GALLATIN SCHOOL OF INDIVIDUALIZED STUDYPatrick McCreeryAssistant Dean, Global ProgramsB.S. 1989, Miami (Fla.); M.A. 1997, Ph.D. 2009, <strong>New</strong><strong>York</strong>Patrick McCreery’s teaching and research interests lie in the areas <strong>of</strong> sexual politics, familylife and the role <strong>of</strong> the symbolic child figure in the United States.At <strong>Gallatin</strong>, he teaches interdisciplinaryseminars that explore the politics <strong>of</strong> childhood, artistic representations <strong>of</strong> HIV-AIDS and the relationship between personal identity and social space.He is currently workingon a book that contextualizes Anita Bryant’s 1977 “Save Our Children” campaign within nationaldebates at the time over sexual autonomy, children’s perceived innocence and the rapidexpansion <strong>of</strong> civil rights in the 1960s and ’70s. Pr<strong>of</strong>. McCreery has published essays in journalssuch as GLQ, <strong>New</strong> Labor Forum, Radical History Review and Social Text, and he coeditedthe anthology Out atWork:Building a Gay-LaborAlliance (<strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> Minnesota Press,2001).An accomplished administrator, he received <strong>Gallatin</strong>’s Adviser <strong>of</strong> Distinction Award in2006.Amy SpellacyAdministrative Director, M.A. ProgramB.A. 1995, <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> St.Thomas; M.A. 1998, <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> Iowa; Ph.D. 2006, <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> IowaAmy Spellacy’s teaching and research interests include nineteenth- and twentieth-centuryAmerican literature, literature <strong>of</strong> the Americas, U.S. Latino/a literature, and transnational literaryand cultural studies. Her dissertation, “Neighbors North and South: Literary Culture,Political Rhetoric and Inter-American Relations in the Era <strong>of</strong> the Good Neighbor Policy,1928-1948,” traces the deployment and circulation <strong>of</strong> the trope <strong>of</strong> the neighbor in social andcultural texts in the United States and Latin America.Prior to <strong>Gallatin</strong>,Amy was a lecturer andAssistant Director <strong>of</strong> Studies in the History and Literature program at Harvard, where shetaught interdisciplinary courses such as “American Road Narratives,” “Mexican AmericanCrossings” and “A Cultural History <strong>of</strong> the Banana.”Meredith TheemanSenior Class AdviserB.A. 2001,Vassar; M.Sc. 2003, <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> Surrey (UK); M.Phil. 2006, Hunter College; Ph.D. 2010,CUNY (Graduate Center )Meredith L.Theeman is a social scientist with a Ph.D. in environmental psychology. Her researchand teaching interests include psychology, public health, epidemiology, mental health,place and behavior,light exposure and health narratives.Currently,she is working with and presentingdata on seasonally related mood and behavior change.As a higher education administrator,she is interested in instructional technology and institutional research.<strong>New</strong><strong>York</strong> <strong>University</strong> <strong>Bulletin</strong> 2012-2013 51
NEW YORK UNIVERSITYJeanette TranTransfer Student AdviserB.A. 2004, California (Los Angeles); M.A. 2005,Wisconsin (Madison)Jeanette Tran’s teaching and research interests include early modern literature, the history <strong>of</strong>cross-cultural encounter,critical race theory,performance theory and social justice.She receivedher B.A.in English from UCLA (2004) and is completing her Ph.D.in English from the <strong>University</strong><strong>of</strong> Wisconsin-Madison. Her dissertation, “Re-Orienting and Re-Cognizing Decorum,”examines how perceptions <strong>of</strong> the foreign are mediated by the conventions <strong>of</strong> the stagein early modern drama. In addition to her academic pursuits, Jeanette brings to <strong>Gallatin</strong> herpassion and commitment to helping students succeed inside and outside <strong>of</strong> the classroom.AtUW-Madison,where she worked as an instructor in theWriting Center,taught courses in literatureand composition and served as the Asian-American representative on the MulticulturalStudent Center Advisory Board, she was recognized for her exceptional service to the university’slearning community.Vasu VaradhanB.A. 1968, M.A. 1972, M.A. 1980, Ph.D. 1985, <strong>New</strong><strong>York</strong>VasuVaradhan’s teaching interests are in the areas <strong>of</strong> media and cultural change and in SouthAsian Studies. Her dissertation research focused on the impact <strong>of</strong> technology in Third Worldcountries. She continues her work in this area by examining the impact <strong>of</strong> media in globalization.Her other area <strong>of</strong> interest deals with the religion and philosophy <strong>of</strong> ancient Indian textsand its continued relevance in Indian society as well as in the South Asian diaspora.Varadhanis currently writing a memoir on her experiences <strong>of</strong> growing up in India and America. Herearlier writing has appeared in two <strong>of</strong> India’s national newspapers,The Hindu andThe IndianExpress. She has been part <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Gallatin</strong> community for 16 years.52 <strong>New</strong><strong>York</strong> <strong>University</strong> <strong>Bulletin</strong> 2012-2013