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Academic Advising
Meet Your Advisors
Claudia Scott-Pavloff (Assistant Dean)
Claudia directs the Academic Advising Office in the College of Arts and Science and serves as the primary point person for student academic matters for the college. She coordinates the academic advising programs and often represents Arts and Science across the university. Claudia works with all types of student concerns and is an advocate for such. Claudia began her career at Miami, some 34 years ago, as a first year advisor and then moved to the College of Arts and Science as an academic advisor and now as the Assistant Dean. She did her undergraduate work at Michigan State University and earned a master's of arts at Bowling Green State University.
Gabriela Bermúdez (Academic Advisor)
Gabriela earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations and Spanish Language, Literature and Culture with a minor in Latin American Studies from Syracuse University and attended Carnegie Mellon University for her Master's in Public Policy and Management. She started her advising career in 2007 at Pennsylvania State University, working with undecided exploratory students. Gabriela also worked with the McNair scholars program at Penn State as the Academic Coordinator in charge of advising students and preparing them for their transition to graduate studies. Gabriela joined the advising staff in August 2012.
Christa Branson (Academic Advisor)
Christa came to Miami as a student in 1992, and worked full-time at the Hamilton campus while earning a Bachelor of Arts in sociology. In 2002 Christa resumed her role as a Miami student and earned a Master of Science in college student personnel. She returned to full-time employment in 2004 as coordinator of academic advising for the Office of Residence Life and New Student Programs. Christa joined the CAS academic advising staff in 2006.
Theodore Peters (Senior Academic Advisor)
Ted ('94) is a proud Miami alumnus, who earned an Arts Baccalaureate in English literature and creative writing. He received a Master's degree in literature from the University of London (King's College) and specialized in 19th century British poetry. In 1998, Ted began his professional career at Miami as a visiting instructor in English and as the first-year advisor in charge of creating the Celebrate the Arts living-learning community. He has worked in the CAS advising office since 2001.
Sara McInerney Speh (Assistant to the Dean)
Sara completed her undergraduate degree at Colorado State University and attended Indiana University for a Master's in education. In 1988 she became assistant director for Career Services at Miami and was promoted to associate director in 1993. In 1998, she became assistant to the dean for the CAS Advising Office where she serves as a divisional advisor and helps students understand how their liberal arts education transfers to the world of work.
Ryan Swallow (Academic Advisor)
Ryan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from The Ohio State University and a Master's in Higher Education from the University of Toledo. Ryan was previously employed by Morehead State University in Kentucky as a College Access Counselor for a program that focused on recruiting non-traditional students. Ryan joined the CAS academic advising staff in August 2011.