Staff

David Fechtor, Director
David comes to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Tufts with more than eight years' experience in adult education, most recently at the Boston Center for Adult Education, where he was the Director of Education; at Newton Community Education (Newton, MA), where he was an Adult Program Coordinator; and at Allan Hancock College (Santa Maria, CA), where he was an Interim Coordinator of Noncredit Education and Community Programs.

An accomplished program planner and project manager, David had a number of successful careers before discovering the joys of adult education. During a 10-year stint in the motion picture industry, he supervised the design and editing of foley sound effects for more than a dozen theatrical features, including Big, Johnny Handsome, and Big Trouble in Little China, and edited dozens of trailers, commercials, and corporate promotional reels.

After leaving the film business in 1989, he spent several years in marketing communications, first as Copy Director for one of Greater Hartford's leading advertising agencies, then as the first in-house Copywriter for one of Connecticut's most well-respected product and packaging design firms. He later served as the Vice President of Hartford's oldest lumberyard, and as a Project Manager for a company that produced leading-edge interactive training films and video-based educational software.

David has performed as a guest artist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, studied mime in Paris with Etienne Decroux (the teacher of Marcel Marceau), and earned membership in Hollywood's famed Magic Castle. He received his A.B. in Psychology and Social Relations from Harvard College, and his M.F.A. in Cinema and Television Production from the University of Southern California.

He is now putting his creative and organizational skills to good use at Tufts, helping to build on the Osher LLI's already firm foundation by developing new audiences, a greater variety of classes, and an expanded commitment to community awareness and involvement.