Faculty and Staff

For over one hundred years, Blackstone has been widely recognized as a leader in distance education. Our success revolves around our students' eagerness to learn, and the dedicated faculty and staff who support them. Faculty members are leaders in their field of expertise, and
the Blackstone staff has many years of experience in distance education. Our faculty includes instructors with years of practice in teaching and developing distance education programs. Their educational and professional backgrounds, as well as memberships in professional organizations, give them access to the most up-to-date training and changes in the field.
They work closely with our administration and staff to provide timely answers to students' questions. Blackstone's support and development team assists in writing and editing our educational materials, as well as updating and reviewing them for accuracy, and helps
maintain our electronic databases and the Online Student Center. All of the staff, instructors,
and support and development members work under the guidance of a skilled administration
that has student satisfaction and course quality as its primary goals.





Kevin J. McCloskey
President
Kevin J. McCloskey is president of Direct Learning Systems, Inc. (DLS), a Lehigh Valley, PA, based distance education publishing company, which he founded in 1999. DLS is licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education as a private licensed school and provides internet based distance learning curriculum through Blackstone Career Institute. Blackstone is accredited by the Accrediting Comission of the Distance Education and Training Council, Washington, D.C.

His previous experience includes over fifteen years in senior management prior to founding DLS. He was Vice Chairman and managing partner of NLKK, Inc. the operator of Keystone National High School, a nationally accredited internet-based secondary school with an enrollment of over 15,000 students. In 2000 Mr. McCloskey orchestrated the sale of NLKK, Inc. to KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc., a publicly traded firm. Prior to that time, he held various senior management positions in the medical equipment field. Mr. McCloskey was primarily responsible for the marketing, sales, business development and strategic planning throughout this period.
He holds a BA degree from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania.

Professionally, Mr. McCloskey is active within the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), served on the Business Standards Committee (Vice Chairman), and was Chairman of
the International Marketing Workshop of the DETC in 2000. Additionally, he has served on the long-range planning and membership committees of Brookside Country Club. Other professional affiliations include the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association, the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association, and the Pennsylvania Association of Private School Administrators. He also serves on the school board of St. Thomas More School as fund raising chairman.

Paul Grumbein
General Manager
Paul graduated from Salem College with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education, earning a dual major in physical education and art with a minor in health sciences and safety education. Upon graduation, Paul was employed as a high school teacher for three years, active in the school's scholastic sports programs, theatrical productions and extracurricular activities. During this time he continued his education by enrolling as a night student in a master's program at Millersville College, where he pursued a degree in school guidance. His career took a turn into the business world, where he elevated himself through the sales ranks to the position of district sales manager in a career spanning twenty-four years. Along the way he continued with his education, enrolling in Albright College, where he took business related courses. With the opportunity to merge his educational background and management abilities, Paul joined the staff of Direct Learning Systems, Inc. where he is responsible for the schools operations.

Valerie L. Behrle
Director of Education
Valerie L. Behrle, B.S., M.Ed., holds a bachelor's and master's degree in education from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. Valerie has over twenty years' experience in education and has worked with students of all ages, including K-12 and post-graduate. She is currently the director of education at Blackstone Career Institute, where she supervises the evaluation staff for our distance-education schools. In addition, she writes and edits new programs for Blackstone. She has edited or written more than ten distance-education courses over the past five years.





Darlene Boyle
Financial Administrator/Human Resource Coordinator
Darlene earned her Human Resource Certification at Penn State University. She is a member of the Society of Human Resources. Darlene is also a Certified QuickBooks user. Her professional experience and educational background in bookkeeping/human resources enables her to coordinate the financial needs and human resources development at Direct Learning Systems, Inc.

Shannon Klich
Assistant Director of Education
Shannon graduated from Shippensburg University with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education with a concentration in psychology. She became a certified teacher in the state of Maryland. As the assistant director of education at Direct Learning Systems, Shannon provides educational assistance to our students. She is responsible for editing and revising course
material and assisting in the development of new programs.

Tammy Kromer
Financial Assistant/Admissions/Student Services
Tammy enjoys being a team player here at Blackstone Career Institute. Her responsibilities include assisting the general manager and Darlene Boyle, enrolling new students with Blackstone, processing each student's payments, and answering students' questions regarding billing and shipments.

Cheri Pagliaro
Student Services Representative
Cheri attended Kutztown University, where she majored in art. She is an assistant in our Education Department. She handles grades and student services.

Adria Wetherhold
Student Services Representative
Adria graduated from Penn State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Arts. Here at DLS, she mainly handles student services for the American Academy of Independent Studies, Blackstone's sister school. She is responsible for grading exams, issuing certificates, and updating AAIS records.





Lori A. Broskey
Paralegal Consultant
Lorelei A. Broskey has over fifteen years' experience as a law librarian serving the bench, bar and public. She is currently director of library and information services for the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. She has instructed in Legal Research and Law Library Skills for Lehigh County, local schools and colleges, public libraries and the Allentown Police Department. She also writes and trains on personnel issues, Pennsylvania's Justice Network, and legal topics specific to the court. She has served on the advisory board of Lehigh Carbon Community College's Paralegal Program since its inception. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Classic Civilization from Moravian College and a master's degree in library science from Kutztown University. Lorelei is a law librarian and legal research consultant for Hauck & Associates Corporation.

Michelle Cranney
Allied Health Consultant
Michelle Cranney, MBA, CPC, CCS-P, has over fifteen years' experience in the healthcare industry. Her full-time position as a consultant includes coding, billing, collections, chart
auditing, contract negotiation, policy and procedure development, EMR implementation,
HIPAA, accounts receivable, fee schedule maintenance, and managing and training staff.
She has over six years' experience in education, including both online and traditional formats
as well as curriculum development and mentoring. Ms. Cranney earned a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare Management from Davenport University in Grand Rapids,
Michigan; an undergraduate degree from Utah State University; and an associate's degree
in health information technology. She is a member of the American Academy of Professional Coders and the American Health Information Management Association.

John DeLeo
Consultant/Program Reviewer
As a professor and director of the paralegal program at Central Penn College, John Deleo has been educating paralegals for over thirteen years. He has taught courses such as Torts, contracts, Civil Procedure, Real Estate, Family Law, Administrative Law, Legal Writing, Constitutional Law, Evidence, Criminal Law, Business Law, and Wills. DeLeo is a 1984
graduate of Loyola University of New Orleans School of Law (J.D.) and a 1976 graduate of Pennsylvania State University. He is a published author, a former paralegal, and a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

Lynn M. Diebolt, CMT
Consultant/Program Reviewer
Lynn M. Diebolt has over ten years' experience as a professional medical transcriptionist, transcription manager, and medical office secretary. She holds an Associate of Science
degree from Middlesex Community Technical College and is a Certified Medical
Transcriptionist (CMT). In addition to Blackstone, she has contributed to the development
of other distance-education training programs for medical transcriptionists.

Jeffrey Peter A. M. Hauck, Sr., CLET
Paralegal Consultant
Jeffrey Peter A. M. Hauck, Sr. has over thirteen years of experience in law enforcement. He is currently employed as a patrol supervisor at a municipal police department. As a certified law enforcement and police academy instructor, Jeffrey writes and teaches on issues involving Constitutional Law, Use of Force, and Search and Seizure. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice from DeSales University, a Juris Doctor Degree from Widener University School of Law, and a Certification in Law and Government from the Law & Government Institute of Widener University School of Law. Jeffrey is President of Hauck & Associates Corporation, a consulting and training business.

Donna S. Lepkoski
Consultant/Program Reviewer
Donna S. Lepkoski has over thirty years' experience in dental education and is a Certified Dental Assistant. She is a full-time faculty member in the Dental Health Department of Luzerne County Community College, Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, where she teaches courses in dental assisting and has served on numerous college committees including the College Senate. Donna is a consultant for the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation and has developed, presented, and published seminars and articles on dental infection control procedures. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Dental Health Education from Greenwich University. She was awarded a fellowship in the American Dental Assistant Association in 2001 and was the recipient of the Allan Faculty Excellence Award in 1998.

Janet I. B. Seggern
Consultant/Program Reviewer
Janet I. B. Seggern has over 15 years' experience in education. She is a professor of business
at Lehigh Carbon Community College in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, where she has taught courses in medical billing and medical coding. She has authored, edited, and reviewed many books about medical office management. Seggern is a contributing author of Medical Office Procedures with Data Disk for Medisoft for Windows, published by Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2002, and From Patient to Payment with Data Disk for Medisoft for Windows, published by Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2001. She holds a Master of Science degree in Counseling from Chestnut Hill College, a Master of Education degree from Temple University, and a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Business Education Association and National Education Association.

William J. Mulkeen
Consultant/Program Reviewer
William J. Mulkeen is the director of program/curriculum development at Essex County College where he also directs and teaches in the paralegal program. He has created degree and certificate programs and numerous paralegal courses at several colleges and has been involved in legal education for almost twenty years. He is a paralegal specialist reviewer for the American Council on Education (ACE) and the Distance Education Training Council (DETC). He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the American Association for Paralegal Education (AAfPE) serving as Director of Certificate Programs and is a mentor and member of the Academic Council of Thomas Edison State College. Mr. Mulkeen is a graduate of the Seton Hall University School of Law and prior to becoming a full time educator, was involved in the full time practice of law, admitted to the New Jersey Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, and the Supreme Court of the
United States. He is currently writing two paralegal textbooks.





Tracey Vasil Biscontini
Editorial Manager
Tracey Vasil Biscontini has over fifteen years' experience in distance education. A
professional writer, editor, and college instructor, Tracey owns and manages Northeast
Editing, Inc., a writing and editing service specializing in educational writing. Tracey holds a master's degree in English from the University of Scranton and a bachelor's degree in mass communications from King's College. She is a member of the American Association of
Curriculum Development and the National Writers' Union.

Gerold Chorba
Computer Programmer/Consultant
Gerold has over seventeen years experience as a computer programmer and consultant. He has been working with Direct Learning Systems, Inc. since 2001. Specializing in FoxPro, Gerold manages DLS's database system as well as maintaining the Online Student Center and IT troubleshooting.

Compute Asyst, Inc.
Computer/Network Support
Founded in 1980 by Charles Myers, Compute Asyst, Inc., is a Pennsylvania-based computer consulting and service company located in the Lehigh Valley. Charles and his staff provide computer and network consulting, service, and support to Direct Learning Systems, Inc. Compute Asyst helps businesses and professional organizations of all sizes gain the most productive and cost-effective benefit from today's computer and networking technology.

Benjamin Mincavage
Web Designer
Benjamin Mincavage graduated from Kutztown University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Communication Design. He has 3 years experience in web design and interactive design. In addition to the layout and format of websites, Benjamin has also created online advertisements and freelance illustration for various clients.

Camille G. Scarborough
Consultant/Copy Editor
Camille has been running her own writing, editing, and marketing consulting business for over five years, with many clients in the field of education. Prior to starting her own business, Camille worked as a marketing manager for retail banking programs at the American Bankers Association and was the copy manager for NRI Schools, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English.

Deborah Silvestrini
Designer
Deborah Silvestrini has over fifteen years' experience in desktop publishing and design on PC and MAC platforms. She owns and operates D.A.S. Computer Enterprises, a computer service specializing in desktop publishing. Deborah has designed textbooks and training materials for some of the largest educational publishers in the United States. In addition to desktop publishing, her clients rely on her for software training, computer installations, and troubleshooting.

Celia Swallow
Creative Services
Celia has over twenty years of experience in the graphic design field, and an association
with Mr. McCloskey and Direct Learning Systems since 1997. She is responsible for
developing and executing the creative concepts for communication projects. Her focus is
to create affordable, exciting design solutions for her clients. Celia has a background in
graphic design, communication and client development. Previously, art director for a leading promotional advertising agency, she currently holds the position of VP of Creative Services for CG2Direct, a direct marketing company targeting the financial industry.

Erin Vellela
Author and Designer
Erin is a graduate of Kutztown University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English/ Professional Writing with a minor in Literature. Vellela has four years billing and coding experience. Alongside her knowledge of writing and editing, she also has two years of experience in desktop publishing and design.