Marcella Mandracchia ‘10Ed, ‘11GEd, ‘15Ed.D.

During the course of a typical week, Marcella Mandracchia ’10Ed, ’11GEd, ’15Ed.D. follows an exacting schedule—serving as an instructor in The School of Education, listening to dissertation defenses, analyzing data for senior faculty, showing fellow professors how to conduct online courses, or teaching three classes at Hostos Community College in the Bronx.

“It’s the kind of work I enjoy doing,” said Mandracchia, who received her doctorate from St. John’s this past January—at 25 years old. “I’d like to make a difference by having a positive impact on future educators.” Teaching in a university setting has been her dream since high school—one that intensified as she studied and conducted research with her professors in The School of Education.

Mandracchia attended Bard High School Early College in Manhattan, a special program that allowed her to earn a Regents and an associate degree in liberal arts. After graduating, Mandracchia chose The School of Education at St. John’s because “I heard the teacher preparation program here was particularly strong.”

In addition to conducting field work at local schools, St. John’s gave Mandracchia the opportunity to work on federally funded research with Seokhee Cho, Ph.D., Professor of Administrative and Instructional Leadership. The study, Project Hope, considered approaches to enhancing creativity among mathematically gifted English language learners. She based her dissertation on the work. “I use the techniques I researched when teaching my own classes,” she noted.