Sacred Heart Welcomes 44 New Faculty Members
Many of the new faculty members are still practicing professionals.
Sacred Heart University will welcome 44 new faculty members for the 2023-2024 academic year across its five colleges. These individuals are accredited in their respective fields and have valuable experience to share with the University’s students.
With the University’s tremendous growth, it is essential that students continue to have the resources necessary to excel in their respective areas of study. With plentiful new faculty members, students will have the opportunity to develop close relationships with professors, many of whom are practicing professionals.
“We are delighted to welcome our newest cohort of faculty, who represent a wide variety of fields, disciplines and professional experiences, and who are deeply committed to SHU’s mission and student-centered culture,” said Robin L. Cautin, provost at Sacred Heart University.
Isabelle Farrington College of Education & Human Development
Five faculty members have been hired in the Isabelle Farrington College of Education & Human Development. Tylon Crook is one of these faculty members, and he will be teaching in the counselor education department. He holds a master’s degree in counselor education (mental health and school counseling) from Mississippi State University and a doctorate in counselor education and supervision from Auburn University.
Crook is a national certified counselor whose areas of research are school counselor supervision, racial trauma and social justice issues in education. He travels the country providing professional development in a variety of areas including diversity and inclusion training, implicit bias training and school counseling program development. He is also a motivational speaker within schools and communities across the country.
College of Health Professions
The College of Health Professions has hired seven faculty members, including Stefanie Seanor, an occupational therapist. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University’s Sargent College, a master’s degree in business administration from Sacred Heart University and a doctorate with a specialization in executive leadership from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences. She also holds a Connecticut state licensure and national board certification in occupational therapy.
Seanor has worked in New York and Connecticut evaluating and planning intervention strategies for children and adults with learning, sensory and psychiatric needs. She has training in areas including sensory integration, neuro-development treatments, behavior modification, psychosocial skills, feeding and oral-motor therapies and fine/visual motor skills. Her research interests include the alignment of educator and practitioner values and priorities in pediatric mental health, health care practitioner readiness and engagement in varying contextual environments, educational leadership and the role of the occupational therapist.
College of Arts & Sciences
Caroline Comerford is one of the 11 faculty members joining the College of Arts & Sciences. She holds a master’s degree in criminal justice specializing in criminology and deviance from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a doctorate in international crime and justice from Florida International University.
Comerford specializes in violent serial crime cases and offenders, specifically serial killers. She also founded CVC Research & Consulting, LLC, which provided services specializing in violence prevention and violent serial crime cases including case consultations and profiles, training services, violent crime research, geographic profiling, suspect and inmate interviews and crime pattern analysis.
Jack Welch College of Business & Technology
The Jack Welch College of Business & Technology has hired 11 faculty members and Xinxin Wang is one of them. She holds a master’s degree in public administration from the Rutgers University‑Newark and a doctorate degree in accounting information system from Rutgers Business School. Her areas of research focus on government and nonprofit accounting and audit, continuous audit, accounting information systems and machine learning.
Previously, Wang worked as a grant writer raising funds for the federal government’s Head Start Program. Additionally, she holds a senior certificate in teaching Chinese as a foreign language.
Dr. Susan L. Davis, R.N., & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing
Keevia Porter is one of 10 new faculty members in the Dr. Susan L. Davis, R.N., & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing. She holds a master’s degree in nursing administration from Union University and a doctorate of nursing practice in public health nursing from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She is board certified as a family and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner.
Porter treats medical and mental health conditions in patient populations across the lifespan. Her areas of interest include treating underserved populations, decreasing mental health stigmas and understanding social determinants.
“All of our new faculty members will contribute to the academic and social vibrancy of our campus, and we’re thrilled to welcome them,” Cautin adds.