New Faculty Jason Baseden | Director of Athletics Baseden served as director of athletics at the International School of Brussels from 2008 to 2015. Prior to moving to Brussels, he worked for Universal Television, the Discovery Channel and OLN Network in various marketing and production roles. He is a project manager for Hoops 4 Hope in New York City and Paris. A graduate of St. John’s University, he was two-time captain of the track and field team. Baseden is pursuing a master’s degree in athletic administration through Ohio University. He is a member of the board of directors of the International Association of Athletic Administrators and Coaches.
Ryan Bennett | Director of Technology Bennett joined Peddie after 16 years at Mercersburg Academy as the director of informational technology, math teacher, coach, advisor and dorm dean. Previously, he was at the Leelanau School in Michigan after starting his teaching career in the Kalamazoo Public School District. Beyond his years in education, Bennett has served as a volunteer firefighter and EMT in Pennsylvania as well as being a nationally certified soccer official. He holds his undergraduate degree in mathematics from Western Michigan University and a M.S. in computer information systems from the University of Phoenix.
John Drstvensek, MD, P’97 ’01 | Director of Health Services After a 38-year career practicing emergency medicine, Drstvensek will lead the Hensle Health Center. Drstvensek was medical director at Riverside Medical Hospital and Grant Medical Center, both in Columbus, Ohio. Drstvensek graduated from the University of Cincinnati and Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus, Ohio. He was named Physician of the Year by the Columbus Emergency Medical Services.
Katie Germain | Director of Marketing and Communications Prior to joining Peddie, Germain served as director of marketing and public relations at the Rutgers University Foundation and as associate director of web communications at Saint Peter’s University. She earned her master’s degree in creative writing from Rutgers University-Newark in 2015, and she holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from SUNY Purchase.
“I underperformed at a meet around Thanksgiving and I just decided I wasn’t in good enough endurance shape, so I asked Greg to plug in the scoreboard on a timer,” he said. “And I came in on a Sunday and just knocked it out.” Now a trader at DRW Trading Group, Charnin-Aker was the consummate scholar-athlete at Peddie. Excelling in the classroom and recognized as a National Merit Scholar, he was a member of the Cum Laude and Gold Key societies. He was editor-in-chief of The Peddie News and was elected president of his junior class. He won The Potter Cup and the Walter H. Annenberg Award.
(left to right) Ryan Bennett, Austin Frank, Jenate Brown, Marisa Parra, Nathalie Letourneau, Jason Baseden, John Drstvensek and Katie Germain.
Jenate Brown | English Brown previously taught English at the New Era Academy, part of the Baltimore public schools, where she initiated an after-school program for at-risk students. A graduate of The Lawrenceville School and Princeton University, Brown was president of the Princeton University Club Sports Council and played on Princeton University’s Women’s Rugby Football Club.
Austin Frank | History A New Jersey native, Frank graduated from Wesleyan University, where he majored in government, played football and wrestled. At Wesleyan, he was selected to the NESCAC All-Academic team. He worked as a park director, events coordinator and supervisor for Linden Parks and Recreation.
Nathalie Letourneau | French Letourneau is a native speaker in French and Portuguese. She has degrees from Thomas Edison State College, Lawrence University and the Institut Universitaire Technologique de Besançon in France. She previously worked at inlingua Princeton.
Marisa Parra | Spanish Parra was a Spanish teacher at Oakwood Friends School in Poughkeepsie, where she also served as dorm parent and summer program and rental coordinator. A native Spanish speaker, Parra graduated from the Universidad de Buenos Aires with degrees in education and Spanish. She has taught all levels of Spanish.
After Peddie, Josh continued to Stanford University, where he joined the swim team and graduated in 2011 with a degree in management science and engineering. Now that he has successfully swum across the English Channel, Charnin-Aker said he has his sights on the other two events that would make him a member of the prestigious Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming club. The other two swims — 28.5 miles around Manhattan Island and 20.2 miles across the Catalina Channel in Southern California — are on his “lifetime bucket list.” There are currently only 121 Triple Crowners. Fall 2015 31