Our Staff

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David Shein

Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs
Dean of Studies

David Shein is the College’s dean for student academic affairs. He supports students in their academic work and in designing their programs of study, supports faculty in academic advising and the exercise of academic policies, and works especially closely with seniors who are struggling with the demands of the final year of study. As chair of the College's Scholarships and Fellowships Committee, David recruits and works with students who are interested in applying for nationally and internationally competitive undergraduate and post-graduate opportunities, such as the Watson Fellowship, the Luce Scholarship, and the Rhodes, Mitchell, and Marshall Scholarships. David also teaches in the Philosophy Program.

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 845-758-7454
Office: Barringer House 202

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Molly Freitas

Associate Dean of Studies
Visiting Assistant Professor of Humanities

Molly J. Freitas is associate dean of studies and visiting assistant professor in the humanities at Bard. Molly’s greatest passion is helping students to develop the skills and confidence necessary to achieve their academic, personal, and professional goals. As associate dean of studies, she provides supplemental advising on various forms of academic enrichment and excellence, including for students applying for prestigious scholarships such as the Rhodes and Fulbright and those interested in study abroad programs and independent studies. As a faculty member, she teaches personal narrative, first-year seminar, and literature classes at Bard.  

Molly holds a PhD from Tufts University and an MA from Georgetown University, both in English. Prior to coming to Bard, Molly was an assistant professor of English and led the prestigious scholarship program at West Point, the United States Military Academy. She has also taught literature, critical thinking, and professional development courses at Tufts University, Emerson College, and the University of Illinois at Chicago and was a book editor at Oxford University Press. A feminist literary critic by training, Molly published an academic book, From Subjection to Survival: The Artistry of American Women Writers (Routledge 2023), on aesthetics and American women writers. Her scholarly articles have also appeared in American Literary Realism, Soundings, and Studies in the Novel. She lives in Beacon, New York, with her husband and two young daughters, who are the light of her life.  


Email: [email protected]
Phone: 845-758-7854
Office: Sottery Hall 105

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Ruth Zisman

Associate Dean of Studies
Senior Lecturer in Philosophy

Ruth Zisman is an Associate Dean of Studies and a Senior Lecturer in the Philosophy program. As Associate Dean of Studies, Ruth provides supplemental academic advising for Bard’s growing and diverse group of transfer students, including students from Bard Early Colleges, Bard Baccalaureate students, international students, and displaced/refugee students. As a faculty member in the philosophy program, Ruth teaches courses in continental philosophy, political philosophy, psychoanalysis, human rights, and the intersections of philosophy and literature. 
Ruth holds a BA in Literature from Vassar College, an MA in Humanities and Social Thought from NYU, and a PhD in German Studies from New York University. At Bard since 2004.

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 845-758-7555
Office: Sottery Hall 105

*My second floor office may be physically inaccessible to people with mobility-related disabilities. Please let me know if you would like to meet in an alternate location.