Meet Our Staff
David J. Thomas, Ph.D., M.A., Director and Assistant Professor (2020)
Initial Meetings and Accommodations Review; Accommodations Appeals; Documentation Review; University-wide initiatives; Faculty Consultation; OEA Oversight and Operations
RAMS - Accommodate: Faculty Questions, General Questions
Questions regarding RAMS - Accommodate? Email OEA@wcupa.edu
Education:
Ph.D. in Education, Higher Education, Old Dominion University
M.A., Applied Linguistics, Old Dominion University
B.A., Individualized Integrative Studies in Dramaturgy, minor in Criminal Justice,
Old Dominion University
Graduate Certificate, Public Administration, West Chester University of Pennsylvania
Linguistic Society of America Summer Institute, Evolutionary Phonology, Sociocultural
Linguistics, Stanford University
Graduate Certificate, Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, Old Dominion
University
Studies in Opera Performance, Music Theory, and Diction, University of North Carolina
School of the Arts
(in progress) Graduate Certificate, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), West Chester University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Thomas serves as President of Delta Alpha Pi International Honor Society (and faculty advisor for our local Mu chapter), a member of the Board of Directors of Disability Rights Pennsylvania, where he also served as a member and the Chair of the Mental Health Advisory Council from 2015 - 2023, and as a non-affiliated member of the Institutional Review Board at St. Joseph's University (previously University of the Sciences) since 2013.
Hobbies and Interests: spending time with family, needle and fibre crafts (blackwork, bargello, crochet, etc.), movies, podcasts, music, travel, reading
Dr. Thomas can be reached via email at dthomas3@wcupa.edu or by calling the OEA at 610-436-2564.
Gabriellia Hartz '20 '22, M.S., Senior Accommodations Specialist (2022)
Proctoring Center; Academic Coaching Program; Communication Access (CART, ASL, Alternate Format Materials, etc.); Initial Meetings and Accommodations Review; Assistive Technology
RAMS - Accommodate: Proctoring Center, Exam, and Exam Room Booking Questions; Communication Access and
Professional Provider Questions; General Questions
Questions regarding RAMS - Accommodate? Email OEA@wcupa.edu
Education:
M.S., Higher Education Policy and Student Affairs, West Chester University
B.S., Interdisciplinary Studies, West Chester University
Prior to joining us as an Accommodations Coordinator in 2022, Ms. Hartz served as a graduate assistant for 2 years in OEA working with students as an academic coach and managing the Proctoring Center.
Hobbies and Interests: playing with her cat Maeve, plants, and she loves the color purple
Ms. Hartz can be reached via email at ghartz@wcupa.edu or by calling the OEA at 610-436-2775.
Susan Durkovic '23, A.A.S., B.S., RPR, CRC, CART Captioner (2000)
Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) Captioner
Education and Certifications:
B.S., Interdisciplinary Studies, minors in American Sign Language, Deaf Studies, and
Psychology, West Chester University
A.A.S., Court Reporting, Court Reporting Institute of Philadelphia
Registered Professional Reporter (RPR), National Court Reporters Association
Certified Realtime Captioner (CRC), National Court Reporters Association
CART stands for Communication Access Realtime Translation, which is a speech-to-text interpreting service for anyone who needs communication access. As an advocate for those who are d/Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing, Ms. Durkovic is passionate about making the spoken word accessible through providing and advocating for accurate, quality captions to those who rely on it.
Hobbies and Interests: spending time with her family, being outdoors, especially, at the beach, playing ice hockey
Ms. Durkovic can be reached via email at sdurkovic@wcupa.edu or by calling the OEA at 610-436-2564
Jacob Manny '23, M.M., Administrator (2023)
Front Office Operations; Accommodate Maintenance, Office Correspondence; Clerical Support; Appointment Scheduling; Records
RAMS - Accommodate: General Questions
Questions regarding RAMS - Accommodate? Email OEA@wcupa.edu.
Education:
Ed.D. Student, Higher Education Policy, Planning, and Administration
M.M., Trumpet Performance, The Wells School of Music at West Chester University
B.M., Music Performance, The University of the Arts
Prior to joining the OEA in a full time capacity, Jacob worked with as a student employee and graduate academic coach. While completing his master's degree, Jacob served in a graduate assistant capacity for The Wells School of Music facilitating the expansion of the music library and helping students with their musical studies. Jacob is a disabled veteran after serving four years in the United States Army with extensive international experience.
Mr. Manny can be reached via email at JManny@wcupa.edu or by calling the OEA at 610-436-2517
Jessica Parsons, B.A., Academic Coaching Graduate Assistant (2023)
OEA Academic Coach
Education:
M.S., Student, School Counseling
B.A., Psychology with a minor in Sociology, Shippensburg University
At Shippensburg, Jess was a member of Phi Sigma Pi National Honor Fraternity and National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) club to raise mental health awareness.
Hobbies and Interests: Jess cheered for 15 years before starting college. Love to travel, go on hikes, hang out with friends and family, and bake.
Proctoring Center
If you need to leave a message for one of the Proctors, please contact us at 610-436-2775, or oeapc@wcupa.edu -- the Proctoring Center proctors are unable to make or receive phone calls during testing hours.
Academic Coaching Office and the Graduate Assistant Program
To schedule an appointment with one of our academic coaches, please log in to your RAMS Accommodate Portal. If you need to contact your academic coach or one of our graduate assistants, please either reach out to them directly, email oeaga@wcupa.edu, or call us at 610-436-2775.