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Imagine being concerned that the community park you love may be an unhealthy environment with contaminated soil, air, or water that could make you or someone in your family ill. That is a concern for many in lower Manhattan, and it is one that Pace faculty and students have worked toward alleviating by providing testing and analysis, and offering solutions to help park officials ensure their park is a healthy place for everyone to enjoy.

It is our very own Environmental Studies and Science (ESS) Department that has addressed one such park in Pace University’s backyard in lower Manhattan.

With this issue top of mind, Assistant Professor S. Perl Egendorf, PhD, went into action. Her Fundamentals of Environmental Science II course entailed collaboration with the nonprofit organization Gotham Park in New York City to provide data the organization would use to inform their activities and offerings to the public in the namesake park nestled below the Brooklyn Bridge. (Gotham Park is a new park that seeks to unlock the potential of “the forgotten spaces under the Manhattan side of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge”).

Experiential learning with real impact

The course’s lab component included sampling and analyzing Gotham Park’s soil, air, and water to measure the overall health of the park and to help officials ensure the area remains a safe space for community members. The collaboration gave Pace students real-world opportunities to collect field samples, conduct lab analyses, analyze data, write a scientific report, and report back to stakeholders of Gotham Park.

One of many examples of hands-on, experiential learning at Pace, students worked hard to engage with chemistry concepts in lecture and activity sessions, and then developed real-world skills in the field and lab settings. “They met with local stakeholders at the beginning of the course and then shared the data they had collected and analyzed all semester with these stakeholders at the end. This was not only valuable for the students but also for the park and their continued operations,” said Egendorf.

Brooklyn Stabb ‘26, Environmental Studies, was one of those students. “Applying not only our knowledge, but our learning objectives to a local community was an excellent experience. Using what we discovered left me, and I'm sure most of my classmates, with the most fulfilling feeling about schoolwork. We learned a great amount by having access to our local community and felt like we contributed to it as well, which was a great honor,” she said.

At the end of the semester, students presented their research methods and results, and provided guidance for future testing to Gotham Park administration, staff, and collaborators. They also made recommendations for flora to be planted at the park based on their findings.

Creating a safer haven for communities

“Gotham Park used to be a construction site for many years and is located under the Brooklyn Bridge where heavy traffic flows and children and community members socialize. Based on our analysis, we learned that contamination levels were mostly well below the Federal limits. There were few causes for concern, but with the testing results to inform them, they can be amended. Gotham Park can safely allow the public to utilize the space without concern of contamination levels or poor air quality,” said Abigail Leach, ’26, Environmental Studies.

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Gotham Park officials were pleased to learn that the soil, air, and water quality testing showed that the park is safe for regular interaction and have asked the student researchers to give their presentation again to a wider audience in fall 2024.

ESS + Opportunitas

Environmental Studies and Science Department faculty are focused on providing learning opportunities for Pace University students while supporting environmental conservation in our local New York City and Westchester County communities.

Students work closely with faculty to design these collaborative research projects and gain practical experience by applying what they have learned in the classroom to provide valuable research and support to organizations that are often underfunded, all while creating strong bonds and networks within their local communities.

Holmes to serve as first-ever dean of Sands College

Jennifer Holmes, Ph.D. has been appointed the first ever dean of Pace University’s Sands College of Performing Arts. She has most recently served as executive director of the college since it launched in the fall of 2023 and as executive director of the Pace School of Performing Arts (PPA) since November 2021.

Sands College has achieved a global reputation for cultivating the talent of a new generation of diverse performing artists. Its undergraduate and graduate degree programs in acting, directing, musical theater, commercial dance, production and design for stage and screen, and stage management lead students directly to the highest levels of their industry.

In making the announcement, Pace President Marvin Krislov cited Holmes as an internationally recognized leader in arts education. “It is with great enthusiasm that we announce Jennifer Holmes as the inaugural dean of the Sands College of Performing Arts at Pace University. Jennifer's extensive background and her international recognition in arts education make her the ideal leader for this new college. We are excited to witness her innovative vision and leadership as she guides the Sands College of Performing Arts into a bright and promising future. Her commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment will undoubtedly enrich our community and elevate the already highly acclaimed performing arts at Pace to new heights in the Pace spirit of Opportunitas.”

Holmes is continuing her work at Pace at an exciting time. The Sands College of Performing Arts recently graduated its first class in May after becoming the seventh school and college within Pace thanks to a $25 million gift from Pamela and Rob Sands, J.D. ’84.

The Sands donation is part of a larger campaign for the more than $200 million transformation of One Pace Plaza, its flagship building in lower Manhattan. It will include new academic spaces, a modernized residence hall, and a new state-of-the-art Performing Arts Center. Holmes will collaborate in the construction of the Performing Arts Center which will include a 450-seat proscenium theater, 200-seat flexible theater, and a 99-seat black box theater. The new space will also feature scene and costume shops, dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, green rooms, dance studios, and public gathering spaces.

“It’s an honor to continue to work with President Krislov and serve as Dean of the Sands College of Performing Arts at such an exciting time,” said Holmes. “The Sands College of Performing Arts has already helped and enriched the lives of so many. I look forward to continuing and advancing my work here.”

Prior to her appointment at Pace, Holmes served as the Dean of the College of Arts, Communications, and Design at Long Island University (LIU) at both the Post and Brooklyn campuses. She was named the inaugural dean of two new schools at LIU: The Roc Nation School of Music, Sports and Entertainment and the George Polk School of Communications.

Holmes holds a PhD and an MA from New York University and a BA from Vassar College and is an internationally recognized leader in arts education. Her work as a performer and director has been seen in theater, film, and television. She is the founder and director of Global Empowerment Theatre, an international non-profit theater organization. She has devised theater in India, Kenya, Myanmar, Tanzania, the United Kingdom, and the US.

About Pace University

Since 1906, Pace University has been transforming the lives of its diverse students—academically, professionally, and socioeconomically. With campuses in New York City and Westchester County, Pace offers bachelor, master, and doctoral degree programs to 13,600 students in its College of Health Professions, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Elisabeth Haub School of Law, Lubin School of Business, Sands College of Performing Arts, School of Education, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.

About Sands College of Performing Arts

Sands College of Performing Arts is a cutting-edge performing arts school that nurtures artistic innovation and develops future leaders and changemakers in the profession. Renowned for its diverse range of highly-ranked programs, Sands College is committed to cultivating top-talent performers, designers, and production professionals. From Hollywood to Broadway, Sands College students and alumni have appeared in major film and television productions and theater performances such as & Juliet, A Beautiful Noise, A Strange Loop, Almost Famous, Hadestown, Hamilton, Kimberly Akimbo, MJ The Musical, Moulin Rouge, Ohio State Murders, Wicked, and the 2022 Radio City Christmas Spectacular. Recognized by Playbill in 2023 as one of the 10 most represented colleges on Broadway, Sands College continues to inspire the next generation of artists on stage and screen.

Dyson College’s anthem video, Go Further, was recognized by the Telly Awards as the Silver Winner for an educational institution promotional video. It was produced by The Cutting Board, with Jeffrey Johnson as director, and Julia Main as producer. Dyson College’s Angela Nally ‘99, ’06, assistant dean for communications, Antonia Gentile ‘98, ’07, assistant director of marketing and communications, and Amanda Delfino ‘23, communications manager, were also producers.

The video featured students Wes Brown ’24, Digital Cinema and Filmmaking; CJ Hodges ’24, Art, Sociology and Anthropology; Cameron Maruszewski ’23, Art History, Psychology; Danielle Roslyn Shoulders ’25, Environmental Studies; Jeremiah Williams ’23, Political Science, and Madz Zhizai Yu-Phelps ’25, Writing for Diversity and Equity in Theater and Media, all of whom shared their unique experiences on the Pace Path.

Pace’s Public Administration faculty Rebecca Tekula, PhD, and Gina Scutelnicu-Todoran, PhD, will be collaborating with the Hispanic Advisory Board, under the leadership of Westchester County Executive George Latimer, to conduct a new comprehensive survey targeting the Latino community.

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They will gather insights and data from the Latino community within Westchester County, addressing various aspects such as education, healthcare, employment, housing and social services. The last assessment, conducted more than 20 years ago, highlighted the necessity for updated information to better understand and address the evolving needs and challenges faced by the Latino population.

Pace University Professor, Chair of the Public Administration department, and Executive Director of the Wilson Center for Social Entrepreneurship Rebecca Tekula, PhD, said, “Collaborating on this survey underscores our commitment to community-engaged research in Westchester County. We are proud to partner on this effort to capture the voices and experiences of Latino residents, toward the goal of informing and improving the delivery of services and supports.”

Read more about the Latino survey project at the Westchester County Government website.