As Center Director, Rick oversees all CEA Prague operations and manages the CEA team in Prague. Rick leads the development of CEA Prague programs, which includes setting strategy and standards, managing change, and facilitating communication across the organization.

Originally from the Chicago area, Rick has lived in or near Prague since 1998 with his partner and three daughters. Rick has been with CEA since 2016. He’s taught in study abroad programs in Prague and served as Academic Director at CIEE Prague. He also directed the creation of a new M.A. program at CERGE-EI for European students. Rick holds a Ph.D. from Charles University in Prague, an M.A. in Literature and Theory from the University of Illinois, and an M.A. in the TEFL from the University of Reading in the UK. His teaching and research at the university level focuses on American Literature and Literary Theory. Rick is a visiting professor at the Department of English and American Studies at Masaryk University in Brno. He also teaches a course on the Prague writer Franz Kafka aimed at American study-abroad students. Rick studied Teacher Education as an undergraduate and is deeply interested in teaching, education, and learning.

Rick enjoys spending time with his family and participates in sports as often as possible. He is passionate about literature, especially experimental literary novels.