Congratulations to Christina Collins, who successfully defended her dissertation on June 23, 2026.

The title of Christina’s dissertation is, "A DESCRIPTIVE QUALITATIVE STUDY OF ELEMENTARY PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF LIGHT PHYSICAL ACTIVITY."

The abstract of this study follows:

Overview of Problem: Childhood obesity, physical inactivity, and increasing sedentary behaviors remain significant public health concerns in the United States. Although schools are uniquely positioned to promote movement, physical activity recommendations and educational practices have traditionally emphasized moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, with limited attention given to the role of light physical activity in elementary physical education.

Research Purpose: The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to explore elementary physical education teachers’ perceptions of light physical activity and its role in fostering physical literacy among elementary-aged students.

Research Design: This study employed a descriptive qualitative research design grounded in physical literacy Theory. The study sought to understand how teachers define, utilize, and perceive the benefits and barriers associated with light physical activity in elementary physical education settings.

Sample: The study included 20 certified elementary physical education teachers from suburban school districts in the northeastern United States who had a minimum of five years of teaching experience.

Data Collection and Analysis: Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. Interview transcripts were analyzed using Yin’s five-phase qualitative data analysis process, which included compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting, and concluding. Trustworthiness was established through member checking, peer debriefing, reflexive journaling, and an audit trail.

Findings/Results: Four themes emerged from the data: (a) light physical activity is inclusive and accessible to all students, (b) light physical activity serves as a multidimensional educational tool that supports physical, emotional, cognitive, and social development, (c) light physical activity is consistently integrated throughout elementary physical education instruction, and (d) technology and increasingly sedentary environments create barriers to children’s movement participation.

Conclusions/Implications: The findings suggest that light physical activity plays a meaningful role in supporting physical literacy development, promoting confidence and engagement, and reducing sedentary behavior among children. The study contributes to the growing body of literature supporting inclusive and developmentally appropriate movement experiences and provides implications for physical education practice, educational policy, and future research.

DISSERTATION COMMITTEE CHAIR:
Dr. Martin Fitzgerald

DISSERTATION COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Dr. Kristie Lynch
Dr. Brandon Beck

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

Congratulations Deelip Mhaske, who successfully defended his dissertation proposal on June 23, 2026.

The title of Deelip's dissertation is, "ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ADOPTION AND STUDENT PERFORMANCE IN U.S. EDUCATION: A UTAUT META-ANALYSIS."

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

Congratulations to Simone Nicholas, who successfully defended her dissertation proposal on June 22, 2026.

The title of Simone's dissertation is, "THE IMPACT OF TEACHER MINDSET ON THE EXPERIENCES OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE STUDENTS IN PUBLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS."

Dr. Monica George-Fields

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

This National Pollinator Month, peek inside the hives that power Manhattanville honey and hands-on learning 

At Â鶹ֱ²¥, learning doesn’t just happen in classrooms. Sometimes, it happens among thousands of bees. In a quiet area of the Manhattanville campus, all looks calm among the beehives. But inside the hives, the bees are always hard at work.  

Anthony Herrmann, Director of Campus Safety, has been part of the Manhattanville community since 1998. He began beekeeping as a hobby about 15 years ago. A few years ago, he brought his beehives to campus, and helped turn the hives into a living, buzzing classroom. Now, he plays an integral role in looking after the bees and helping students learn from them. 

Learning by Doing—With Bees

Students who take the course BIO.1017 (Ecology and Beekeeping) learn about basic ecological concepts such as food chains and food webs, biotic competition, the importance of biodiversity, environmental preservation, and movement of nutrients and matter through basic terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. The importance of these concepts to understanding how ecosystems function is integral to the course. Students also talk about how ecosystems are being affected by human activities.

To give a real-life example of human interactions with the environment, students in the course learn the fundamentals of beekeeping, including live interactions with bee hives and honey production. The course is co-taught by Herrmann and Lucia Maestro-Martinez, Adjust Professor of Biology. The academic side of the program, Hermann insists, belongs largely to Maestro-Martinez. “She’s the professor,” Herrmann said. “I’m really more of a lab assistant.”  

“Teaching students life skills that might eventually be useful for their professional career development or even spark an interest in a future hobby are also great ways to introduce curriculum through experiential learning,” said Maestro-Martinez. 

After the honey is harvested from the beehives, students even help bottle the honey. They also take part in one of the class’s most creative traditions: designing the label.

“We run a label contest,” Herrmann explained. “Whichever group comes up with the best one—that’s the label for the year.” From harvesting to design to packaging, students are involved in every step of producing Manhattanville’s honey, blending science with creativity and entrepreneurship.

It’s a wonderful opportunity for students to see a natural product move from hive to finished bottle, all within the span of a class.

From Hive to Honey 

Although Herrmann describes beekeeping as “a hobby” for him, his current setup includes about eight hives, and in a good year, a single hive can produce anywhere from 60 to 100 pounds of honey. This season, Herrmann is aiming for a total yield of 300 to 400 pounds. However, as any beekeeper will explain, scaling isn’t instant.

“There’s at least a one-year lag,” he said. New hives take time to establish, and first-year colonies don’t produce as much honey. It’s what Herrmann affectionately calls “bee math”—a mix of planning and patience.

“There’s always one hive that’s a problem,” he laughed, recounting a recent late-night battle with sugar ants that had invaded one of his hives. “I was out at 10:30 p.m. dealing with it.”

 Currently, much of the honey produced from the hives on campus is sold informally at local events. Conversations are underway about bringing more “Manhattanville Honey” to campus (and beyond) in the future. 

A Moment of Calm

For those unfamiliar with beekeeping, the idea of standing among thousands of bees can sound intimidating. Herrmann understands that reaction—he felt it himself in the beginning of beekeeping. But there’s something about the steady, collective drone of the hive that creates a surprising sense of stillness—even as thousands of bees move around you. 

“I don’t know what it says about my life,” Herrmann joked, “when thousands of stinging insects is my moment of calm.”

Why Bees Are Important

June is National Pollinator Month, a time to recognize the essential role bees and other pollinators play in ecosystems and agriculture. Bees are essential to the environment, and to humans (they pollinate one-third of the food we eat). When bees visit flowers in search of their food (nectar and pollen), they brush up against the flower’s reproductive parts and spread pollen from flower to flower. Many plants cannot reproduce without the pollen carried to them by pollinators. The fact that humans can collect some of the honey that bees produce is a sweet bonus. 

At Manhattanville, there’s no better way to learn about the importance of pollinators like bees by visiting the beehives in person and seeing up close just how amazing bees are.

On May 14, 2026, the Â鶹ֱ²¥ Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership celebrated 42 doctoral graduates during commencement. These graduates, from all 3 degree pathways – PK12/Signature, Higher Education Leadership, and Dissertation Completion – were hooded by their dissertation chairs during the commencement ceremony.

Abstracts of their research, along with their bios, are featured in the Doctoral Commencement Magazine. Additionally, 4 award recipients were honored at a celebration of doctoral graduates on May 13. Their accolades are also featured in the Doctoral Commencement Magazine.

Always Forward, Always Valiant!

Click on the cover below to view our 2026 Doctoral Program Commencement Magazine

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

Â鶹ֱ²¥ is continuing its commitment to innovation, inclusion, and student opportunity with the addition of women’s flag football as a new varsity sport. 

Set to begin competition in spring 2028, the new women's flag football program marks an exciting milestone as the University’s 24th varsity sport and reflects the growing momentum of one of the nation’s fastest-rising athletic programs.

A Fast-Growing Opportunity for Student-Athletes

Women’s flag football is experiencing explosive growth across the United States—and Manhattanville is stepping in at just the right time. Recognized as an NCAA Emerging Sport for Women, flag football has rapidly expanded at both the high school and collegiate levels.  

Today, the sport is offered in 39 states at the high school level, with nearly 69,000 participants nationwide and annual growth exceeding 60 percent. At the college level, more than 60 institutions are expected to sponsor teams during the 2025–26 academic year, signaling strong momentum and long-term sustainability for the sport.

For Manhattanville students, this translates into new and meaningful opportunities to compete, lead, and thrive as part of a rapidly evolving athletic landscape.

Driving Innovation in Collegiate Athletics

The addition of women’s flag football aligns with Â鶹ֱ²¥’s broader vision of expanding access and elevating the student-athlete experience.

“This is an exciting opportunity to create new pathways for student-athletes,” said President Frank D. Sánchez, Ph.D., emphasizing the University’s commitment to embracing emerging trends and fostering inclusive athletic programs.

Associate Vice President of Athletics and Recreation Julene Caulfield echoed that enthusiasm. “I am excited to add Women’s Flag Football to our athletic sponsorship. This is a rapidly growing sport at the high school, collegiate and Olympic level that will create new opportunities for female student-athletes to compete, lead and be a part of the Valiant Family,” said Caulfield. 

By introducing flag football, Manhattanville continues to position itself at the forefront of forward-thinking collegiate athletics programs.

Building the Future of the Valiants

The women's varsity flag football team will compete in the Skyline Conference beginning in the 2027–28 season, further strengthening Manhattanville’s presence within the conference and bringing its total Skyline-sponsored programs to 18. 

The team is expected to include approximately 21 student-athletes, with opportunities available both for incoming recruits and current Manhattanville students interested in trying out. 

This addition is part of a sustained expansion of Manhattanville Athletics in recent years, which has included new and junior varsity programs across multiple sports.

A Sport Built for Today’s Student-Athlete

Flag football offers a modern, fast-paced twist on traditional football. Played in a 7-on-7 format with four 15-minute quarters, the game emphasizes speed, agility, strategy, and teamwork. 

Its accessible, high-energy format makes it an ideal addition to campus life—encouraging participation, competition, and school spirit while aligning with evolving student interests.

Enhancing Campus Life and Community

Beyond competition, the introduction of women’s flag football will help enrich the overall student experience at Manhattanville. By creating new opportunities for engagement, leadership, and personal growth, the program will contribute to a dynamic and inclusive campus community.

From intramurals to varsity competition, the evolution of flag football at Manhattanville highlights the University’s ongoing dedication to providing meaningful opportunities for its students—both on and off the field.

Looking ahead to 2028, one thing is clear: women’s flag football isn’t just a new sport at Manhattanville—it’s a bold step forward in shaping the future of athletics, opportunity, and student life.

See /advancingathletics for more updates about Manhattanville’s new multi-sport field. 

Â鶹ֱ²¥ will take an important step forward in enhancing its campus athletic facilities when its proposed multi-sport field project is presented to the  on June 8 at 7 PM.

The planning board meeting will take place in the municipal building court room, located at 1 Heineman Place in Harrison, NY. The meeting will also be broadcast live on channel 960 on Verizon or Channel 75 on Cablevision.  

Manhattanville’s proposal outlines a series of upgrades designed to modernize the University’s athletic infrastructure by renovating the existing baseball field (adding a modern turf playing surface) and adding a multi-sport field. 

Proposed site improvements include new field lighting, spectator seating/grandstand bleachers with a press box, recessed dugouts, two bullpens, two batting cages, fencing and gates, pedestrian circulation and accessible routes, custom windscreens/padding, and related grading, drainage, utility, and stormwater management improvements. Also included is field striping for lacrosse, soccer, and flag football. Additionally, there are design upgrades to the existing maintenance access drive behind the outfield fence to address poor drainage and standing water conditions.

Next Steps in the Review Process
The June 8 Planning Board meeting will provide an opportunity for local officials to review the proposal and offer feedback on key considerations such as site design, environmental impact, and neighborhood compatibility.

Following this review, the project will continue through the municipal approval process before construction timelines are finalized.

See /advancingathletics for more updates about Manhattanville’s new multi-sport field. 

Congratulations to Jared Douglas High, who on Monday, June 1, 2026, successfully defended his dissertation.

The title of Jared’s dissertation is, "TRAINING IN BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION AS ASSOCIATED WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER (SET) ATTRITION: A QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS."

Overview of the Problem: Special education teacher (SET) attrition represents a critical global crisis, with attrition rates reaching twice that of general educators. Synthesized literature spans several decades, consistently identifying a severe effort-reward imbalance. Chronic classroom demands, specifically managing student challenging behavior, takes precious time, depletes resources, diminishes self-efficacy, and accelerates professional burnout; which is a main catalyst for departure from the field of special education.

Research Purpose: Grounded in Moore et al.’s (2017) teacher preparation theory, Maslach’s Burnout Theory (1997), and Billingsley’s (1993) career decision framework, this quantitative study investigated the relationship between reported Training in Behavior Management and desired SET attrition. It further evaluated how this core relationship varies when considering two additional employment factors: Years of Experience and satisfaction with Income.

Research Design: Quantitative, multi-variate, survey-based study

Data Collection and Analysis: Secondary data analysis was conducted utilizing the internationally representative Teaching and Learning International Survey 2024 (TALIS 2024) dataset. To isolate professionals operating in high-concentration settings, a sample threshold was established requiring a 61% supermajority of students with special education needs (N = 3,440). Three distinct binary logistic regression models were constructed to analyze the data.

Findings/Results: A statistically significant, inverse relationship between robust behavior training and attrition likelihood was found; prepared teachers have lower odds of desired attrition. Increased Years of Experience predicted a higher baseline desire to leave. Income satisfaction independently and significantly minimized attrition odds. There was no significant interaction effects observed between any of the independent variables.

Conclusions/Implications: Systematically expanding evidence-based behavior modification curricula within collegiate teacher certification programs and professional development training is a vital intervention necessary to alleviate burnout, maximize retention, and ensure instructional continuity for vulnerable student populations.

DISSERTATION COMMITTEE CHAIR(S):
Dr. Nora C.R. Broege

DISSERTATION COMMITTEE MEMBER(S):
Dr. Peter Troiano
Dr. Leif Albright

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

Congratulations to Taylor Kennedy who on Wednesday, May 27, 2026, successfully defended his dissertation. 

The title of Taylor’s dissertation is, "DISCOVERING THE SECRET OF WHICH GAMES IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING: A META-ANALYSIS."

Overview of Problem: Traditional teaching methods are no longer providing students with the most beneficial education. Technology has changed interest and the learning process for newer generations of students.  More students are playing games than previous generations of students and game-based learning is expected to improve student learning, but research often lacks fundamental connections and evidence to support these claims.

Research Purpose: Using gamified learning theory, a meta-analysis of game-based research to find the connections between the type of game used in game-based learning and the improvements in student learning can be established.

Research Design: Quantitative study; meta-analysis

Sample: 120 published peer reviewed articles covering three game types over a 10-year period (2014-2024)

Data Collection and Analysis: Samples were collected using electronic databases that populate the Â鶹ֱ²¥ Library and Google Scholar. One-Way ANCOVA analyzed the samples after collection.

Findings/Results: The first analysis determined that the type of game does have an influence on cognitive learning with the majority being associated with boardgames.The next analysis focused on motivational learning and was determined not to be statistically significant. The third analysis found a connection between types of game and behavioral learning with the majority being associated with tabletop role playing games. The analysis did not find any evidence that curricula in game-based learning has an influence on the type of game.

Conclusions/Implications: Findings suggest that using boardgames in game-based learning will support cognitive learning and using tabletop role playing games will support behavioral learning in students. Since motivational learning was split evenly it suggests that playing games will motivate students to learn. Considering how niche games have become, the possibility of finding a game focused on certain specific curriculum is likely or at a minimum can be adapted. 

Dissertation Committee Chair(s):  
Dr. Nora C.R. Broege

Dissertation Committee Member(s):   
Dr. Shelley Wepner
Dr. Greg Loring-Albright

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership

Congratulations to Cheryl Lynn Spada who on Thursday, May 21, 2026, successfully defended her dissertation. 

The title of Cheryl’s dissertation is, "COLLECTIVELY MAKING THE SHIFT: TEACHING NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS AFTER PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE."  

Overview of Problem: The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) ushered sweeping changes in K–12 science teaching via its three-dimensional learning model. Teaching NGSS with fidelity requires a paradigm shift in practices promoting student-driven use of authentic science and engineering practices and understanding coherent ideas across four disciplinary core ideas.     

Research Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative research was to articulate any changes in classroom pedagogical practices of K–12 science teachers who participated in a year-long professional development community of practice focused on the three-dimensional learning model of NGSS.

Research Design: A qualitative multiple case study design was employed via two semi-structured interviews coupled with analysis of classroom artifacts. Situated learning theory, as described by Lave and Wenger (1991) was the theoretical framework, exploring learning as a domain of social practice, situated in the context in which it’s acquired.  

Sample: Two levels of purposeful sampling took place. First, members of a state-sponsored Master Teacher Program who were members of a PLT focusing on NGSS were selected. Next, information-rich cases from primary (K–6), and secondary (7–12) levels were identified. 

Data Collection and Analysis: Two rounds of semi-structured virtual interviews were conducted via Zoom between November 2025 and March 2026 to explore participants’ experiences and meaning-making based on participation in NGSS-focused PLTs. Participants were asked to provide artifacts for review and analysis between the two interviews. 

Findings/Results: A cross-case qualitive analysis was employed leading to identification of five emergent themes: (a) administration and teacher agency in pedagogical decision-making, (b) cultivating ownership and authority through communities of practice, (c) pedagogical mastery, (d) meaning making, (e) refined and reflexive professional judgement.  

Conclusions/Implications: The collaborative environment of out-of-district, long-term communities of practice drove meaningful development of pedagogical content knowledge, teacher self-efficacy and teacher expertise, functioning as the main site for teacher-directed capacity-building and reflexiveness. Therefore, on-going collaborative learning teams of science teacher-practitioners collectively grappling with real-world complexities of the NGSS three-dimensional learning model should be supported due to their positive impact on teacher pedagogical practices. 

Dissertation Committee Chair(s): 
Dr. Peter Troiano 

Dissertation Committee Member(s):
Dr. Yiping Wan
Dr. Angela Pagano

Take Your Career to the Next Level

Elevate your leadership skills, deepen your understanding of critical and contemporary education issues, and learn to help solve the current challenges in P-20 education.  

Learn to Inspire Change

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from Manhattanville, offered in partnership with Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES, utilizes a forward-thinking approach to educational leadership that is ideal for practicing and aspiring leaders in any educational context. It is designed to support the goals of educational professionals who seek to develop their leadership skills for career advancement or current job enhancement.   

Learn More About the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership