Erie Community College, State University of New York

ESL Faculty/Staff

The ESL faculty and staff at Erie Community College are dedicated, experienced professionals all of whom feel honored to help international students and immigrants adapt to a new language and culture.

	Bonita Colton-Montalto Bonita Colton-Montalto has been teaching ESL and college composition at ECC since 2003. Before coming to ECC, she taught ESL with the English Language Institute at the State University of New York at Buffalo for 19 years, business English with UCLA in Beijing, China for two years, and ESL at Syracuse University for two years. She has visited Thailand, Afghanistan, India, Egypt, England, Ireland, Germany, Holland, Italy, and Colombia. She has lived in France, Switzerland, Iran, China and Canada. Besides her native English, she is fluent in French.
	Steven Gjurich Steven Gjurich received his undergraduate degree in International Business and Japanese from the University at Maryland, his Masters of Education in TESOL from the State University of New York at Buffalo, and a Master’s of Divinity from St. Tikhon Orthodox Theological Seminary. He has taught English in Japan, Latvia, and Sweden. He has also been teaching ESL and TESOL Practicum at the State University of NY at Buffalo. Mr. Gjurich is currently ECC’s ESL coordinator.
	Esteban Lopez Esteban Lopez has been an educator since 1976. He began his teaching career in Puerto Rico first as an Elementary School ESL teacher for about six years and then as a Junior High School English teacher for about seven years. He received a Master's Degree in English Education from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus where he also taught developmental ESL for three years. Then in 1988 he received a fellowship to study at the State University of New York at Buffalo where he completed an M. A. Ed. in Foreign and Second Language Education and all related doctoral-level courses.
	Don Montalto Don Montalto began his English teaching career in Germany in 1973 where he taught English to German high school students and business English to German adults. Upon returning to the US in 1978, he continued teaching English as a Second Language at the International Institute of Boston, Boston University, the State University of New York at Buffalo and since 1985 at Erie Community College. He holds a BA in Psychology and two Master’s Degrees from SUNY Buffalo in Music Performance and TESOL. He is currently writing a textbook for ESL students. Besides his native English, Prof. Montalto is fluent in German.
	Eleanor Paterson Eleanor Paterson is the Director of the ESL Student Support Center and Assistant Professor of ESL at City Campus. She received her Ph.D. in Research and Evaluation in Bilingual Education from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Paterson is an active member of several community organizations aimed at improving education and the quality of life of the Hispanic community, the West and East Sides, and the greater Buffalo area in general. She is on the board of the Hispanic Women’s League, Inc. and a member of the Hispanic Alliance. She has published papers and presented on topics relevant to bilingual education.
	Ellene Phufas Ellene Phufas has been a full time faculty member in the English Department at ECC since 1983 and has also taught at D’Youville College, SUNY Buffalo, Czech Technical University (Czech Republic) and Talinn Technical University (Estonia). In addition she has taught in a number of programs abroad in Athens, Greece. She speaks Greek fluently and manages a number of other languages as well including Spanish, French, and Italian. Prof. Phufas has chaired a number of committees and has been named in several editions of  Who’s Who in American Education.  She has also been asked  to participate in a number of seminars including the Oxford Round Table.
	Adelaida Lugo Senior Technical Assistant, Adelaida Lugo, manages our state-of-the-art digital language lab, and she tutors ESL and Spanish language. Ms. Lugo is a graduate of Recinto Universitario de Mayaguez.
	Dasha Marshall Instructional Support Specialist, Dasha Marshall , has had over 30 years of ESL teaching experience both in the US and in Greece. Her duties include ESL tutoring and tutor training. She is a graduate of the University of New Mexico. Besides her native English, Mrs. Marshall is fluent in Greek.
	Domingo Rodriguez Administrative Assistant, Domingo Rodriguez, manages the ESL Tutoring Lab. He is also responsible for ESL placement testing and academic advisement. Mr. Rodriguez is a graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology.