Administration & Faculty

Our Team

Administration – U.S.

Ken Wagner

Ken Wagner

Founder & Executive Director

Education: Ph.D. in Sociology, in 1982 from the University of Pittsburgh

As Executive Director, I oversee all aspects of our Program both in the U.S. and in Stockholm. I started The Swedish Program while I was a professor at Hamilton College in 1987. I first went to Stockholm in 1984 to do research on workplace democracy at Swedish companies, such as Volvo, Ericsson, Saab, and Electrolux.

I sincerely believe that studying abroad is a transformative experience. Our students are fortunate to study in a country that practices the values of global citizenship: tolerance, diversity, solidarity, and international understanding.

My hobbies include golf, gardening, and food. I am an avid Red Sox, Celtics and Buffalo Bills fan (I’m from Buffalo so I had no choice).

Alison Gluck

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Alison Gluck

Program Administrator

I’m responsible for all work related to the acceptance of students, program bookkeeping, coordinating all communication with our staff in Stockholm regarding acceptance, housing, arrivals, and any other issues that may arise. I also assist in the recruitment of our students.

Prior to working for the Program, I owned and operated a child daycare for fifteen years. I have obtained an Associate Degree in Office Technology and a Bachelor Degree in Communications.

I enjoy family time, skiing, exercising, soccer, vacationing, and just relaxing by the poolside in the summer months.

Our Team

Administration – Stockholm

Carina Kamb Deiaco

Carina Kamb Deiaco

Head of Administration

I have been with the program since 1989, except for the five years I lived in Luxembourg. I was initially our Housing Coordinator responsible for finding our host families.
I then became Program Coordinator organizing most Program functions and activities. I was also responsible for finding our apartments. I am now Head of Administration. In this role, I am responsible for all Program administrative and organizational work except for the academic side of the Program.
I really enjoy my job, especially working with our students. Every student has his or her own little quirk. It is fun meeting many different personalities. And, of course, I find it very rewarding helping our students adjust to a new culture and the Swedish way of doing things.
In terms of interests and hobbies, I enjoy family activities, traveling, yoga, and wine. I also am good at sports, especially throwing the axe!! You must join us for our Gotland trip to see for yourself!

Caitlin Hawley

Caitlin Hawley

Program Manager

My goal is to help students get the most out of their experience in Stockholm. I am responsible for student health and safety, digital communications, and local partnerships including our internship and host family programs. I also help advise students on the non-academic aspects of their study abroad experience.
I’m originally from Milwaukee, WI, where I earned my master’s degree in Sociology. I moved to Stockholm in 2012 and joined The Swedish Program in 2016. In my free time, I enjoy reading, the visual arts, and hiking with my dog.

Jonas Brodin

jonas

Jonas Brodin

Director of Studies and Instructor

I study how the built environment molds relations of power. This happens in many different ways: in how the space itself is configured—for example, with walls that separate one group from another—as well as in how the space is monitored or how resources or people are distributed within the space. My current project uses the specific case of roads to look at the relationship between built space and power.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSES
Crime and Punishment in Sweden and the U.S.; Health Care in Sweden and the U.S.; Comparative Public Policy: The Swedish Model in the 21st Century; Comparative Public Policy: Sweden and the EU; Migration Policy and Politics; The Theory and History of Radical Politics.

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Political Science, University of Maryland, 2004
B.A., Political Science, University of Hawaii, 1997

FUN FACTS
I enjoy hiking and camping, and generally spending time in the great outdoors. And since I feel more at home in water than on land, I also try to spend as much time as I can in water—primarily swimming, but also kayaking, fishing, and doing other watersports. I once got second place in a completely rigged sports/trivia/beauty pageant competition for a variety show on British television.

Our Team

Faculty – Stockholm

Tim Berndtsson

Tim Berndtsson

Instructor

My research is devoted to several topics: the history of archives and cultures of memory; the role of emotions in literature; and practices of reading from the eighteenth century to the present. Although I am schooled as a historian of literature, I am convinced that research should be directed by the relevance of questions rather than the borders of disciplines.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
Swedish Crime Fiction

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Comparative Literature, Uppsala University, 2020

FUN FACTS
I enjoy going by train and can give advice on how to best travel through both Sweden and Europe on rails. I also like walking, through cities and wilderness alike, listening to audiobooks.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
The Order and the Archive. Freemasonic Archival Culture in Eighteenth-Century Europe, Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, Diss. Uppsala, Uppsala: Uppsala universitet, 2020.

Peder Fallenius

Peder Fallenius

Instructor, Senioruniversitetet

Twentieth century architecture has been my main research interest ever since I wrote my thesis and it still is. I have a special interest in the new building types of this period.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
History of Modern Scandinavian Art and Architecture

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Art History, Uppsala University, 2003

FUN FACTS
I have a great passion for music resulting in an ever-expanding record collection and a longing to revisit the jazz clubs of Downtown Manhattan.

Diego Yacamán Méndez

Diego Yacamán Méndez

Epidemiologist, Center for Epidemiology and Community Medicine for Region Stockholm

Doctoral researcher, Department of Global Public Health at Karolinska Institutet

My research and teaching are focused on studying the different determinants of health in order to identify, implement, and evaluate interventions to improve health at a population level.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
The COVID 19 pandemic: A study in cultural epidemiology

EDUCATION
M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., Karolinska Institutet, Expected graduation Feb. 2023

FUN FACTS
Originally from Mexico, I have been living in Sweden since 2016. In my free time I enjoy reading, music, playing the guitar, ice skating during the winter and traveling.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Physical exercise is associated with a reduction in inflammatory biomarkers in first-episode psychosis: A pilot study of CRP, SAA, sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1. Lavebratt, C., Stiernborg, M., Kumar, P., Yacaman-Mendez, D., Skott, M., Melas, P. A., & Forsell, Y. (2021). Schizophrenia research, 228, 316-318.
The Effect of Smartphone Apps Versus Supervised Exercise on Physical Activity, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Body Composition Among Individuals With Mild-to-Moderate Mobility Disability: Randomized Controlled Trial. Berglind D, Yacaman-mendez D, Lavebratt C, Forsell Y. JMIR MHEALTH AND UHEALTH 2020;8(2):e14615.
Childhood adversities, negative life events and outcomes of non-pharmacological treatments for depression in primary care: A secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial. Yacaman-mendez D, Hallgren M, Forsell Y. Journal of psychiatric research 2019;110():152-158.
Association of adherence to epilepsy quality standards with seizure control. Moura Lmvr, Mendez DY, De Jesus J, Andrade Ra, Weissman Js, Vickrey Bg, Hoch Db. EPILEPSY RESEARCH 2015;:35-41.
Quality care in epilepsy: Women’s counseling and its association with folic acid prescription or recommendation. Moura Lmvr, Mendez DY, De Jesus J, Andrade Ra, Hoch Db. EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR 2015;:151-4.

Nicklas Neuman

Nicklas Neuman

Instructor

My research interests are several, but all can be placed under the umbrella of the sociology of food. I am interested in consumption, especially related to health and climate change, gendered divisions of housework, gastronomy, food and national identity and the social science of eating behavior.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSES
Sociology of Food in Sweden

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Food Studies, Uppsala University, 2016

FUN FACTS
I am a hardcore Pearl Jam fan and have been so since my late teens.

Pehr-Johan Norbäck

Pehr-Johan Norbäck

Senior Researcher, Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IfN)

My earlier research focused on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Later work has focused entrepreneurship, involving how venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and incumbent firms interact in the innovation market. This research has tried to answer questions such as: Why do small firms do more breakthrough inventions than established firms? Why do small entrepreneurs with high-quality inventions sell their inventions to incumbents rather than enter the market?

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
The Economics of European Integration

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Economics, Stockholm University, 1998

FUN FACTS
I play badminton and innebandy (floorball). I have played guitar for over 40 years and can do most styles: blues, funk, rock – even some jazz! And, I love teaching my course: it gives me an excuse to go on Youtube to watch Brexitiers and Remainers clash in the British Parliament under the always so colorful speaker John Bercow (for a sample: youtube.com/watch?v=Edt-V4rvIYs).

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
“Has the Swedish Business Sector Become More Entrepreneurial than the U.S. Business Sector?” (with Fredrik Heyman, Lars Persson and Fredrik Andersson), Research Policy, forthcoming.
“Stock Market Impact of Cross-Border Acquisitions in Emerging Markets” (with Lars Persson). North American Journal of Economics and Finance, forthcoming.
“Employment Protection and FDI Revisited: New Evidence from Micro Data” (with Per Skedinger and Jing-Lin Duanmu). World Economy, forthcoming.
”A Non-Technical Introduction to Economic aspects of International Investment Agreements” (with Henrik Horn). American Review of International Arbitration, forthcoming.
”The Turnaround of the Swedish Economy: Lessons from Large Business Sector reforms” (with Fredrik Heyman and Lars Persson). World Bank Research Observer, forthcoming.
”Foreign Direct Investment, Source Country Heterogeneity and Management Practices” (with Rickard Hammarberg and Fredrik Heyman). Economica. Vol. 86, No. 342, April 2019.
”Threatening to Buy: Private Equity Buyouts and Antitrust Policy” (with Lars Persson and Joacim Tåg). Economics Letters 164 (March): 31–34, 2018.
”Does the Debt Tax Shield Distort Ownership Efficiency?” (with Lars Persson and Joacim Tåg). International Review of Economics and Finance, 54(Mars), 299–310, 2018.
”Who Creates Jobs and Who Creates Productivity? Small versus Large versus Young versus Old” (with Fredrik Heyman and Lars Persson). Economics Letters, 164 (March), 50–57, 2018.

Elena Paltseva

Elena Paltseva

Assistant Professor, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) at the Stockholm School of Economics

Visiting Professor, New Economic School (Moscow, Russia)

My main research interests are political economics and applied microeconomics. I am also interested in resource and energy economics, in particular, from the political economics perspective.  My recent work includes empirical investigation on the relationship between resource rents and political rent capture in different institutional environments, as well as empirical studies on the energy security issues with a particular focus on the EU-Russia relationship.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
Energy and Environmental Economics

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Economics, Stockholm School of Economics, 2006
Visiting Graduate Student, Economics, Princeton University, 2003–2004
M.A., New Economic School (Russia), 1998
M.Sc., Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, Moscow State University (Russia), 1996

FUN FACTS
Besides economics, I enjoy dancing (mostly salsa, but also some argentine tango, etc.), art, and good company.

Helena Schiller

Helena Schiller

Instructor

My research area is within stress and sleep in the working population. I also specialize in motivation, mental resilience, and performance.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSE
The Psychology of Work

EDUCATION
Ph.D., Public Health, Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, 2017

FUN FACTS
Besides my job at The Swedish Program, I work with a company offering digital CBT-based treatment programs. I also work as a trainer/coach in showjumping on a national level, and I released my first book in 2018 about work, stress and sleep and how to put all the pieces together.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
How to work for a good night’s sleep (doctoral thesis), 2017.
Total workload and recovery in relation to worktime reduction: a randomised controlled intervention study with time-use data, 2017.
A randomized controlled intervention of workplace-based group cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, 2018.

Wondmagegn Tirkaso

Wondmagegn Tirkaso

Instructor

My research concentrates on the economics of the environment, agriculture, and development, with special emphasis on productivity analysis, energy economics, climate policies, and biodiversities. Currently, I am working on multiple projects, including voting behavior and green vehicle adoption; the impact of regulation on firm’s energy choice and productivity; and the welfare impacts of rural electrification.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSES
Energy and Environmental Economics

EDUCATION
PhD, Economics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 2018
Visiting PhD student, University of Western Australia, Perth-Australia, 2018
MSc, Agricultural Economics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 2013

FUN FACTS
I enjoy volunteering, playing soccer and ping-pong.

Hellen Vergoossen


Hellen Vergoossen

Instructor

I am interested in language from a psychological perspective; the way we use language, how language affects the social categorisations we make, and whether language could be a tool to help reduce inequalities in society. I am currently working on my PhD thesis on the influence of gender-neutral language on person perception. More specifically, I’m interested in how gender-neutral language affects the way we perceive and remember others. I am also involved in a research project on social roles in online multiplayer games.

SWEDISH PROGRAM COURSES
The Social Psychology of Health and Well-Being
Language, Cognition, and Social Behavior

EDUCATION
PhD, Psychology, Stockholm University, expected 2021
M.A., Psychology, Stockholm University, 2015

FUN FACTS
I enjoy reading, tabletop games, video games, badminton, mountain biking, and geocaching.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Vergoossen, H. P., Renström, E. A., Pärnamets, P., & Gustafsson Sendén, M. (2019). Swedish gender-neutral pronoun has no gender bias in reading. Presented at the biannual International Convention of Psychological Science (ICPS), Paris, France.
Vergoossen (2018). Gender-neutral pronouns increase reading time during anaphor resolution: Evidence from Swedish. Presented at the biannual convention of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP), Atlanta, USA.
Vergoossen, H. P., Renström, E. A., Lindqvist, A., & Gustafsson Sendén, M. (2016). Contemporary arguments against gender-neutral language. Presented at the annual convention of the Association for Psychological Science (APS), Chicago, USA.