Meet the faculty!
Dr. John Dristiliaris
Dr. John Dristiliaris comes to AIC after thirty years in the public safety profession. Turning his attention to teaching, Dr. Dristiliaris possesses a Doctorate in Leadership Studies from Franklin Pierce University, A master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Anna Maria College, and a bachelor’s degree in Education from Fitchburg State College (University).
Beginning in 2008, John has been an adjunct professor at several colleges and universities, both in-person and online. Dr. Dristiliaris’ vast professional and educational experiences have allowed him the opportunity to teach under the criminal justice, business, and social services curriculum. Dr. Dristiliaris has helped to educate, advise, mentor, and coach many students during this time. His passion for working with students and knowledge of the college and university systems align well with the Vision and Mission Statements here at AIC.
Jennifer Feitel, EdD
Dr. Feitel has held custody and treatment positions during her career, working as an employee of the State of Connecticut Department of Corrections for over twenty years. Feitel has supervised adult and youth inmates working with a diverse population. She was a member of the Department’s Correctional Emergency Response Team as a highly trained first responder in tactical operations who worked on statewide emergency assistance initiatives and provided leadership for corrections in Connecticut at the statewide Training Academy.
As a graduate of Central Connecticut State University, with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal justice, Feitel has a well-rounded knowledge of Criminology and Psychology. She continued her educational pursuits as an Adjunct teacher at the University and as an Assistant Instructor at Goodwin University, focusing on courses in Corrections and Criminal Law. Furthering her dedication and passion for teaching, she completed all requirements for a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership, EdD, from the University of Hartford, receiving her Doctorate in Education in 2022.
Regina Sanderson
Professor Sanderson holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Criminal Justice from Anna Maria College after earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Gina is the Graduate Criminal Justice Program Coordinator and full-time faculty teaching in both the undergraduate and graduate programs. Her academic experiences include Undergraduate Degree Completion Coordinator and Director of Graduate Criminal Justice, both at Anna Maria College.
Gina comes to higher education after enjoying a thirty-two-year career in the Massachusetts Probation Service where she served the citizens in Western Massachusetts. She established the Womanhood Program for Eastern Hampshire District Court. The program was created to assist in addressing the needs of women in crisis entering the criminal justice system as defendants. The program was committed to educating and empowering women.
Michael Stevens
Michael holds a master’s degree in criminal justice administration from Western New England University. The focus of his academic research centered on Regionalization, Interoperability, and Information Sharing. He earned his BS in Law Enforcement from Western New England University and is a graduate of the Southeast Florida Institute of Criminal Justice in Miami Florida, DEA National Training, FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development, and numerous other specialized trainings for law enforcement.
Michael’s academic experience includes serving as Chairperson of the School of Justice at Miami Dade College, Vice President of Public Safety Academic Programs at Anna Maria College, and Criminal Justice Team Lead at Southern New Hampshire University.
Michael enjoyed a 30-year police career ranging from conducting and supervising organized crime investigations in Miami Florida for the Miami-Dade Police Department to serving as Deputy Superintendent for Law Enforcement and Homeland Security for the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office. He was instrumental in the creation of a Worcester County Regional Drug Task Force (DELTA Force). Michael has a broad range of law enforcement experience specializing in management and planning, criminal investigations, and homeland security.
Honorable Carole Erskine
Judge Erskine is a graduate of Clark university and Suffolk University Law School. She served as the First Justice of the Worcester County Juvenile Court for twenty-one years where she presided over countless serious criminal cases, child abuse and neglect trials, as well as cases involving runaways, truancy, and children with mental health issues. Judge Erskine has received many child advocacy awards from bar associations and community agencies, and has been the recipient of three judicial excellence awards. Prior to being appointed to the bench, she argued cases before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court. She was named one of Massachusetts top ten lawyers by the Lawyers Weekly publication. Judge Erskine has extensive experience as a college educator and is an instructor with the Massachusetts Municipal Police Institute. She has published several op ed columns and a children’s book on Amazon. Judge Erskine has appeared on local and national news programs, including Boston 25, Court TV’s Closing Arguments and WGBH’s Greater Boston.
Dr. Jeffrey S. Czarnec
Dr. Jeffrey S. Czarnec served with the City of Manchester, N.H. Police Department from 1979 to 2002. He embarked upon his second career as an assistant professor of Criminal Justice for Hesser College, where he had served as an adjunct since 1996. During his career as a Police Officer in the largest city north of Boston, he served as a juvenile investigator, SWAT entry-team member, Civil Disturbance Unit member, Undercover Narcotics/Vice detective, and as detective-in-charge of crimes against elder persons.
He has presented at a variety of local, regional, and national venues on a myriad of subjects ranging from but not limited to TQM and public service, ethnography and organized crime, financial exploitation of the elderly, and the Gainful Employment and the impact upon course assessments. Prior to his affiliation with Lebanon College, he served as Associate Dean with Kaplan University and was Chairman of the Department of Criminal Justice, Hesser College located in Manchester, NH.
He received his B.S. in Criminal Justice from Saint Anselm College, a Master of Science in Human Services Administration from Springfield College and a Doctorate in Leadership Studies from Franklin Pierce University. His dissertation was a participatory study conducted over a three-year period with upper-echelon members of the Boston Irish Mafia/Whitey Bulger gang. He has several publications for textbooks and other academic sites.
In addition, he is working on a documentary in South Boston with former Mayor and Ambassador to the Vatican, Mr. Raymond Flynn. Areas of research have spanned a wide variety of disciplines that include qualitative criminology, language and the marginalized, elder abuse, and learning theory to mention but a few.
He is a member of the American Criminal Justice Society, , the International Association for the Study of Organized Crime and consults regularly with local and regional police and human services leadership.
He is married to Kathleen O’Loughlin and is the proud Dad of four grown children and grandfather of nine.
Dr. Pietro Petrarca
Dr. Petrarca holds his Ph.D. in Leadership. His dissertation focus was “Leadership Characteristics in New Recruits for Successful Community Policing Management”. He earned his MBA from Providence College and his BS from Bryant University. Prior to joining Dean College as an Assistant Professor, Dr. Petrarca taught at Rhode Island College (mainly in the graduate school) and is still an active adjunct faculty member there. He has been teaching at the college/university level since 1990 and has taught at multiple colleges/universities within New England.
Dr. Petrarca has extensive experience. Within the area of Criminal Justice, he has worked for over 25 years for the West Greenwich Police. He has work experience in almost every aspect of law-enforcement. In addition, he was the “Train the Trainer” for active shooters, a member of the Rhode Island Domestic Violence Curriculum committee, and had responsible for all departments grant writing where he secured over 1.2 million dollars in grants. Within the business sector, he mainly oversaw corporate operations management (analyzed/controlled multi-million-dollar budgets, over $273 Million).
Dr. Pedro Corpas
My name is Dr. Pedro Corpas, but everyone calls me “Pete.” I’m currently an Assistant Professor at Miami Dade College, School of Justice, and a part-time Police Officer at the Doral Police Department.
I started my career in law enforcement in 1997 working for the Florida Department of Corrections as a Correctional Officer. In 2000, I became a Police Officer and began working for the Miccosukee Police Department where I eventually was promoted to Police Sergeant. In 2005, I joined the Florida Highway Patrol and became a State Trooper working in Miami Dade County until 2008. In 2008, I joined the Doral Police Department as a Police Officer. In 2014, I was promoted to Police Detective within the Doral Police Department where I retired at the end of 2019 as a full-time Police Officer. Currently, I serve as a part-time Police Officer at the Doral Police Department where I’m assigned to the training unit.
I joined Miami Dade College as an Adjunct Professor in 2016 and fortunately, in January of 2020 I was hired as an Assistant Professor teaching Criminal Justice courses at the School of Justice. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice, a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Criminal Justice.
It is obvious that my interest in the criminal justice system is profound. I was fortunate to have worked (and still working) in the field of law enforcement for 27+ years and have practiced law enforcement throughout those years. Those years in the field of law enforcement gave me a unique perspective of how and why humans behave or misbehave in a certain way without a good reason or cause. With this in mind, my goal as a professor is to help and assist students gain a better understanding of the criminal justice system. My other goal is to help, guide, and assist those students who are planning to pursue a career within the criminal justice system, specifically in the field of law enforcement.
Lauren Misale
Lauren Misale, MPA has been teaching for 11 years in the Criminal Justice field at various institutions. The Chief of Police at Clark University, Ms. Misale comes to us with many years of experience as a law enforcement professional, beginning her career in 2008 as an officer, being promoted to the role of sergeant in 2013, and being appointed chief in 2020. She currently serves the University in emergency management, policy development, and other safety-related matters. Ms. Misale prides herself on preparing the next generation of Criminal Justice professionals by applying her field experience and real-life scenarios to her classroom instruction.
Samuel Santiago
Chief Samuel Santiago has been a lifelong resident of the City of Worcester, Ma who grew up in Great Brook Valley, one of the city’s largest housing projects, as well as the Main South Areas of Worcester. Chief Santiago is of Puerto Rican descent and speaks a second language. Chief Santiago has been a police officer for over 26 years and is currently a twenty-year veteran of the Shirley Police Department, where he is the chief of police and currently the only Latino police chief in Middlesex County and Central Massachusetts. Chief Santiago is also a criminal justice adjunct faculty at Anna Maria College in Paxton, Ma, where he teaches history of policing and race and foundations of criminal justice. In addition, he has been a guest lecturer and has participated in numerous criminal justice speaker series on social justice, policing, and a panelist regarding police officers of color at Anna Maria College, California University of Pennsylvania, and Fitchburg State University.
Chief Santiago has earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Services/Criminal Justice from Springfield College, graduating (Cum Laude), a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in public sector leadership from Clark University, a Master of Science in Criminal Justice, and a Graduate Certificate in Leadership and Administration in Criminal Justice from Anna Maria College. He has also attended and completed the Massachusetts Municipal Association-Suffolk University Certificate in Local Government Leadership and Management, which has given him a solid grounding in public management. Chief Santiago is currently three courses away from earning an MBA, and on May 6, 2023, Chief Santiago will graduate with a doctorate in criminal justice.