Mary Hovanec, Assistant Professor of History at Cuyahoga Community College-Western Campus, has taught for 18 years. She received her M.A. in History at the University of Chicago where she specialized in Russian history. She has contributed to African-American Women in the United States (1993). Fluent in four languages, Professor Hovanec is currently translating documents of a 17th century female mystic, Jeanne de Matel, as well as materials written about her from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Mary.Hovanec@tri-c.edu

Catherine Rokicky is an Assistant Professor of History at Cuyahoga Community College, Western Campus, where she teaches United States and Latin American history. She earned her Ph.D. from Kent State University. She is the author of two books: James Monroe: Oberlin's Christian Statesman and Reformer, 1821-1898 (Kent State University Press, 2002) and Creating a Perfect World: Religious and Secular Utopias in Nineteenth-Century Ohio (Ohio University Press, 2002) which is part of the Ohio Bicentennial Series.

Professor Rokicky has also taught United States and Latin American History at the University of Akron, Kent State University, and Cleveland State University. She earned the award for best dissertation in the state of Ohio from the Ohio Academy of History.
Catherine.Rokicky@tri-c.edu

Worshop Presenters

Laura Blunk was born in Cleveland, Ohio, where she graduated from John Marshall High School. Educated in northeastern Ohio universities, she received a B.A. in History from Cleveland State University, a M.A. in History from the University of Akron where she focused on medieval history, and a Ph.D. from Kent State University where she majored in and wrote her dissertation in Modern German and Austrian history. She has been a full-time faculty member at Cuyahoga Community College since 1976 and is currently Associate Professor of History at the Eastern Campus.

A confirmed movie lover, she takes a great interest in the ways in which films interpret and portray the past. She has taught a course, "Film and History" and has frequently presented papers on film/television and history. Her article, "Red Robin: The Politics of Richard Carpenter's Robin of Sherwood" will be published this December by Boydell and Brewer in Robin Hood and Popular Culture.
Laura.Blunk@tri-c.edu

Thomas E. Lyon is an Instructor of Political Science and History at the Western Campus of Cuyahoga Community College. He earned both his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in History from John Carroll University. He has taught a broad range of history and political science courses at the college since 1985 and has also taught United States History at John Carroll University.
Thomas.Lyon@tri-c.edu

Melissa Soto is an assistant professor of history at Cuyahoga Community College's Western campus. Professor Soto teaches courses in American history, women's history, African American History, and the history of Africa. She has also taught courses in American western history and U.S. immigration history.