Council Members

Jonathan Gilbert, MS

SFC President

Instructor in Residence
Biology (CLAS)
Jonathan.Gilbert@uconn.edu

Jonathan Gilbert joined UConn Stamford as an adjunct instructor in January 2019 and became an in-residence instructor with the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology in August 2021. He received an MS in Environmental Science from the University of New Haven where he studied metabarcoding and genomic differentiation of algal communities. He currently lives in Norwalk with his wife and three children.

 

 

Katie Nagrotsky, PhD

SFC Communications

Assistant Clinical Professor
kathryn.nagrotsky@uconn.edu

Katie Nagrotsky joined the UConn Stamford faculty in 2023 as an Assistant Clinical Professor.  Before UConn, Katie was a public school teacher at the secondary level. She taught English language arts in middle schools and worked with high school students in dual enrollment and first year writing classes. At UConn Stamford she represents the UConn Neag School of Education’s Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates (TCPCG).  TCPCG is a one year post-baccalaureate master’s program.  Students in this program earn Connecticut state teacher certification and a master’s degree to teach as a special educator PK-12 or a content area teacher in middle or high schools.  She is excited to be part of the UConn Stamford community and teaches undergraduate and graduate students.

Outside of the classroom, Katie and her husband enjoy spending time with their son Daniel and their beagle. They live in Norwalk.

 

Sharon Lattig MA, PhD

SFC President

English (CLAS)
sharon.lattig@uconn.edu

Sharon Lattig began teaching at UConn Stamford as an adjunct in 2004 and is now an Assistant Professor-in-Residence in the First Year Writing program. Her research marries the theory of the lyric, neuroscience and ecocriticism. A Fulbright Scholar, she holds a Ph.D. in English from the CUNY Graduate Center and an M.A. in Creative Writing from the City College of New York. In her other life, she is a professional figure skater.

Evan Rawley, PhD, MBA

SFC Secretary

Associate Professor School of Business
evan.rawley@uconn.edu

Evan Rawley is the Eversource Energy Scholar in Technological Entrepreneurship and a Professor in the Management Department.  Before joining UConn he was an Assistant Professor at the Wharton School (2007-2012), the Roderick H. Cushman Associate Professor of Business at The Columbia Business School (2012-2017), and an Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota (2017-2020).  His award winning research on corporate strategy and entrepreneurship has been widely published in the leading academic journals in his field.  Evan holds a Ph.D. from Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.  Prior to completing his Ph.D. Evan worked for the Boston Consulting Group in New York and for Deloitte in Detroit.

 

Beth Ginsberg, PhD

Associate Professor in Residence
Political Science (CLAS)
beth.ginsberg@uconn.edu

Dr. Ginsberg is currently an Associate Professor in Residence in the Department of Political Science. She is also the director of the MA program in the Indigeneity, Intersectionality, Race, Ethnicity and Politics program and has faculty affiliations in El Instituto, Social and Critical Inquiry, Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies and the Center for Judaic Studies.  She has been a member of the UCONN faculty since 2010. Since her arrival at UCONN, she has taught a wide range of course at the Stamford campus in both American Politics and Racial and Ethnic Politics.
Prof. Ginsberg is also an active member of the Stamford campus where she advises several student clubs and supervises independent studies and student internships.  She is also the faculty advisor for Political Science Honors students.
Her research focuses on the influences on Latino subgroup voting behavior. She has presented variations of her research at several national and regional political science organizations.
Dr. Ginsberg was also the recipient of the Faculty Appreciation Award in Fall 2023, the 2024 and 2025 Provost Course Development Award and a special grant from the UCONN Provost to bring students to NH in January 2024 to observe first presidential primary activities. She was also awarded the Honor’s Faculty of the Year award in 2025.
Personally, Dr. Ginsberg is married to her husband Neal, and they have 4 children and one bonus daughter (her daughter-in-law). They all reside in Brooklyn. In her spare time, she volunteers with her synagogue and with a group that provides meals to local people in need.  She is an avid reader and a huge NY Yankees fan.

Claudia Kraemer, PhD

Associate Professor in Residence
Biology (CLAS)
claudia.kraemer@uconn.edu

Originally from Italy where she earned her BS in Biology and her PhD in Molecular Biology, Claudia Kraemer started her UConn career as an adjunct in 1998 and was hired as a Professor  in Residence in 2004.  She teaches 6 different classes and oversees the Biology Program in Stamford. Married with two grown sons, both alumni of UConn with her youngest currently pursuing his doctorate degree in Storrs.

"When not indoor teaching I am outdoor hiking, biking, and photographing nature.  I love to cook and even more to eat!"

 

 

Felice Lesser, MA

Dance (Adjunct)
felice.lesser@uconn.edu

Felice Lesser has taught dance at UCONN/Stamford since 1981. She is also a choreographer, playwright, video artist, and the director of her own company, the Felice Lesser Dance Theater, which will premiere her multi-media work, I AM A DANCER 2020 (focusing on how dancers navigated the Covid pandemic), at New York Live Arts, June 26-28, 2025. Lesser won the Lawrence S. Epstein Prize for Choreography, and as a playwright, was chosen for New Perspectives Theatre’s “Women’s Work Project” in 2013. Her dance & video work, “A.I.” (from LIGHTNING) was selected for the 2019 Carson City International Film Weekend. She holds a B.A. from Barnard College in Music, cum laude, and an M.A. from Columbia University in Dance & Dance Education. (www.fldt.org)

Marie Ruiz-Martinez, PhD

Assistant Professor in Residence
Chemistry (CLAS):
maria.ruizmartinez@uconn.edu

Marie C. Ruiz-Martinez joined the faculty of UConn Stamford in the fall of 2016 as an assistant- in-residence professor.  Currently she teaches CHEM1127, CHEM1128 and CHEM 1122. She graduated from University of Massachusetts in Amherst MA in 1989 with a B.S. in Chemistry. She completed her graduate work in the Barnet Institute of Northeastern University in Analytical Chemistry in 1995. She then spent 1.5 years doing a post-doctorate program sponsored in part by the DOE Human Genome Project Initiative. In 1997 she joined, CuraGen Corporation in Branford CT. During her tenure in CuraGen Corporation, she worked in discovery and development of biological pharmaceutical products including smaller proteins and toxin-conjugated antibodies. In 2009, she joined the chemistry faculty at Quinnipiac University where she taught analytical and instrumental chemistry. During the summers, Prof. Ruiz-Martinez works with various organizations in Puerto Rico on reforestation projects. The rest of the time she enjoys the beach with her family.    

Bill Schwendner, PhD

Math (Adjunct)
bill.schwendner@uconn.edu

Bill Schwendner joined UConn Stamford as an instructor of mathematics in January 1979. He earned a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics (Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences at New York University) and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (School of Engineering & Applied Science at Yale). 

In addition to his academic career, Bill spent 37 years at IBM, where he held a variety of technical and executive leadership positions, including Senior Mathematician, Senior Researcher, and Corporate Headquarters Chief Information Officer (CHQ CIO). He holds two U.S. patents and has authored several industry publications. 

While at UConn Stamford, Bill has also been actively involved in faculty leadership and previously served as President of the Faculty Council for 6 years. 

Bill lives with his wife in Wilton, and they enjoy spending time with their grandchildren. 

Ellie Sherafat, PhD

 

Assistant Professor in Residence
Computing (Computer Science and Engineering):
elham.sherafat@uconn.edu

Ellie Sherafat is an Assistant Professor In-Residence in the School of Computing, Computer Science and Engineering, at the University of Connecticut. She holds a Ph.D. and an M.S. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Connecticut and has over fifteen years of experience in Artificial Intelligence, Data Science research, and software engineering. Her recent work includes developing machine learning methods and bioinformatics pipelines, with a focus on personalized cancer treatment. As an educator, she focuses on active, hands-on, project-based learning with an emphasis on AI-driven teaching methods to engage students and foster critical thinking.