Summer 2025 in Leiden

Bob Zevering studied Dutch at the Free University in Amsterdam where he received his MA in Arts (Dutch language and culture). He continued his studies at the Free University with an MA in Education. 

With his company, Learn the Language, he has provided and arranged language and culture courses for middle and higher management at companies since 1999. He also set up several combined language and culture programs for talented refugees/'statushouders'.

Next to his regular company courses, he also coaches cast members of big musicals like Billy Elliot, The Lion King, Anastasia and Tina Turner. He helps the (international) performers with their language skills and ensures that their lines' rhythm, pronunciation, and intonation are how they should be. 

Frans van den Bliek completed a Bachelor of Sciences at the Fontys University of Applied Sciences in Tilburg, with a specialization in Sports, Economics and Communication. After completing this bachelor’s degree, Frans continued his studies at Tilburg University, with the completion of a Master of Science in Marketing, while working for a full-service field marketing agency.  

After working in the field of direct marketing/direct sales for 11 years, Frans switched careers to the field of international education while completing his MBA degree at Webster Leiden Campus. With further work experience at Webster Campus Leiden, Education First and CEA Capa Study Abroad, Frans started working as a freelancer for several educational institutions in the Netherlands (the University of Applied sciences in Utrecht, Amsterdam, and Leiden) with delivering courses in qualitative and quantitative research methods, marketing and for the University of Utah, Global Business Consultancy (both virtually during Covid, as in person after). 

Next to all of the above, Frans started the beer brewing company “Ridder Bliek” in 2014, together with his companion Maarten van de Ridder. They have been in the top 50 brewers in the Netherlands (rated by consumers on Untappd) in the Netherlands since the start, and they love sharing their passion for this craftsmanship. 

Mary Lai Preuss, PhD, has a background in plant cell biology, exploring the mechanisms by which molecules move for cell growth to occur. Currently she has a diverse array of research interests, including microbial diversity in freshwater systems, duckweed-mediated bioremediation of water systems and bacteriophage discovery. She earned her BS in Biology with an Emphasis in Plant Biotechnology at Cornell University and her PhD in Plant Cell Biology at the University of California, Davis. She completed postdoctoral work at the Danforth Plant Science Center, St. Louis, Missouri.

Paul Rakowski, MA, MSc, is credentialed in the United States as a licensed professional counselor (LPC), licensed addiction counselor (LAC), national certified counselor (NCC), approved clinical supervisor (ACS), and master addiction counselor (MAC). He is an NIP-registered clinical psychologist in the Netherlands. He has over 13 years of experience as a trauma informed therapist and specializes in trauma, addiction/recovery, couples’ therapy and clinical supervision. Motivational interviewing and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) provide a strong foundation for his work with clients. In addition to his clinical practice, Rakowski has served as an adjunct faculty member in the Counseling Psychology and Counselor Education program at the University of Colorado-Denver and at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. He has also taught courses in biology, health/wellness and animal behavior, as well as First-Year Experience courses for incoming University students. Rakowski is a strong advocate for social justice within public health and currently volunteers at De Regenboog Groep in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Ryan Gregg received his PhD in Art History from Johns Hopkins University with a focus in early modern Italian art and has taught at Webster University since 2008. He teaches courses on Italian Renaissance and Baroque art, as well as the Introduction to the History of Western Art. He regularly takes students to Florence for a short-term study abroad course on Florence in the Renaissance. Other courses he has taught at Webster include the History of Museums, History of Prints and Symbols and Their Theory.

Professor Gregg's research interests include depictions of cities and fortifications from the 15th to the 17th centuries, the relationship between cartography and historiography in the Renaissance, and in general, discussions between art and science, style and meaning, and architecture and experience in the early modern period. Other interests include historic American architecture and its preservation, and early modern prints.

His dissertation, which he is currently working on developing into a manuscript for publication, examines the city views within the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, painted by the workshop of Giorgio Vasari. The project has evolved into a study of Habsburg and Medici use of city views in the mid-16th century. Gregg is also currently working on an examination of the St. Louis Art Museum's Reclining Pan, including its attribution to Francesco da Sangallo, its interpretations, and its reception in the 17th century. Recent scholarship includes "Further Insights into Anton van den Wyngaerde's Working Method," published in Master Drawings in 2013, and "Vasari and German City Views," published in Prints Quarterly in 2010. In addition, Gregg regularly presents at national conferences, and in St. Louis has spoken at the St. Louis Art Museum, the Kemper Art Museum and other various local organizations.