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From My Desk - President Christine M. Riordan (logo)
March 2020
Personalized learning makes a powerful difference in the lives of our students—and our faculty. Here’s how.

Students today have many options to consider when choosing a higher education experience. Topping many Adelphi students’ lists is our personalized and caring academic community. Our faculty and staff know the power of tapping into a student’s individual potential and of finding new ways to help support a campus full of unique backgrounds, talents, interests and needs.

This month, I’ll share stories of our personalized approach from a few different viewpoints:


Adelphi students are encouraged to bring their distinct selves and big dreams. In return, our community champions and values the unique inspiration that comes from each member of our family. Here, students find a home where they can ask questions, seek guidance, hone their strengths, overcome their challenges and set out on rewarding career paths.

I hope you enjoy this month’s inspiring group of personal stories.
All the best,
Christine M. Riordan, PhD
President
24 hours to give
Join us on March 25, Giving Day 2020, when the Adelphi community comes together for many causes and one overarching goal: supporting our University’s mission to transform students’ lives.
A personalized approach is powerful. Adelphi professor of psychology Robert Bornstein, PhD, explains that students learn best with professors who are personally interested in their lives and their future goals.    
Support for grad students far from home. International student and MBA candidate Sivakorn (Boom) Chaichana is vice president of our Graduate Student Council— and using his own experience to help other students feel at home at Adelphi.
Meeting students where they are. Personalized teaching means tapping into students’ talents and passions. Read about three Adelphi STEM professors who exemplify this hallmark quality of Adelphi faculty.
Our first-generation students are on a path to success. Students who are first in their family to attend college can face different kinds of pressures. Adelphi’s personalized resources are designed to help them adjust and succeed.
Research: Comparing international views on mental illness
A caregiver’s beliefs about mental disorders can play a role in shaping treatment. Wei Liu, PhD, an assistant professor in the College of Nursing and Public Health, worked with nursing students in the United States and China to compare the ways the two educational systems promote mental health literacy. Read about it in "Beyond Belief," a feature article in our Fall 2019 Academic and Creative Research Magazine .
Sophomore sprinter streaks to award
Gabrielle Buissereth had quite a February. On the seventh, the track star received the athletic department's Cecil K. Watkins Award, presented annually to one deserving male and one female student-athlete of color who achieve a 3.0-plus grade point average and display leadership qualities both on and off the field. Then, at the NE10 Indoor Championships on the 21st and 22nd, she won two first-place medals, anchored the winning 4x400 relay team, and received two major awards—Most Valuable Female Athlete of the Meet and Track Athlete of the Meet. Adelphi student-athletes excelled as a group, too, with a league-leading 80 percent earning a place on the NE10 Academic Honor Roll. It's the seventh time in the last eight semesters the Panthers have won that honor.
Alumni making a difference: Carmen M. Ortiz ’78, JD, ’12 (Hon.)
As both the first woman and first Hispanic to serve as U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Carmen Ortiz led her office’s prosecution of Whitey Bulger and the Boston Marathon bomber. I congratulate Carmen, a member of our Adelphi University Board of Trustees, on her election as a partner in the Boston firm of Anderson & Kreiger LLP.
Save the Date for the 20th Anniversary
President’s Gala, June 13
Save the date for one of the most enjoyable events of the year, dedicated to our students' success. Mark June 13 on your calendar, and I hope to see you there!
Dr. Riordan is an internationally known expert and frequent speaker on leadership, diversity and inclusion, and career success. She has published nearly 70 academic and business press articles and is authoring  Shift Happens: How to Adapt and Thrive in a Rapidly Changing World of Work —a book on helping employees adapt to the changing workplace. Dr. Riordan’s TEDx talk, “Dare to Be Extraordinary,” has received more than 20,000 views. She has been interviewed by and written articles for media such as the Financial Times , the Harvard Business Review , Forbes and HuffPost . Her work has been cited more than 5,400 times by other authors, and she has appeared in the press more than 130 times. For more information on her research, christineriordan.com .