Colacicco
Pre-Law Program Coordinator, CHSS Dean’s Office

Ana DiGiovanni
Assistant Professor, Psychology

Ana DiGiovanni, Assistant Professor, holds a PhD in Psychology from Columbia University. Her research lies at the intersection of relationship science and affective science, with a strong emphasis in advanced quantitative methods. Specifically, her research examines the experiences — both good and bad — that we share with those closest to us. Much of this work centers the role stress plays in relational processes, with an emphasis on how people talk about problems and negative feelings. At its core, this work investigates how we show up for others, work together to regulate complex emotions, and build meaningful connections across a multitude of relationship contexts. She has expertise with dyadic methods, daily diaries, longitudinal designs, and psychophysiological methods. Ana is open to advising graduate students in the I/O and Clinical departments. She will teach mostly social psychology and quantitative methods courses.

Stephanie Diehl
Assistant Teaching Professor,Writing Studies

Professor Stephanie Diehl received her PhD in English from Rutgers University where she taught composition for six years. Prior to joining MSU, she taught at the College of Staten Island. Her composition pedagogy is informed by her research on disability studies; her focus on student accessibility and inclusivity on both macro and micro levels includes a program-wide revision of participation assessment in the composition classroom. Her expertise in the intersection between disability studies and educational writing has also informed her teaching of literacy and social justice writing at the Bank Street College of Education where she teaches students from underrepresented communities. Her university service includes faculty mentorship, interdisciplinary course design, and curricular redesign aimed at addressing institutional challenges with student retention.

Jennifer Fleeger
Professor, Film Studies, English

Dr. Fleeger joins the English Department as the Marie Frazee-Baldassarre Professor of Film Studies after twelve years at Ursinus College in Collegeville, PA and four years at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. In 2009 she received her PhD from the University of Iowa, where she began studying film music and sound, work that led to her first book Sounding American: Hollywood, Opera and Jazz. Since then, she has focused on the relationship between voices and technology, writing Mismatched Women: The Siren’s Song Through the Machine and co-editing an anthology on media ventriloquism, all published by Oxford University Press. She is currently writing on lesbian camp in the aquamusicals of MGM swimming star Esther Williams. Dr. Fleeger also works with Crescendo – a community-based, tuition-free music program, pairing undergraduates with elementary school children to create silent films with live scores – and is a violinist in the Main Line Symphony Orchestra.

Tamara Jean-Jacques
Assistant Teaching Professor, Psychology

Dr. Tamara B. Jean-Jacques, Assistant Teaching Professor in the School Psychology program at Montclair, is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist, and a practicing psychotherapist under supervision. She earned her doctorate in School Psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University and holds multiple advanced degrees in psychology and educational psychology. Dr. Jean-Jacques has served as a certified school psychologist, supervisor, and special education administrator, leading special services departments in diverse urban and suburban school districts, supervising multidisciplinary teams, and developing specialized curricula. In her role at Montclair, Dr. Jean-Jacques will prepare future school psychologists through hands-on clinical training, assessment, and supervision.

Adam Natoli
Assistant Professor, Psychology

Adam P. Natoli, Assistant Professor, received his PhD in Clinical Psychology from Adelphi University. His program of research investigates how we measure psychological functioning and strives to develop, evaluate, and apply advanced measurement and statistical methodologies to the empirical study of psychological assessment with a focus on instrument psychometrics, multimethod assessment, and applications of Artificial Intelligence in these domains. This work is accompanied by research on the conceptualization and treatment of personality psychopathology and psychodynamic theories and principles. Dr. Natoli predominantly will teach quantitative and research methodology courses in the department.

Mark Rose
Assistant Teaching Professor, Psychology

Organizational Psychology from the University of South Florida. His research interests include use of innovative item types in test development, people analytics, and critical thinking assessment. As a civilian with the U.S. Air Force, he previously held leadership roles focused on Air Force-wide recruitment, selection, and promotion. Before his time in the Air Force, he served as a Research Director for Pearson’s talent assessment team and oversaw the development and revision of widely used assessments such as the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal and Raven’s Progressive Matrices. In addition to teaching in our I/O program, Dr. Rose will serve as the Director of the Industrial/Organizational MA Psychology Program.

Karinne Seferian
Administrative Team Lead, CHSS Dean’s Office

Denise Simão Marques
Assistant Teaching Professor, Psychology

Holds a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Miami. Throughout her professional career she has employed cross-cultural approaches to psychological treatment focusing on underserved communities. She has worked clinically with homeless veterans, refugees, individuals with HIV and complex medical comorbidities, as well as with individuals experiencing general mental health concerns. As a scientist-practitioner, she has helped to run various grant-funded community-based research projects. Dr. Simão Marques is committed to fostering a culturally conscientious approach at the intersection of clinical practice and academia. In addition to teaching in our clinical programs, she will be serving as the Assistant Director of Training for the Clinical Psychology PhD program.

Jasmine Sowah
Practicum Education Coordinator, Social Work and Child Advocacy

Jasmine Sowah, is a Licensed Social Worker with years of experience supporting children, individuals and families in both clinical and administrative capacities. She is Seminar in Field Instruction (SIFI) certified and has supervised MSW and BSW interns in various roles providing mentorship and professional development for emerging Social Workers. In addition to her student supervisory experience, Jasmine has served in areas such as government, workforce development, higher education and psychotherapy. Her professional interests include access to higher education, program development, and the intersectionality of law and Social Work. Jasmine looks forward to supporting Montclair State students in their practicum education process.

Stephen Tillotson
Assistant Teaching Professor, Justice Studies

Dr. Tillotson is a new faculty member in Justice Studies. He’s originally from Florida and earned his PhD in Criminal Justice from Indiana University. Prior to joining Montclair State, Stephen was a faculty member at universities in Indiana, Texas, and Oregon. His primary interests in corrections are the historical development of punishment and also the collateral effects of incarceration.  With respect to both, his primary focus is on local (or county) jails.Outside of work he likes visiting museums and national parks, painting, and watching college basketball.

Will Williams
Digital Repository Specialist, CHSS Dean’s Office