Directors and Officers
Sheila Parks, Ed.D., President & CEO,Board of Directors
Dr. Sheila Parks is a political organizer/activist and a homeopath. She studied with Dr. Luc De Schepper at the Renaissance Institute of Classical Homeopathy for many years and continues to study with him; she has also studied with several other homeopaths. She holds an Ed.D. from Boston University, an M.A. from Columbia University, and a B.A. from Radcliffe College. As Founder and Chair of the Brookline Underground Railroad Committee she worked with others to place plaques on two houses in Brookline that were part of the Underground Railroad. The committee also educated the public with events and mailings, introduced curricula and produced arts performances in the schools. As Founder and Chair of Brookline Residents Concerned About Antennas she worked with others to increase public awareness of the Telecommunications Act and the dangers of cellular phone antennas. The Committee co-authored a by-law regulating the siting of cellular phone antennas, which the Brookline Town Meeting adopted over the by-law recommended by the Selectpeople and the Advisory Committee. At WMFO, Tufts University Radio, she hosted and produced a weekly live public affairs interview radio show called We The People. This show was highlighted in The Boston Globe. Dr. Parks was an Assistant Professor at Lesley College Graduate School; on the faculty of Bunker Hill Community College; an Assistant Professor at Boston State College; a Teaching Assistant and Instructor at Boston University.
Deirdre Doran, LMT, Board of Directors
Deirdre Doran is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of Lowell. She has studied at the Dovestar Institute of Massage and was certified at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, Kripalu Bodyworks Training. Currently she maintains a private practice in massage.
Ilona O’Connor, RN, Board of Directors
Ilona O’Connor is a graduate of Allegheny College (PA) with a B.A. and holds an AD in Nursing from the State University of New York in Farmingdale. She has worked with the Visiting Nurse Association of Boston from 1983 – present. In 1995 she co-founded The Ennead Group, which is a national team building and leadership training organization.
George A. Rhoads, PhD, Board of Directors
George A. Rhoads, Ph. D. is a licensed psychologist. His early work was on the addictions in the psychology department at New York Medical College. He has had an interest in Eastern methods of health and fitness since 1970 and is qualified in several modalities. In addition to his psychological practice, he teaches at martial arts schools and alternative therapy programs. The Asian Body Work Therapy Association (AOBTA) awarded him for his legislative work in Massachusetts at their annual convention in San Francisco in 2005. He is on the steering committee of The Consortium for Psychotherapy, an educational group which advocates for better consumer access to mental health treatment particularly psychotherapy. Dr. Rhoads has a clinical practice in Westboro, Ma which can be reviewed at www.RhoadsZenArts.com .
Margo Roman, DVM, Board of Directors
Dr. Roman is a graduate of Tuskegee Institute with a DVM degree. She was an Intern at Angell Memorial Hospital and on the faculty of Tufts University, School of Veterinary Medicine, from 1979-1987. Dr. Roman established the first veterinarian holistic health center in the state of Massachusetts and one of the first in the country – MASH, in Hopkinton, MA. She has studied homeopathy since 1995 and acupuncture since 1976
Ellen Stone, PhD, Treasurer
Dr. Ellen Stone holds a Ph. D. in Mathematics from Cornell University. She was an Assistant Professor of Mathematics from 1972 -1980 and a Software Engineer from 1980 – 2002, concentrating on implementing database management systems and SQL.
Janis Mancini, RN, Clerk
Janis Mancini, a graduate of Simmons College with a B.S. in Nursing, is an RN who at present is practicing in the field of homeopathy. She is also the Office Administrator of Mancini Sheet Metal in Billerica, MA, where she is responsible for all facets of office maintenance, including payroll, retirement plan, health insurance/benefits, bookkeeping and human resources
Advisory Board (in formation)
Dr. Luc De Schepper, M.D., Ph.D,C.Hom, D.I.Hom, Lic.Ac
Dr. Luc obtained his medical license in 1971 in Ghent, Belgium. He obtained a license in acupuncture from the Dutch Doctors Acupuncture Association, Amsterdam, Holland, in 1978, following a three-year training course, and a Ph.D, in acupuncture in Paris, France in 1980. In California he received his acupuncture license in 1982. After a year-long residency in neurology there, he gained California medical licensure in 1985. He also holds medical licenses in Colorado and New Jersey. Certification in homeopathy was earned by Dr. Luc from the British School of Homeopathy in 1992 and from Dr. Robin Murphy in 1993.
Dr. Luc has written numerous books about acupuncture, homeopathy and health, including Acupuncture for Everyone; Acupuncture for the Practitioner; Candida, the Cause, the Symptoms, the Cure; Peak Immunity; Full of Life; Human Condition Critical; Musculoskeletal Diseases and Homeopathy; The People’s Repertory; Hahnemann Revisited, A Textbook of Classical Homeopathy; and most recently, Homeopathy and the Periodic Table.
He practised homeopathy for many years and now lectures extensively about homeopathy in the United States, Australia, Africa, Europe and Canada. The Renaissance Institute of Classical Homeopathy, with locations in Boston, Massachusetts and Newark, New Jersey is his own school that Dr. Luc founded in 1993. A brilliant and inspiring teacher, Dr.Luc is loved and admired by his many students.
Susan DeCristofaro, RN, MS, OCN
Susan received her Oncology Nurse Certification in 1993 and her M.S. from Boston University in 1977. Since 1996, she is the Director of Patient Family Education at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA. She holds a senior nursing leadership position, overseeing the development and operation of the Blum Patient and Family Resource Center – including its 3 satellite rooms for adult and pediatric oncology. In her advanced practice teaching role she develops institute wide education programs/lectures and writes patient education materials. Leadership of the patient family education Council and practitioner for the Zakim Center for Integrated Therapies are part of her work. Susan is also a Reiki master at Dana-Farber and privately is a budding homeopath.
Among the many honors and professional awards Susan has received are: the Oncology Nursing Society Excellence Patient and Public Education Award (AMGEN), 2001; the People to People Ambassador Program, Oncology Nursing and Alternative Medicine Delegate to China, 1998; Manuel Carbello Outstanding Performance Award, Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 1987.
Her many publications and presentations include: “Letters from Otis” Oncology Nursing Society Spiritual Special Interest Group 1996; “Dialogue with NCI’s Cancer Patient Education Network” Oncology Nursing Society PNI and Complementary Therapies Special Interest Group 2002; “Adventures of Cell Zappers: Using Dramatic Art as an Education Tool for Oncology Patients” European Oncology Nursing Society, Italy, 2002 NCI CPEN Complementary Therapy and Alternative Medicine.