ADULT PROGRAMS - Needham Public Schools

INSTRUCTOR BIOS
passion for glass art forms with students in adult education
and glass schools in the Boston area since 2004.
SAM LIGGERO holds a Ph.D. in chemistry and has 32
years experience at Polaroid Corporation in inventing,
designing, developing, manufacturing and launching
novel imaging systems. He has taught digital photography
for Needham Community Education for many years,
and is also a practicing digital photographer who has exhibited
his work locally. Sam is currently a Professor of
the Practice at Tufts’ Gordon Institute where he teaches
New Product Development, Technology Strategy and
Innovation, and Management of Innovation.
CINDY LOUGHRAN, a Needham resident, is the
Founder and CEO of Cindy Loughran Coaching, and
a Certified Professional Coach, and Certified Group
Coach. She worked for nine years in Human Resources
in the corporate world before starting her own
coaching and consulting business in 1986. Cindy was
recognized as one of Boston’s Top Ten Coaches by
Women’s Business Boston, and has been a contributor
to national trade and business journals. For more
information go to www.cindyloughrancoaching.com
MARIA ELENA LYNCH is a veteran knitter who
learned the craft while growing up in Peru. She has
been teaching knitting privately and for Needham Community
Education for several years.
VALERY MARCANTONIO, a graduate of the St. Louis
Conservatory, is a tap/jazz dance teacher, choreographer,
and performer. She has taught in various area
neighborhood, college, and school settings, including
Newton Recreation Department, Emerson College,
Belmont Day School, and Studio Ten Tap. Her
professional credits include Marcantonio’s Tap/Jazz
Collective, Patrice Monahan ShufflinTime, and Mystic
Chorale/Tremont Temple-Boston.
NICOLE MASON has a BA in English from The College
of Saint Rose in Albany, N.Y. She taught English in
Acadia Middle School in Clifton Park, N.Y., and helped
design an ELA exam preparation program there before
moving to Boston. She teaches English at Needham
High School, and has taught SAT Prep classes for
Needham Community Education since the fall of 2008.
CATHY MERLO is the Associate Director and Advisor
for Evening & Fast Track students at the F.W. Olin
Graduate School of Business at Babson College,
providing career counseling for the evening and executive
MBA students at the graduate school. In addition
to being a career adviser, Cathy also develops courses
and teaches classes, both online and in the classroom
on a wide variety of subjects including social media.
CHRISTINE MIRABILE loves French! From her first
French class at eight years old, she fell in love with
the language and continues to study it. While living
in Brussels with her family, she had the opportunity
to speak French everyday and to travel extensively in
Europe. She is a graduate of Boston College and Tufts
University and taught French in the Needham Schools
for nine years. She is a member of the American Association
of Teachers of French and the French Cultural
Center of Boston.
CESAR MORALES has a degree in Physical Education
from Cuba’s School for Physical Education Teachers,
and fenced foil in Cuba for 11 years. From 1997 to
2002, Cesar was assistant fencing coach at Brandeis
University and was named Coach of the Year three
years in a row. He now works with students of all ages
at his International Fencing Club in West Roxbury. Go
to www.internationalfencingclub.com for more information
about their programs.
ZEHARA NACHASH is a New England area belly
dancer and Boston’s premier snake dancer. She performs
throughout the New England area, and teaches
belly dance classes, fire-eating lessons, and snake
dance workshops throughout the area. For more information
visit: www.zehara.com
JOANNE NEALE is the owner of Needham-based
Garden Mentor, a consulting service for the homeowner,
providing education (plant identification and
care information), garden design (from plant lists to
landscape plans), and personal plant shopping, all with
an emphasis on low maintenance and environmental
responsibility.
CAROL OBERLE is a Certified Yoga Instructor who
has been practicing yoga for more than 12 years. She
has been teaching yoga to adults in various local settings
for many years.
CATHERINE O’BRIEN has been a Spanish teacher for
over 10 years, with most of those years spent teaching
at Needham High School. She received a BA in Spanish
and Latin American studies from Denison University
and a Masters from St. Joseph College. She has traveled
throughout Central and South America, and has
taught a variety of grade levels.
FAX: 781-455-0417 • PHONE: 781-455-0400 x235
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