Five-Minute Feature: Kristina Papa, Academic Learning Coach and Opportunity Programs Academic Support Specialist

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Get to know the Empire State University community through this rapid-fire interview series that bridges professional accomplishments and personal interests. What makes Empire State University exceptional? The unique people behind the work. Five minutes—starting now! 

What led you to your career path?

I come from a family of teachers. Both my parents were English teachers in their home country, and my aunt was studying to be an early education teacher at the same time we moved to the United States.

One of my earliest memories as a child was “playing school” at my aunt’s house while she was filming for her certification. She’d set up a classroom in her living room where she’d read me books and have me discuss a text and its important themes. I’d take what I’d learned and immediately want to read to my younger brother once I got home. 

On our walks to the park, my dad would “quiz” me on historical facts while my mom would recommend new books to read. They each modeled what a good teacher was and eventually lead me to study secondary English education.  They sparked a desire in me to to help students reach their own potential. I love helping others share different perspectives and ideas.

What is your favorite thing about SUNY Empire?

I really love that SUNY Empire has built such a supportive community, something that can be tough to do in an online environment. Although we are spread across many different locations, everyone still shows up for each other in any way that they can. I know I can truly depend on my coworkers if I need to. 

Working for the center for Academic Support and the Office of Opportunity Programs, I see firsthand how dedicated and genuinely kind everyone I work with is. I am lucky to be a part of departments that share the same goals and commitments to the population we serve.  

What’s one moment in your career you’re especially proud of?

I have two. One moment I am very proud of is working as an adjunct professor at CUNY Queens College. This is where I received both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and where I gained my confidence as a teacher. Teaching at a high school level prior to adjuncting really helped me develop my own philosophy on the teacher I wanted to be, so going back and teaching college students was so exciting!  

Another moment that is very special to me was working with SUNY Empire’s CAARES team during my first year here. I worked closely with Noor and Lauren to develop professional training on neurodiversity and strategies for tutoring students with autism for my staff. I am someone that likes to push myself to try new things and grow in my career, and this seemed scary to me at first because this was the first time I’d ever led professional development sessions on my own. Having a place like SUNY Empire where I felt comfortable and supported meant a lot to me. This taught me so much about advocacy and the need for resources and support programs.

What’s one way you try to show kindness day-to-day?

When I am on site in our Manhattan location, I love to knock on my coworker’s office doors and say good morning. I always try and make it a point to have little conversations with staff whenever I can because connection is so important. I also try to be very optimistic and a listening ear to staff and students.

Name one movie you can quote way too well.

I was involved in the theater department at CUNY Queensborough (where I also eventually taught) and auditioned for a play using a monologue from Dirty Dancing. This is one of my favorite movies, and was one of my favorites growing up, because just like “Baby,” I love to stand up for people and support them in any way I can.

Behind the Scenes with the Bachelor of Business Administration

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Attracting students from a range of backgrounds, Empire State University’s Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) helps students certify the knowledge they’ve gained through work experience, gain foundational skills that are applicable industry-wide, and specialize in their areas of interest to pursue their dream careers. Whether learners are looking for an entry point into further education, entrepreneurship, corporate careers, or to transition into higher-paying roles with a business degree, the BBA’s faculty provide the necessary knowledge and counsel each student on their unique journey.

Dongho Kim, department chair for business, international business, and marketing, Sue Epstein, department chair for management and human resource management, and Nazik Roufaiel, department chair for accounting, economic finance, management information systems (MIS), and academic coordinator for accounting, represent the program. Kim joined the university in 2010 and Epstein in 2011. Roufaiel initially came on board as a part-time consultant in 2000, transitioning into a full-time tenure-track associate professor and area coordinator in accounting and finance in 2006.

What do you teach?
Kim: I normally teach Business Statistics, Introduction to Business, Business Ethics, and International Business.

Epstein: I primarily teach Leadership—both a 15-week and an 8-week version of that course. I’ve also taught Women in Management.

Roufaiel: I regularly teach courses in accounting, finance, and design. Recently, my primary focus has been on the courses Federal Income Tax I: Individual Income Tax, Federal Income Tax II: Business Income Tax, and Principles of Fraud Examination & Financial Forensics. In addition to my teaching, I am actively engaged as a practitioner in accounting and taxation consulting.

How is the Bachelor of Business Administration designed for students who are already working in business-related industries?

Kim: That was the purpose of developing this degree program. We developed the Bachelor of Business Administration degree for students coming from business industries. They have a lot of knowledge in business, but they haven’t transferred that knowledge into academic areas.

The Bachelor of Science requires 60 credit hours for liberal arts and sciences. However, the BBA only requires 30 credit hours in that area. People coming in from business industries apply individualized credit for prior learning (iCPL) and get many of the non-liberal arts and sciences credit hours through their work experience.

Epstein: Throughout our courses, students have a lot of opportunities to use their real-world experiences and apply theory in the course assignments and discussions. That’s a way in which the program and our courses are really designed for that kind of student. In the BBA, there are lots of opportunities for our students to get a real breadth of industry-related knowledge either through iCPL or by taking the courses and seeing in real time the range of information that they can use in the world—which they may not have had before.

Taking a class is an opportunity for them to learn something and put it into practice in their workplace. There’s a great range of information that students get across business topics.

Roufaiel: Regarding international students, of which we have a good volume that join online from different countries, they focus more on specialized content. Having a BBA with less focus on liberal arts—half the usual credit hours—allows this kind of student to transfer more credit into our program, which expands content, including all managerial functions of business. The program is focused on the professional careers of its students.

The program covers a wide range of disciplines. How do you help students build bridges between different areas?

Kim: The BBA degree incorporates business management, economics, accounting, and finance courses. It covers every single aspect of business, including marketing and human resource management. This is a true business degree, which covers all areas of the discipline.

Epstein: Kim set me up perfectly to add that there is a course delivered through the human resource management department, which is the capstone in the program that students take in their final semester. That’s when they bring together all that knowledge and they have a chance to fully see how it fits together and is complementary.

Roufaiel: The degree covers all functions of business. It has a variety of courses related to marketing, management, human resources, accounting, economics, business law, and covers quantitative analysis through business analytics and statistics. At the upper levels, students will be able to combine all these disciplines that any basic business administrator will need to use.

What does “meeting students where they are” look like for you in the day-to-day?

Roufaiel: SUNY Empire is student-oriented, it really focuses on what they are interested in and what they need, not just now but in the future—how students are prepared to carry out their goals and objectives.

Close communication with their faculty and mentor brings them closer to their target. For example, if a student says they’re an adult with overwhelming responsibility, I say, “Guess what? I’m an adult, a mother, I’m married, I have family obligations, and I am also a practitioner. Let’s talk about time management and what to do.” Because the majority of us pass through all that, we feel for our students and we believe in them and the sacrifices they are making.

Epstein: When we think of ourselves as faculty members, we’re teaching and mentoring. Similar to what Nazik said, it’s about making students feel comfortable where they are, feel accepted, feel like we see the value in their past experiences—whether professional or educational—and that we also believe in their future.

That might mean discussing the transfer credit they’re bringing in, sharing different paths that they can move forward with or what degrees they can pursue. It might mean, in a classroom setting, understanding where they are with learning the material and showing them ways to enhance their learning, or better showcase it.

Kim: The College of Business reflects the mission of SUNY Empire; we’re being flexible with all our degrees. If there’s a student with no college credits, we have a degree program for them. Or, a student with non-business credits—we have a degree for them. We have everything we need to be flexible and accommodate anybody, at any level, and any place, today, tomorrow, and in the future. We continue to improve our degree programs and offerings.

What is the most rewarding part of your work?

Epstein: When students feel that they have been successful. Whether they feel that way because they’ve completed a semester and their GPA is great, or they’re completing a degree they didn’t think they were going to have the opportunity to do, or they’re in a course and see how theory impacts their professional and personal development. You see that they change, and it’s a feeling of success for them, which I think is great.

Roufaiel: When they come to me and say “I made it. I never thought I was going to make it. I’m the first one in my family to have a college degree,” or “Guess what? I am continuing with a graduate program,” which has happened a lot recently.

Their feeling of achievement and success—that is our satisfaction regardless of the amount of time we spend with our students to support them in reaching their goals. That’s the ultimate success.

Kim: For me, it’s the students who had doubts pursuing higher education and then continuing. When I see them continuing, it makes me so happy.

What are some real-world outcomes a student could pursue with this degree?

Roufaiel: The business administration program prepares students for a career in all managerial and business functions—whatever a student’s particular interests are can lead to a more specialized focus, but they can be a generalist as well.

Epstein: Because the curriculum is so broad, it gives students a lot of different entry points into the business world because they have familiarity with a lot of topics. There are lots of places within an organization where they will have enough information to enter conversations or apply for certain jobs.

Once there, because they had that breadth of information, it gives them the ability to make connections between the work being done in department A and department B. They’ll understand that broader, bigger picture.

Kim: The program equips students with all the foundational knowledge in business, which means they can jump right into the industry or pursue an MBA degree.

What would you want prospective students to know about what this program can do for them?

Kim: They can apply the knowledge and business skills gained here to their career or educational objectives going forward.

Epstein: Adding to that, if they’re a transfer student, the degree program is transfer-friendly—especially if they’re coming in with an associate degree in business, because of the range of offerings. Some of the courses are likely to have been completed at their prior institution.

Roufaiel: It prepares them to be a business manager, to be a marketing executive, human resource specialist, financial analyst, sales manager, or entrepreneur. They will know all the functions that are needed to carry out their entrepreneurship. They can go on to graduate school and hone leadership skills. They can develop their own business, or choose which career or industry they would like to pursue work in.

Five-Minute Feature: Griffin Fuetsch, Office Assistant 2 for the Office of Opportunity Programs

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Get to know the Empire State University community through this rapid-fire interview series that bridges professional accomplishments and personal interests. What makes Empire State University exceptional? The unique people behind the work. Five minutes—starting now! 

What led you to your career path?

When I started college in 2020, I struggled to find a route that really clicked for me. I am someone who can find enjoyment in most things, but it was important to find a path I was genuinely passionate about. When the pandemic ended, I was extra motivated to gain a wide variety of experiences in pursuit of that goal. It wasn’t until my final year of college, when I began working in my school’s accessibility and accommodations office, that I knew what I wanted to do post‑grad. This job solidified my understanding of the importance of access in higher education. My positive interactions with students had a tangible impact, so I knew it was something I had to pursue as a career.

What is your favorite thing about SUNY Empire?

The community here is undoubtedly my favorite part of SUNY Empire. In my five months of working at the university, I have only met friendly, genuine, and “willing to help” people. I spend each day laughing with colleagues, hearing stories from students, and learning from faculty. I was shocked to learn how much connection can be cultivated in an online environment.

What’s one moment in your career you’re especially proud of?

I feel especially proud during our in-person Black Male Initiative events at 4 Park Avenue. Because our school is mostly online, the enthusiasm for these events is very high, and it’s incredibly rewarding to experience that energy in person.

What’s one small thing that always improves your day?

I am so fortunate to have a commute that energizes me. Each morning, I get to Citi Bike through my neighborhood and up to Midtown. It’s nice to listen to music and enjoy the sun before turning my brain on for the day. However, when it’s cold and rainy, that’s another story…

What song do you never skip when it comes on?

Lights — Ellie Goulding

Laughing Matters: Professor Sabrina Fuchs-Abrams on Funny Women Inciting Change

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This excerpt is taken from “A Deep Dive With Sabrina Fuchs-Abrams.” Read the full story.

Professor Sabrina Fuchs-Abrams has expertly triangulated women’s studies, humor studies, and literary studies to examine how women challenged the status quo in the 19th and 20th centuries—and has shared that expertise with Empire State University’s MA in Liberal Studies program for the past 20 years. The New Jersey native has serious New York expertise; much of her research focuses on New York intellectuals and literature, including her published book, “New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century.” Ahead, Fuchs-Abrams shares some of her literary and women’s studies acumen in honor of Women’s History Month.

When the video call connects, the rectangle enclosing a black-and-white-clad Fuchs-Abrams floods with brightness. The room is stark white, made even more luminous by the large windows on either side of the professor.

Was there a particular book, writer, or teacher that sparked your love of literature?

Fuchs-Abrams: My parents were both English professors, which was part of it. In high school, I remember writing my senior thesis on the figure of the American girl in the works of Henry James. That was probably my first deep research experience—again, looking at female figures, even though it was a male writer.

I’ve always been interested in strong female figures—intellectual women in predominantly male-dominated areas. I think that oftentimes, women who stood out in predominantly male contexts often had to mask their intellect, because it was perceived as threatening. One of the ways to do that was through humor, and that shaped part of my interest in women’s humor later.

What drew you to a career in academia, and what brought you to Empire State University?

Fuchs-Abrams: As I mentioned, both my parents were academics, and it seemed like a great life. Every seven years, my father would go on sabbatical, and we would live in a different country. It seemed like a wonderful opportunity to learn and share your learning with others.

I did my graduate work at Columbia and taught an American Studies course for adult learners who were returning students. I found that to be incredibly rewarding. I found that the adult learners who had chosen to return there, not going on a conventional trajectory, were so highly motivated and accomplished. 

What does your research focus on?

Fuchs-Abrams: Currently, I work on women’s humor, which stands at the intersection of women’s studies, literary study, urban studies, and humor studies. I’m particularly interested in 20th century American women writers and women intellectuals and the way they used humor as an indirect form of social protest.

What first interested you about this topic?

Fuchs-Abrams: My first book, which was an elaboration of my dissertation, was on Mary McCarthy. She is one of the foremost female intellectuals among a predominantly male group of New York intellectuals in the 1930s and 40s. She was part of the “Partisan Review” crowd of that period, and she was a satirist. From my interest in her, I became interested in women’s humor more generally.

Perfect segue—what can you share about your most recent publication, “New York Women of Wit of the 20th Century”?

Fuchs-Abrams: I’m interested in looking at how women writers use humor as a masked form of social critique. Some of the early humorists like Marietta Holly, or Sara Willis Parton, also known as Fanny Fern, and Frances Miriam Whitcher, dealt with domestic subjects, but they were able to say things that would have been prohibited without the mask of humor.

Moving into the 20th century with the passage of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote, and with prohibition and the rise of the new woman, I’m particularly interested in this interwar period where women were able to voice their critique a little more overtly.

How did humor and satire allow them to challenge traditional spaces? Can you share an example?

Fuchs-Abrams: There’s a short story by Dorothy Parker called “The Waltz.” There’s a female figure who is highly intellectual—really, a stand-in for Parker herself—but she has to wait to be asked to dance because that’s the social protocol. And there’s this buffoon, awkward male figure who’s stepping on her toes when dancing. The story is told in a double voice, so you hear what she says to him, being obsequious the way appropriate feminine behavior would be. And then, you hear the underlying monologue that she has. With satire, it’s using exaggeration and ridicule to expose the absurdities of certain social customs or prominent figures.

Satire is particularly suited to women and other marginalized populations in that it’s often directed by outsiders—those excluded by race, gender, ethnicity, religion—against those in positions of power in the hope of reforming society or at least exposing its moral weakness.

What is the most surprising thing that you encountered in your research?

Fuchs-Abrams: It’s surprising to me how the focus has really shifted to stand-up comedy, media studies and other forms of humor, and away from literary humor. You could say pioneering women of wit set the stage for later, more contemporary comedians, some of whom do talk about Dorothy Parker, or Edna St. Vincent Millay.

I know it’s Women’s History Month, and part of the feminist project is to revive lesser-known female authors and figures, which is part of what I do in my book. You do get figures like Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes, Ali Wong, Hannah Gadsby—a lot of these feminist comedians do hark back to this use of humor as a way of partly sublimating and partly indirectly voicing social critique.

How do you fuel your literary curiosity?

Fuchs-Abrams: Working with students is really inspiring. Many of the classes I teach are based on my research, so I teach courses on women and humor, literature of New York… So working with graduate and undergraduate students, when you use the word curiosity, their questions and interests are not always directly aligned with some of the questions I would have thought to ask. It pushes me in other directions and interdisciplinary ways of thinking.

Being at SUNY Empire, there’s no doubt that I’ve become more interdisciplinary in my research and interests because of the nature of the teaching that we do. Here, particularly in the MALS program, learning is more expansive, and that has really fueled my curiosity.

A Deep Dive with Sabrina Fuchs-Abrams, Professor of English and Author

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Professor Sabrina Fuchs-Abrams has expertly triangulated women’s studies, humor studies, and literary studies to examine how women challenged the status quo in the 19th and 20th centuries—and has shared that expertise with Empire State University’s MA in Liberal Studies program for the past 20 years. The New Jersey native has serious New York expertise; much of her research focuses on New York intellectuals and literature, including her published book, “New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century.” Ahead, Fuchs-Abrams shares some of her literary and women’s studies acumen in honor of Women’s History Month.

When the video call connects, the rectangle enclosing a black-and-white-clad Fuchs-Abrams floods with brightness. The room is stark white, made even more luminous by the large windows on either side of the professor. A couple pieces of furniture are visible: two white sofas and a wooden dining table.

Was there a particular book, writer, or teacher that sparked your love of literature?

Fuchs-Abrams: My parents were both English professors, which was part of it. In high school, I remember writing my senior thesis on the figure of the American girl in the works of Henry James. That was probably my first deep research experience—again, looking at female figures, even though it was a male writer.

I’ve always been interested in strong female figures—intellectual women in predominantly male-dominated areas. I think that oftentimes, women who stood out in predominantly male contexts often had to mask their intellect, because it was perceived as threatening. One of the ways to do that was through humor, and that shaped part of my interest in women’s humor later.

In college, I worked with Sacvan Bercovitch, who was one of the founders of New Historicism. I was very interested in the American tradition, starting with Puritanism, and then looking at 19th century figures who were all a presence at that time, like Emily Dickinson, Walt Whitman, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville… I would say that experience steeped me in the American tradition.

I became interested in American studies, in the history and literature of America, and when I went on do to graduate work at Columbia, I moved more towards New York writers and tradition.

What drew you to a career in academia, and what brought you to Empire State University?

Fuchs-Abrams: As I mentioned, both my parents were academics, and it seemed like a great life. Every seven years, my father would go on sabbatical, and we would live in a different country. We lived in Paris, Vienna, Berlin… It seemed like a wonderful opportunity to learn and share your learning with others. That was part of it, as well as having an ability to write and being interested in teaching.

I did my graduate work at Columbia, and part of the teaching I did there was in the School for General Studies. I taught an American Studies course for adult learners, who were returning students, and I found that to be incredibly rewarding. I found that the adult learners who had chosen to return there, not going on a conventional trajectory, were so highly motivated and accomplished.

In many ways, since it was New York City, you would get dancers who had 20-year careers, musicians, artists, all sorts of people returning. Maybe that opened my mind to SUNY Empire, with its mission of working with nontraditional learners.

How do you approach teaching literature and writing at the master’s level, and what do you find most gratifying about that?

Fuchs-Abrams: The MA in Liberal Studies program is somewhat unique and an amazing opportunity, both as a professor and for students, for creative individuals to go in-depth in an area of interest. I would also say the interdisciplinarity of SUNY Empire is very appealing to me, and of course the liberal studies program.

What does your research focus on?

Fuchs-Abrams: Currently, I work on women’s humor, which stands at the intersection of women’s studies, literary study, urban studies, and humor studies. I’m particularly interested in 20th century American women writers and women intellectuals and the way they used humor as an indirect form of social protest.

What first interested you about this topic?

Fuchs-Abrams: My first book, which was an elaboration of my dissertation, was on Mary McCarthy. She is one of the foremost female intellectuals among a predominantly male group of New York intellectuals in the 1930s and 40s. She was part of the “Partisan Review” crowd of that period, and she was a satirist. From my interest in her, I became interested in women’s humor more generally. She’s one of the figures that I deal with in my most recent book.

Perfect segue—what can you share about your most recent publication, “New York Women of Wit of the 20th Century”?

Fuchs-Abrams: I’m interested in looking at how women writers use humor as a masked form of social critique, because oftentimes, women were constrained by historical conceptions of appropriate gender behavior, right? The Victorian ideal of the submissive, subordinate woman.

Some of the early humorists like Marietta Holly, or Sara Willis Parton, also known as Fanny Fern, and Frances Miriam Whitcher, dealt with domestic subjects, but they were able to say things that would have been prohibited without the mask of humor.

Moving into the 20th century with the passage of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote, and with prohibition and the rise of the new woman, I’m particularly interested in this interwar period where women were able to voice their critique a little more overtly. They were able to assume a more independent role. A lot of these figures were centered around New York, which was particularly interesting to me as well.

Like Jessie Redmon Fauset, who was part of the Harlem Renaissance. She had a salon along with her sister that helped foster some of the writers of the Harlem Renaissance, like Langston Hughes and Dawn Powell, who was part of the Lafayette Circle in Greenwich Village. This was a more urban and urbane, sophisticated form of humor. It moved away from the domestic satire of some of the earlier figures towards a more modern sensibility.

How did humor and satire allow them to challenge traditional spaces? Can you share an example?

Fuchs-Abrams: There’s a short story by Dorothy Parker called “The Waltz.” There’s a female figure who is highly intellectual—really, a stand-in for Parker herself—but she has to wait to be asked to dance because that’s the social protocol. And there’s this buffoon, awkward male figure who’s stepping on her toes when dancing. The story is told in a double voice, so you hear what she says to him, being obsequious the way appropriate feminine behavior would be. And then, you hear the underlying monologue that she has. All sorts of witticisms, making references to Shakespeare, literary figures, historical figures, and talking about how he’s sort of ridiculous. With satire, it’s using exaggeration and ridicule to expose the absurdities of certain social customs or prominent figures.

Satire is particularly suited to women and other marginalized populations in that it’s often directed by outsiders—those excluded by race, gender, ethnicity, religion—against those in positions of power in the hope of reforming society or at least exposing its moral weakness. While traditional humor might be seen as “punching down” in keeping with the superiority theory of humor—the ridiculing of marginalized populations by those in positions of power—women’s humor, and humor by other marginalized communities, is often “punching up” in the interest of social change.

Women’s humor also often engages in double-voiced irony, meaning to say one thing and mean another, and the incongruity theory of humor, which is based on the subversion of expectations. This verbal form of humor allows women and those in subordinate positions to mask their social critique through the indirection and socially acceptable form of irony and satire. 

What is the most surprising thing that you encountered in your research?

Fuchs-Abrams: It’s surprising to me how the focus has really shifted to stand-up comedy, media studies, and other forms of humor, and away from literary humor. Maybe surprise isn’t the right word, but it’s a little unexpected to me. You could say pioneering women of wit set the stage for later, more contemporary comedians, some of whom do talk about Dorothy Parker, or Edna St. Vincent Millay.

I know it’s Women’s History Month, and part of the feminist project is to revive lesser-known female authors and figures, which is part of what I do in my book. You do get figures like Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes, Ali Wong, Hannah Gadsby—a lot of these feminist comedians do hark back to this use of humor as a way of partly sublimating and partly indirectly voicing social critique.

What are some of your favorite women-made pieces of media?

Fuchs-Abrams: Allegra Goodman is a Jewish-American novelist and short story writer who is very interested in family dynamics and psychology. The book I want to mention of hers is “Isola,” a historical fiction book which is a sort of female Robinson Crusoe set in medieval French times. There is also a book by Kirsten Lange, which is “Pleasure, Play, and Politics: A History of Humor in U.S. Feminism.”

I recently watched a show that was recommended to me and is based on a book, “Lessons in Chemistry.” The common theme here—it’s about a female scientist, a chemist in the 1950s in a male-dominated field. Through cooking, she ends up using her skills as a chemist and making a name for herself.

I admire Cher as a pioneering female singer and strong feminist figure. She was also known for her wit: when told by her mother that she should settle down and marry a rich man, she famously replied, ‘Mom, I am a rich man!’”

How do you fuel your literary curiosity?

Fuchs-Abrams: Working with students is really inspiring. Many of the classes I teach are based on my research, so I teach courses on women and humor, literature of New York… So working with graduate and undergraduate students, when you use the word curiosity, their questions and interests are not always directly aligned with some of the questions I would have thought to ask. It pushes me in other directions and interdisciplinary ways of thinking.

Being at SUNY Empire, there’s no doubt that I’ve become more interdisciplinary in my research and interests because of the nature of the teaching that we do. Here, particularly in the MALS program, learning is more expansive, and that has really fueled my curiosity.

Cindy Bradley’s Chihuahua Inspired Research That Could Change Treatment for Epileptic Dogs

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Moxie the chihuahua has suffered from canine idiopathic epilepsy for three years, and pharmacological treatment isn’t helping. Cindy Bradley—her owner and a student at Empire State University—conducted research on alternative treatment methods for dogs who don’t respond to medication. She presented her findings at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCRC) on January 25, 2026, with support from her mentor, Kevin Woo, professor and chair of the Department of Natural Sciences, and funding from the Student Activities Fund. The dog-loving undergraduate is earning her degree in science, technology, and mathematics with a concentration in biology.

What is canine idiopathic epilepsy?

Moxie’s illness is a form of epilepsy in dogs, but what does the term idiopathic mean? Bradley explains that it denotes an unknown cause or origin of a condition. Like in human epilepsy, canine epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder causing sudden, repeated seizures. While it’s considered manageable, there is no permanent cure for it.

The first line of treatment is to provide anti-seizure medications; however, many dogs don’t respond to them. According to Bradley, approximately 20-40% of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy become refractory to medications, meaning that medication becomes ineffective. This leaves them in need of “adjunct therapies” to pair with the primary treatment.

The road less traveled

Medication is not the only treatment option, but it is the most thoroughly researched. Bradley explains that because of the lack of data surrounding “adjunct therapies,” they are not often recommended for patients by canine healthcare providers.

She names a few alternative treatments: dietary changes, medium chain triglycerides (MCT) oil, cannabidiol (CBD) oil, acupuncture, and vagus nerve stimulation. These can be used alongside medication or on their own.

Many dogs could benefit from a treatment plan that combines alternative treatments with medication, but veterinarians hesitate to go this route. There is a gap in veterinary research that, if addressed, could change the lives of many dogs suffering from idiopathic epilepsy, and their human caretakers. Bradley got the ball rolling to create a framework veterinarians could use when traditional medication doesn’t yield results: “I gathered all the research I could find on those extra therapies, and put together a plan that veterinarians could look at when treating a dog that’s having epileptic seizures.”

She ran into challenges while researching, including the limited scope of existing research on non-pharmacological therapies for the disorder. The studies that had been conducted had small sample populations and short observation periods. Generally, she noticed a real need for longitudinal studies—research studies that span months, if not years, through which scientists are able to monitor emerging patterns and draw more reliable conclusions. Alternative therapies could be game-changing for dogs with epilepsy, if they are thoroughly evaluated, Bradley reasoned.

Meet the researcher

Bradley officially enrolled at SUNY Empire in spring 2024, though she had been taking classes since the fall 2022 semester. Hailing from North Tonawanda, NY, she had previously earned a bachelor’s degree in teaching and music and a master’s degree in educational leadership. An established public school music teacher, Bradley provides formative music education to elementary-aged students.

 “When I was in high school, I wanted to become a veterinarian, but I was also a musician. I decided to pursue music instead of anything in the sciences, but I’ve always had this tremendous interest in veterinary and medical sciences,” Bradley shares. She began working summers as a veterinary assistant in 2020 and taking science courses across multiple universities to work towards her veterinary technician license, which she has since earned.

Eventually, Bradley made the decision to enroll at SUNY Empire—it came down to the flexibility of online coursework, ability to transfer previously earned credits, and freedom to tailor a degree to her needs. “I’ve taken classes at a lot of different colleges and found SUNY Empire to be the right fit for me,” she says.

With assignments and research projects that enable students to explore the topics they are drawn to, Bradley was able to dive into veterinary-related science and make progress into her desired field.

Moxie’s story

Bradley’s four-year-old chihuahua, Moxie, was diagnosed with canine idiopathic epilepsy at age one, and has suffered from seizures most of her life. “It’s been a very difficult road, because she is one of those dogs where we haven’t found the perfect treatment to slow down her seizure activity,” she says. Managing Moxie’s condition has proven difficult, especially given the unpredictable nature of epileptic seizures.

The experience motivated Bradley to investigate possible healthcare solutions to help other animals. “Seeing how managing the disease affected my own life made me want to do research and someday contribute to helping,” says Bradley.

Support from the university

Guidance from her mentor, SUNY Empire’s animal behavior, ecology, and conservation expert Woo, “was paramount to being able to do the research,” Bradley highlights. Woo provided insight into research methodology, helping Bradley develop and subsequently present the project at the NCRC.

Bradley’s attendance at the NCRC was made possible by the SUNY Empire Student Activities Fund. “It was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had as a student,” she says brightly.

The NCRC provided an opportunity to interact with undergraduate researchers across disciplines from all parts of the world— “It was an international conference, so there were students from parts of Asia, Europe, Canada, and from all over the U.S. who came together to present their research. It was so impressive—that was my main takeaway, that the future is in good hands.”

The road ahead

Once she finishes her studies at SUNY Empire, Bradley will continue to pursue biology and veterinary science studies. She loves teaching and learning, and intends to continue exploring animal health and neurological diseases. “I hope that in some way, my work will benefit animals—and people that love them,” she says.

Empire State University Educator Spotlights Multilingual Learners in New Children’s Book

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Assistant Professor and TESOL/Bilingual Coordinator Gloria Kramer’s new book “It’s Raining Fish” is challenging perceptions about multilingual education by uniting storytelling, cultural responsiveness, and classroom strategies to aid educators. Kramer, who joined Empire State University in 2022, aimed not only to shed light on the impacts of cultural and linguistic misunderstandings on English language learners, but to provide actionable paths for educators to explore.

The Story

Manuel is a young boy from Honduras attending school in the United States, and he’s an English language learner (ELL). His class is learning about figurative speech—particularly idioms—which are often a challenging area for ELLs. In an attempt to engage with the lesson, Manuel shares a story about fish raining from the sky, which his teacher dismisses.

This narrative is, in part, a cautionary tale not to put all of one’s eggs in the machine translation basket. Manuel tries to decipher his homework assignment by using translation tools and receives an incorrect translation, causing him to misinterpret the assignment. Kramer is not attacking these tools, but rather, pointing out that they can’t always guarantee accurate translations, and figurative language is often translated directly.

The thing is, Manuel’s story about fish raining down is real. In Yoro, Honduras, waterspouts lift fish from their habitats and cause them to drop from the sky during severe storms. When Manuel’s teacher pauses to listen, she is able to understand what her student is trying to convey. Kramer’s story encourages readers—learners and teachers alike—to listen with an open mind, and to dig deeper in service of understanding one another.

Write What You Know

Kramer has amassed years of classroom experience as an English as a second language (ESL) teacher, dual language school principal, department chair, TESOL coordinator, and assistant professor. Her time in education has made her realize that many students are “experiencing exactly what I went through as a child,” she says.

Drawing on a career centered on the needs of multilingual learners, Kramer wrote “It’s Raining Fish,” to raise awareness that “we do have multilingual learners in our classrooms, and they do share such rich cultural knowledge and experiences,” she explains.

The fish-scattering phenomenon isn’t the only element of the story with a real-life counterpart. Kramer’s own upbringing inspired the events of “It’s Raining Fish.” Her own difficulties with figurative language mirror those of many ELL and multilingual students she has taught.

The author had a bilingual upbringing herself. Raised by an Ecuadorian father and Salvadoran mother, Kramer’s first language was Spanish. She later took on English at school. “Figurative language is very difficult for language learners—myself included. That’s why I wrote about this,” she says, explaining how her own story inspired Manuel’s. She adds humorously, “Idioms, to this day, mean absolutely nothing to me.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kramer sat down to write. “I always wanted to write a children’s book, but never had the time,” she says. 24 hours later, she had completed the first draft of her now-published book. Over the following five years, Kramer made edits to ensure the book would be the transformative resource she envisioned. “It was not an easy process, it was a learning experience,” she comments.

Storytelling Aside…

Much to the benefit of educators with ELL and multilingual students, “It’s Raining Fish” is not only a story, but a workbook full of classroom strategies and activities teachers can offer to students in the day to day. “I think this book belongs in everyone’s hands,” says Kramer.

The topics covered in the strategies and activities Kramer included extend beyond language learning and literature. Yes, English language arts are covered, but geography, science, history, and technology also form part of the repertoire.

Kramer explains that an activity might prompt teachers to dedicate class time to exploring idioms, mapping the geography and history of Honduras, studying weather phenomena, or discussing cultural experiences, among others. “It’s Raining Fish” targets pre-K to sixth grade, though Kramer notes that the content can be adapted to serve older students.

Looking beyond Manuel’s story, and activities to base lesson plans on, Kramer’s book aims to propagate the message that education can only be enriched by integrating more cultures and modes of learning. This is why she made her book “culturally responsive”—it reminds educators of the importance of weaving in the lived experiences, cultures, and languages of their students.

For the author, this book is not only the culmination of many years of work as an educator, but also a tribute to the multilingual students that have shaped her career. “It’s Raining Fish” is a reminder that their stories deserve to be heard.

Ginger Alvarez’s “Suitcase Full of Dreams”

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Ginger Alvarez is a mother of four determined to finally fulfill her career dreams, which she began pursuing in Guayaquil, Ecuador before moving to the United States in 2011. When she arrived, the possibilities she had access to were more limited in scope than she had imagined—with a family to maintain, she had to chart a new course that took her far from her aspirations to work in the aviation industry, until now.

Alvarez’s eldest son, who works in higher education in Manhattan, heard about Empire State University’s Spanish Bachelor of Business Administration—an opportunity that would allow his mother to earn a degree in her native language and advance her career while she continued developing her English-language skills. Alvarez enrolled, seeing a gateway back into her desired field that played to her strengths.

She is one of many whose academic and career progress has been slowed by language barriers, which is why SUNY Empire launched its business administration degree intended for native Spanish speakers. Already, the university specializes in serving diverse student populations with competing responsibilities in their personal and professional lives. For busy parents like Alvarez, the flexibility of online learning is essential to academic success and accessing new career possibilities.

Today, she lives in Queens and works as a cashier at a money transfer business while doing e-commerce, but Alvarez’s story began with “humidity and heat” in Ecuador’s largest coastal city. In 2000, when she began college, Alvarez declared a business administration major while simultaneously pursuing pilot training with the support of her parents. “At that time, my mom got cancer. They couldn’t continue paying for the programs, so I had to leave. Instead, I started working at the airport for Avianca Airlines,” she recounts. Alvarez held her job for almost eight years until her paperwork to relocate to the U.S. was finalized by which time she had two children, ages five and seven.

“I arrived in this country with a suitcase full of dreams. I thought I would keep doing airport work, but the language is very different, and it holds you back,” she says. Despite her years of experience in a different industry, Alvarez began working at a money transfer company, and eventually at restaurants. “It was the first time I’d ever worked in one, but here, you have to do everything. I liked the dining industry, and I’ve kept working in it,” she adds. Alvarez was aware that language was impeding her from obtaining jobs she was otherwise trained to do, and set out to change that.

In 2018, Alvarez earned her GED, which she pursued as a pathway to improving her English-language skills. She enrolled in LaGuardia Community College to continue learning the language under the CUNY Language Immersion Program (CLIP), “so that from there, I could move on to the degree I wanted: a business administration degree,” she explains. “It felt endless,” the 43-year-old comments regarding her journey to English fluency.

It was at this point, discouraged and facing the financial pressure that came with enrolling in CLIP, that Alvarez’s son turned her attention towards the Spanish BBA at SUNY Empire. “I thought maybe I wouldn’t be able to handle it. At my age, you have so much in your head. But I took a chance,” she shares.

Online learning has been an adjustment for Alvarez, but it’s one she is navigating with the support of attentive faculty members. “I like how they run the courses, how they care. Professors will tell you, ‘If you can’t reach me through email, here is my phone number.’ They’re always present,” she says.

Besides the resources at the cohort’s disposal, Alvarez enjoys the way each subject connects with the next: “I like e-commerce, which is what Professor Claudia Lovegrove is teaching right now, and it connects with what Professor Luis Camacho teaches us, which is ethics.” The ability to think through course material in Spanish has been a great benefit—“It’s my language, so I can develop ideas faster,” she points out.

Now in her second semester of the program, Alvarez often feels motivated by her assignments, like creating a mockup of the footwear business she would run. Her professors’ what-if scenarios are engaging— “they really make you think,” she laughs, noting that she appreciates the challenge. With growing business acumen, Alvarez is starting to let herself imagine what possibilities the Spanish BBA degree might unlock. “I’m happy because I’m moving forward,” she says.

To Alvarez, the late nights poring over homework assignments after work are worth it—her dreams are becoming tangible, whether she makes her footwear business a reality, or applies her skills in the aviation industry. “This university understands who we are, our purpose to move forward. That’s why they give us flexibility,” she says, adding, “I’m confident that at some point I’m going to reach my goal.”

Five-Minute Feature: Cherrelle Hall, Assistant to the Vice President of Enrollment Management and Marketing

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Get to know the Empire State University community through this rapid-fire interview series that bridges professional accomplishments and personal interests. What makes Empire State University exceptional? The unique people behind the work. Five minutes—starting now!

What led you to your career path?

My path into higher education wasn’t planned, but it turned out to be exactly where I was meant to be. I’ve been fortunate to gain broad, meaningful experience across the field, and I’m proud of the impact I’ve been able to make in every role I’ve held.

What is your favorite thing about SUNY Empire?

What I appreciate most about this organization is that every day brings a new opportunity to learn and grow.

What’s one moment in your career you’re especially proud of?

I’m especially proud of completing my Ed.D. It represents a significant personal and professional milestone, and the program has had a meaningful impact on my career journey in higher education.

What’s a habit you’re currently trying to build (or break)?

Reading for pleasure. Now that my studies are complete, I’m excited to get back to reading simply for enjoyment.

If you could relive one ordinary day, which would you choose?

If I could relive one ordinary day, I’d choose a day from my trip to Europe last summer. I visited France, Germany, and Belgium, and it was wonderful to take in the sights, enjoy the atmosphere, and be fully present in the moment.

Behind the Scenes with the B.S. in Biology

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The B.S. in Biology has experienced rapid growth in registration, enrollment, and faculty size since its launch in January 2025. The program includes at-home lab work for hands-on experience that is crucial to students looking to enter graduate schools and professions in the sciences, setting it apart from other online alternatives where students access labs virtually.

The faculty are active researchers who extend opportunities for students to get involved. Ahead, three of them share their experiences for a peek behind the curtain: Julie Parato, B.S. in Biology program director and assistant professor, Matt Schmidt, visiting assistant professor, and Kevin Woo, professor and chair of the Department of Natural Sciences. Parato joined Empire State University in 2020—at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schmidt has been with the university for 31 years, and Woo is nearing the 16-year mark.

What do you teach?

Parato: Mostly biology classes, with a focus on upper-level neuroscience courses because it’s my background.  

Schmidt: Most of us have a wide array of things we teach. For me, it’s genetics, evolution, and microbiology, among others.

Woo: I teach animal behavior, ecology, conservation, biology, evolution, and various courses in organismal and ecological-level biology. Occasionally, I’ll do things in environmental science like the Ecology and Earth Systems Field Research course.

What does a day in your life look like?

Parato: It’s a bit all over the place! When we teach, since we are an online university, the professors act as a facilitator. We give the students feedback while they are learning on their own time. I’m active in my field, so right now, a huge chunk of my time is spent trying to get some projects up and running that are supposed to start in March—which terrifyingly, is only next week.

Schmidt: Being one of the old-fashioned types, I spend about half of my teaching doing Teams meetings with students one-on-one or in small groups—just because that was the way it used to be before all the fancy technology.

Woo: I would say two thirds of what I do right now are dedicated to department chair work. The best part of it is thinking about investment in faculty. They come to me with questions about operations, scholarship, service, and it’s about finding ways to support faculty in various opportunities. I get a number of student queries, which we try to triage before they escalate. I act as a sort of go-between for student issues and assess whether they need the Dean’s attention. Then, there are a gazillion committees that the department chair needs to sit in on. When I get to teach, I primarily do independent studies and virtual study groups, and mentor as well.

How would you describe the program’s culture, and what makes it feel like a community?

Parato: The B.S. in Biology was the first structured program that Natural Sciences offered. When we were told we could begin to offer structured programs, biology seemed like a good choice because I was thinking about what our students would need to be successful in applying to graduate school and getting jobs. We made this program because we thought it would be more easily understood by the outside world.

In terms of making it feel like a community, it’s thanks to people like Matt and Kevin who run these independent studies and virtual study groups. Many of our courses have a discussion board component to them, and there’s a chunk of students who take those interactions very seriously. It’s nice to watch them start to make friends with each other. We build community that way.

Students also get to talk about labs with each other. They’re working with their hands, not only reading and studying—doing that laboratory component and talking about it also fosters a sense of community.

Schmidt: As far as community goes, I think all the different modalities go together. The faculty community is very strong, supportive, and friendly. I’ve had group meetings with students who are pursuing similar things, and I feel that they really appreciate it because while it’s great to be the master of your own destiny, it can potentially be isolating if you’re not interacting with anybody.

Woo: The B.S. in Biology has certainly been a long time coming, and it’s something we needed as a department and university. One of the main features is accessibility—SUNY Empire has a long history of distance learning in the online environment. The sciences used to be thought of as a service area for a long time. We had primarily only done general education courses. But we were hearing from students that they sincerely wanted careers in the sciences.

The biology program was the fastest-growing program during the 2025-2026 academic year. We’ve seen significant growth in the number of registrations—we had a growth of almost 12% across all our natural sciences courses. Our faculty has also grown 50% within the last two years, and I think that is a culmination of student interest and the desire to be professionals in the sciences. It’s encouraging locally and federally to see students seeking professional opportunities in STEM fields.  

Biology is often thought of as a very hands-on, lab-based discipline. How does the B.S. in Biology bring that dimension into online learning?

Parato: This is a real strength of the program. There are distance learning online biology programs that only offer virtual labs, but as an educator and researcher, it’s incredibly important that students learn how to actually do a laboratory experiment—how to set things up, how to troubleshoot.

Labs are heavily interspersed throughout the foundational classes, because that’s really where students have to learn what I call having a “lab-smart” sense—learning how to use their hands, figuring out written instructions and turning them into an actual experiment. This is important for students who go on to join a lab or a graduate program. The fact that we do this is a benefit to the students because it makes our degree transferable to graduate schools that aren’t looking for online-only laboratory experience.

There are biological supply companies, like Carolina, that we use for our lab kits. We work with Carolina to set up the supplies that students need into one kit, and then students can purchase it and have it sent to their home. Students complete the labs at their homes and document their work through pictures. Carolina has tutorial videos on how to set things up. We are also working on making some additional recordings to put into our courses. And, of course, we have excellent tutors who are always willing to work with students who have questions.

Woo: The ways we do the labs are evolving. We are trying to think outside the box about how else we can be helpful to students engaging with the laboratories so they can execute them from beginning to end.

What usually draws students to this program, and how is the department prepared to help them thrive?

Parato: We get a mix of students. Historically, our student population was thought to be students who were returning to school or adult learners. But in our biology program, we get students who have just left high school. Part of that may be that people got used to online learning during COVID, and they realize they can do an undergraduate degree online now. These are more traditional students who want to pursue a biology degree to go to graduate school.

We have people who have earned associate degrees at other schools and work in a more clinical field, but they are not able to progress in their career without a bachelor’s degree. SUNY Empire is good about taking transfer credit, but we also intentionally built the biology program to accommodate these students who have taken lower-level coursework at other institutions, and it feeds nicely into our program.

Sometimes we get students who want a change in their career—I have a student right now who has a master’s degree in a non-science field and is also a lover of paleontology. He’s a researcher at heart, but he needs to get a more foundational college degree in biology before he can move forward. We get a variety of students, and it’s excellent that we’re able to help such a diverse group of learners coming to our university.

Schmidt: I love that we’re seeing younger students enroll. Certainly, the pandemic was not a good thing, but I think in a strange way it gave some validity to online learning that people had not embraced before then.

Woo: Many of our faculty are engaged in active research, so students who are seeking graduate placement might want that kind of research experience, like conference presentations or publications. We are carving out these opportunities where students can work with faculty of the Department of Natural Sciences on research projects.

We are lucky to have been recently awarded a grant that supports student presentations at conferences, and that’s coordinated in conjunction with the Dean of Students, Melissa Aponte.

What is a resource you recommend to students or rely on as a faculty member?

Parato: PubMed is an excellent resource. It’s a search engine for biomedical articles—both review articles and experimental articles. It’s a resource that students can use even after they graduate if they are interested in reading more about a topic in biology, medicine, health science, and more.

Schmidt: While not strictly related to Biology, I like to have students browse Scientific American. There are many fascinating articles there.

Woo: We have been employing more open educational resources (OERs) to both significantly reduce the cost and increase accessibility of these tools within our courses. For Animal Behavior, we might use Behayve or ZooMonitor to conduct and record behavioral observations and automate data organization. For data, students and I would use Jamovi when conducting analyses relevant to experimental and observation projects.

What is your favorite part about being involved with the program?

Parato: Seeing students graduate. What makes me the happiest are those emails where they say: “Just checking in, but I’m on my way out. Thanks for everything.”

Also, echoing what we’ve already said, we talk a lot about our programs at department meetings and with each other. There’s such a synergy among the faculty—I think everyone is motivated to make sure this program is successful, and that our students can leave here with the opportunities that they want. In part, I think it’s because we are a great group.

Schmidt: Not unpredictably to those who know me, the best part for me is when I’m meeting one-on-one with a student. It’s not like, “here’s the professor, and here’s the student.” It’s more of a collaborative learning experience where two or three minds are exploring together.

That’s the reason I went into biology in the first place. Many times, a question they ask or an observation they make might lead me a bit deeper into my own thoughts, things that I might have left out, or things that I forgot about for a while. So, that moment of “wow, this really is important to understanding the world around me and my own life” that reverberates back and forth is very fulfilling to me.

Woo: I look forward to commencement. I think SUNY Empire has the best graduations of any institution I’ve ever been at. You get a sense of sincere appreciation and accomplishments from students who have worked so hard—students who have families taking care of children, taking care of elderly relatives, working two to three additional jobs. They’re doing all the work they need to do, and meeting expectations among all their personal commitments as well. When they arrive at the end, there is a grander sense of achievement.

Once they cross the stage, and they’re seeking professions in STEM, they’re the representatives and stewards of the university. They’re going out there with the SUNY Empire name, and we have to ensure that they are not only fulfilled by their time here, but that they can say to others that the university has a great B.S. in Biology program. I think that circular approach creates a sort of positive feedback loop. It’s not only great for the program itself, but also for the future of the sciences.