Meet Our Faculty and Administrators

Ashworth College boasts an experienced full-time faculty and administrative staff along with a team of off-site professional educators. Our career, college and high school educators are practicing professionals in their fields. They are eager to share their real-world knowledge with each and every student by contributing to course development and content and providing advice and instructional support to our tutorial staff.

Our dedicated faculty and staff are proud of their impressive credentials, which are comparable to those of the best career educators in accredited schools across the nation.

If you need academic assistance during your studies, you may reach our helpful tutorial staff online or by phone. They will answer your questions and ensure you fully grasp your lessons.

Administrators ::

Leslie Gargiulo, PhD – Vice President, Education
Dr. Leslie Gargiulo earned both her master of arts in philosophy and her PhD in comparative education from the University of California, Los Angeles. For over ten years, she has successfully led an education consulting firm working with state university systems, community colleges, and school districts on program evaluation and data analysis, and has brought international exposure through comparative studies. Since 2003 Dr. Gargiulo has been an integral administrator and faculty at two Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) accredited universities. During this time she was instrumental in building a new online university and was a principal architect in achieving accreditation.

John Riser – Director of Career Programs and High School
John has a Master's Degree in Production and Operations from Georgia State University and earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Management from Clemson University. John was awarded the Carl A. Bramlette Jr. Scholastic Achievement Award for outstanding Academic Achievement in 2006. He manages the administration and development of all high school and career programs.

Nicole Burris – High School Program Manager
Nicole has a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from New College of Florida. She has completed graduate level work in Child Development & Family Studies at Purdue University, and is currently working on her Master's degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at Capella University. She oversees the curriculum development process and manages print/online course content for the high school and career programs.

Eric Ryall – Registrar
Eric earned a B.A. from West Georgia University in 2004 and has been with Ashworth since then. He looks forward to continuing helping students get the courses they need in order to further their career goals.

Paula Huys – Grading Manager
Paula has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Indiana University. She oversees process of hand graded exams and manages our team of graders and subject matter experts.

Deepa Chadha – Director of Degree Programs
Deepa has a Master’s degree in Management from North Carolina State University. She manages the administration and development of all associate degree, bachelor’s degree and master’s degree programs.

Mandy Norton – Degree Program Manager
Mandy has an Associate's degree in Business Management from Gainesville State College. She oversees the curriculum development process and manages print/online course content for degree programs.

Melissa Maddox – Business Services Manager
Since joining Ashworth in 1993 Melissa has managed various aspects of student servicing. In her current role of Business Services Manager, Melissa is responsible for managing corporate partnerships. Melissa works with corporations such as Clorox, Verizon and Boeing, to meet any special billing or servicing needs of their employees. Melissa also serves as a liaison for our military students to assist with processing active duty tuition assistance, VA/GI Bill benefits, military spouse benefits, and transfer credits.

Rodney Butler - Military Education Coordinator
Rodney retired from the United States Army as a First Sergeant in 2009 after 21 years of active duty service. He’s a combat veteran of Operation Desert Storm/Shield and Operation Iraqi/Enduring Freedom as well as a veteran of the Cold War and the Global War on Terrorism. Rodney completed his civilian education through the Army Continuing Education System through on-campus and distance education learning, earning an Associate of Science degree, and a Bachelor of Arts degree. He is currently completing his Master of Science degree.