March 06, 2009
Amidst the rain and cold, students, administrators,
faculty and friends here at St. John's University turned out for a
memorable night of fun and dancing. On February 18, 2009, The
School of Education’s S.T.A.R. program hosted Dancing with the
Stars, with students, faculty and administrators participating in a
dance competition. The contestants performed not only for the
audience, but for a panel of four judges---James Keane, Ph.D.,
Associate Provost, Associate Dean Charisse Willis, Professor
Fredrick Moreno and student leader Dea-Marie Tompkins. Dance
groups made up of students, faculty and administrators danced a
broad range of genres from the Tango to Hip-Hop. Hosting the
night was Andrew Ferdinandi, Ph.D., a professor in The School of
Education, who entertained the crowd with his engaging
personality.
The
event was hosted by
S.T.A.R. (Students Teaching Academic Responsibilities) a
program that began this academic year in The School of
Education. S.T.A.R. provides incoming freshmen with a peer
mentor to help facilitate the transition into The School of
Education, familiarizing students with various resources available
to them and helping them with any concerns they have during their
first year of college. Throughout the year, S.T.A.R. looks to
engage in numerous academic, social and service activities on
campus.
"The Dancing with the Stars Program was a great example of the
enormous community spirit the School of Education has among
students, faculty, and staff. Programs like this allow
students and faculty to get to know each other outside of the
traditional classroom and to have a few laughs at the same time,"
Dr. James Keane.
The night began with pizza, popcorn, cookies and treats provide by
the Learning Communities, the Freshman Center, Vincenzo's Pizzeria,
Romeo's Pizzeria, Gino's and Aquista's. In addition to the
food and festivities, Caesar Agosto, a student, drew
caricatures. At 7 p.m. the dance competition began, a
beautiful display of art and sportsmanship. All the
contestants gave it their best as they competed for the trophy
prize. Prizes included St. John’s men’s basketball tickets,
New York Islander tickets, Kew Gardens Cinema movie tickets, St.
John’s University apparel, as well as a 50/50 and Bluetooth
raffle.
The night was truly a success filled with energy, laughter and
fun. At the end of the night, Kelly Chiron from the College
of Professional Studies and her good friend Jean Rodriguez came out
on top to win the gold medal after a display of freestyle dance.
"Dancing with the Stars exemplifies my goals for the star program:
students, faculty, and administrators alike laughing and having a
good time, all at school for a positive reason," said Kaitlin
D'Aversa Executive Coordinator of S.T.A.R. 
“Dancing with the Stars was truly a great event. It was a
special night for me, because it is always nice to see members of
the St. John’s University family come together just to have fun and
laugh the night away,”said Associate Dean Charisse
Willis.