Our Program • Meet the Staff

Shelly Chin, Associate Director

Prior to her role with the Peace Corps Fellows Program, Shelly Chin taught second grade in South Los Angeles with the L.A. Unified School District.  She helped lead students to achieve the highest district-wide results in state exams – and her students outperformed similar low-income schools.  She also served as the Nutrition Coordinator at her school, and brought about a cross-curricular plan for promoting access and awareness to a healthy lifestyle. Preceding her five years of teaching, Shelly served as Program Coordinator for the Warriors Foundation in Oakland and piloted a performing and visual arts-based after school program for a local elementary school.  Shelly earned her B.S. from Boston University in Communications and an Ed.M. from UCLA’s Teacher Education Program where her training focused on social justice and urban education.  She is currently pursuing an Ed.M. in Leadership, Policy & Politics at Teachers College.

Nicolas Stahelin, Assistant Director

Nicolas has worked in the field of experiential learning, international and cross-cultural exchange, community partnerships, and educational development for over six years. Originally of Swiss-Brazilian nationality, Nicolas lived for over twenty years in Brazil and Venezuela, and is fluent in Spanish, Portuguese, and French. He obtained a BA in Environmental Studies from Oberlin College in 2002, and subsequently worked for two years as a program coordinator with the School for International Training in the Amazonian region of northern Brazil. Since 2006, Nicolas has been coordinating the Peace Corps Fellows Program's service-learning initiatives. During this time he obtained a Masters degree in International Educational Development at Teachers College, focusing on school-community partnerships for the education of immigrant youth in New York City. Nicolas currently pursues an Ed.D. in International Educational Development at Teachers College.

Tom Tortorici, Workstudy

Tom Tortorici, Master’s degree candidate in the Teaching of English program at Teachers College, is a 2008 Peace Corps Fellow currently on deferment. He grew up in Franklin Square, NY, and earned his BA in Psychology and Political Science at NYU. Tom’s passion for teaching was ignited during his service in Peace Corps Peru, where he came to view access to quality education as a basic human right – one which many in the US and abroad are, unfortunately, denied. He is committed to promoting social justice and educational equity, and is excited to build these themes into his teaching. Tom loves reading, the sea, and New York City, and enjoys nothing more than being in the company of friends and family.

Barbara Sadick, Workstudy

Barbara has been pursuing a second career in health for the last six years.  In 2003, she returned to school at Sarah Lawrence College, where she earned an M.A. in Health Advocacy.  Since 2005, she has combined her journalistic and advocacy skills to research and shape health and medical feature stories.  She has also worked in the fields of humanistic medicine and patient empowerment, and has helped numerous individuals to navigate the health care system.  She has 25 years of experience in photojournalism, fifteen of which were spent running and owning a successful international photo agency.  Born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island, Barbara received her B.A. in English Literature from McGill University in Montreal.  She is currently a doctoral candidate in Health and Behavior Studies at Teachers College.