By Angelina Persaud & Angelina Perez, Managing Editor & Arts & Entertainment Editor
Michele Saracino, Ph.D., was the former chair of the religious studies department and has now been appointed the associate dean for Kakos School of Arts and Sciences.
MANHATTAN.EDU/COURTESY
Saracino established the Religion Matters speaker series to introduce students to a variety of religious and spiritual concepts during her time as chair. Now, she brings 22 years of tenured experience to the role, where she will facilitate the development of curriculum programs as well as assist with various department articulation agreements and accreditations.
Per a press release from Manhattan University, in her new role, Saracino will, “assist with initiatives coming from the dean’s office including, developing curriculum and programs, assisting with program updates and assessment to guarantee rigor and relevance, and assisting the education department with its accreditation process. Also, she will collaborate with leadership on internal and external articulation agreements, support student enrollment and retention activities throughout the school, and guarantee adherence to College, school, and external (state, accrediting agency) regulations and procedures.”
One of her main goals is to bring forth a sense of unity to Kakos amidst the integration of both science and liberal arts into one school.
“I’m hoping to build on our already strong community, since we’re restructuring to integrate the schools, make us more of a tight knit community and forward in a positive way and develop more opportunities for students,” Saracino said.
Saracino is also the liaison for the newly established honors program within Kakos. The program will allow both incoming and current students to join the honor society based on various academic requirements. Currently, Kakos is running honors courses where eligible students are allowed to take for credit towards their degrees. In addition, there is also the option for honors contracts where eligible students can matriculate into a regular class and work their way towards the honors program over the course of the semester.
“It’s the new program at Manhattan University,” Saracino said. “We invited first year students across the whole university into it who had certain academic qualifications. And then we’re inviting some other students as time goes on. So I’m excited about this new program. I think it’ll strengthen the already strong curriculum and courses.”
Currently, Saracino is teaching two courses, The Nature and Experience of Religion and Hinduism, but says that the connection she has with students in her new role was a smoother transition due to her teaching history. She highlighted a particular moment in her career where she collaborated with the math department.
“Years back, my colleague and I, Dr. Helene Tyler, ran the honors enrichment program together, and we did some exciting, cross-disciplinary projects and work for our students,” Saracino said. “That was a highlight to work with someone in math. We did some really engaging, exciting things, so we had a lot of fun with that, and we did a lot of great work for the students.”
Marcy Kelly, Ph.D., dean of Kakos School of Arts and Sciences, spoke about the hopes she has for Saracino in her new role as well as the work she’s done so far.
“Right now, her biggest project is getting the honors program up and running for the entire school, in consultation with the Associate Dean in Engineering, Dr. Carbonaro and Dr. Natalia Boliari in business,” Kelly said. “She’s been meeting with the first year students and rising sophomores who are eligible for the program. She’s doing an amazing job with it.”
Kelly also spoke about the collaboration between herself and Saracino, even noting that Saracino has been instrumental in helping her manage both the liberal arts and STEM combination within Kakos.
“She has been an amazing sounding board for me and support for me,” Kelly said. “She has helped to pick up some of the slack that I can’t get to in a timely manner. When I started here, my focus was really on the science and mathematics faculty and students, so I needed a partner to teach me about the culture and the norms in liberal arts, and then we’re both learning about Education and Health because they’re also part of our school. She’s been really supportive in helping me to understand all of those things.”
With all the current changes to faculty and administration, Kelly offered consolation to students by emphasizing that students are at the core of her mission as dean. Her partnership with Saracino is meant to bring forth unity and opportunities in Kakos.
“I’m a very student-centered person,” Kelly said. “All of my motivations are to support student success. When I took over the larger school, the first thing we did was create a vision for the new school, and the vision talks about building a community of scholars. So I really want to be able to provide as much stability as I can in our school. [I] can’t control all of the other things that are happening at the institution, but I want to be able to provide some stability [whether it’s] providing funding to support student-faculty mentored experiences, whether that be through summer scholars and research experiences or through study abroad.”
Saracino spoke about the resilience of the MU students and as well as the support system the faculty tries to provide them.
“I think for students who have been here for a couple of years, they’re feeling the transitions a little more strongly, and I think we’re just all going to work together to move forward and in a positive way,” Saracino said. “The students at Manhattan have been and always will be great. They’re resourceful, they’re smart, they’re engaging, and they are going to succeed in their programs. And the administration, the faculty and the staff are all here to help them, and I think we have a good foundation set now.”