Our Staff

Jim Hamrick is director of the English Language Institute. His professional interests include curriculum development and program evaluation. Jim has been involved in ESL/EFL for more than twenty years. He has taught English in Japan and China, and has trained teachers in Poland and Saudi Arabia. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina, a master’s from Georgetown University, and a doctorate from the University of Michigan.

Jan Hitt is the assistant director and a teacher at the Institute. If students have problems outside the classroom, for example housing, food, homesickness, immigration, etc., Jan will try to help. She also teaches at ELI. Jan has been at the ELI for more than twenty years. She has a bachelor’s degree in Botany, and a master’s degree is in higher education administration. Her hobbies include gardening, bridge and reading. She loves animals; and has two dogs and four cats.

Golshan Dehkordi has been teaching ESL for six years and enjoys meeting people from various cultures and backgrounds.

Anwar F. Accawi has been a teacher of ESL/EFL for 32 years. He has taught in the USA and in Lebanon, first at the National Evangelical Institute and then at Sidoon High School, Sidon, Lebanon. He also taught at the American University of Beirut before coming to the University of Tennessee in 1979. He has also trained students planning to become ESL teachers. Anwar is a published writer whose work has appeared in books, literary anthologies, reviews, and college textbooks in the USA and abroad.

Linda Rahbar holds a political science degree from the University of Tennessee. She has taught ESL since 1974. She taught for six years in Iran, and she has taught at ELI since 1981.

Dina Nunnery has worked at ELI since 1989. She enjoys talking to ELI students and having students visit with her in the ELI office. In her free time she likes making crafts.

Tony Moses has taught at ELI since 1985. He also teaches in the Medieval Studies program at the University of Tennessee. He holds a Ph.D. in English.

Mostafa Rahbar graduated from the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in broadcasting and an M.S. in foreign language education. He has worked as a producer/director of documentary films in Iran, and has translated several books (English-Persian) for UNESCO. He began teaching at ELI in 1980. His hobbies are photography, music and painting.

Em Turner Chitty has taught ESL students from all over the world and at all levels and ages. She has a master's degree in English and has taught English at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, the Istituto Americano in Florence, Italy, the American School in Switzerland (TASIS Lugano), Pellissippi State Technical Community College in Knoxville, and as a tutor and contract instructor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She speaks Italian, French, and some German and is working on a TOEFL/GRE vocabulary book for students. She follows current politics closely and enjoys music and gardening when she has spare time.

Ronnie Howard is a native of Detroit. After completing high school he joined the U.S. Navy and served for 10 years. During that time he was stationed in Sardinia, Italy, and traveled throughout the Mediterranean region as far as Egypt, Greece, and Turkey. His second overseas duty station was at Bahrain for one year. While there, he was fortunate enough to visit the U.A.E. and some parts of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. After leaving the Navy he returned to Tennessee to be closer to his parents. In summer 2002 he began work on his bachelor's degree, and earned it in May 2005. In January 2007 he began work on his master's degree (in ESOL) and received it in May 2008. He joined ELI in September 2008. He swears that he has fallen in love with his work!

Rose Dar has taught ESL and EFL for eight years -- in Asia, Africa, and multi-ethnic colleges in Chicago. She also taught critical-thinking approaches to history and current events for six years in high schools in North Carolina. Rose was a linguistic researcher in an Islamic Asian village for four years; she's writing a book about those experiences. She has lived among 10 different language ethnicities. Brainstorming ideas with students is invigorating for Rose, and she is especially interested in teaching students to self-edit their written work. Listening to students' life interests is Rose's special joy, and she enjoys informally chatting with her students.

Charity Davenport has taught ESL on a full-time basis for two years. Before receiving her M.S. in TEFL from the University of Tennessee, she taught at an intensive English summer camp on Jeju Island, Korea, in 2005-06. She has a B.A. from the University of Tennessee in Asian studies. She enjoys learning about different languages and cultures.

Contact This Department

English Language Institute
907 Mountcastle St
Knoxville, TN 37916
Phone: (865) 974-3404
Fax: (865) 974-6383
Email: eli@tennessee.edu