About Online Learning and Services

Cynthia Phillips is an Associate Professor in the Department of Accountancy in the Peter J. Tobin College of Business at St. John’s University and the Executive Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning and the Office of Online Learning and Services. Dr. Phillips holds an Ed.D. in Instructional Leadership and an MBA in Finance from St. John’s University, a BBA in Accounting from Hofstra University, and a post-doctoral certificate in Accounting/Finance from the University of Florida’s Warrington School of Business. Prior to her faculty appointment, Dr. Phillips served as Associate Dean for Planning, Accreditation, Finance, and Business Programs. Prior to joining St. John’s, she held various accounting positions in the investment banking industry. Dr. Phillips has numerous conference presentations and several peer-reviewed journal publications.

Ian August joined St. John's University as an instructional designer in June 2017 and works with faculty designing interactive and student centered online learning experiences. He brings 12 years of higher education experience to his current role, having served as an instructional technologist at SUNY Old Westbury College (2005 – 2013), and an instructional designer and educational technologist at SUNY Maritime College (2013 – 2017). August has extensive experience collaborating with faculty in the design and development of online and hybrid courses, facilitating workshops and integrating technology into online learning environments.

August earned his B.S. in Political Science from SUNY Old Westbury College, his M.S. in Education from the University at Albany, and will begin his PhD studies at St. John's in the fall of 2022 His research interests include the role of student motivation in achievement, how interaction and engagement impact learning, exploring creative pedagogies, and change management.

Sarah Adams joined St. John's University as an instructional designer in August 2022 and works with faculty designing, revising interactive student- centered, online learning experiences. She brings over 10 years of education experience to her current role, having worked as a freelance instructional designer (2020-2022) and as a full-time teacher leader with National Heritage Academies (2016 – 2021), and NYC Dept. of Education (2013 – 2016). Sarah has extensive experience in curriculum development, course design, workshop presentations with the primary aim of using technology to drive learning in a variety of educational settings including online environments.

Sarah earned a B.A. in Psychology and a M.A from The City of College of New York where she was a Colin Powell Graduate Fellow (2010-2011). She also earned an Advanced Certifications in Adolescent Education from Pace University (2013). In addition, Sarah holds a NYS Professional Teaching License (2020) also with certifications in Corporate Training and Instructional Design( 2020-2021 ).

Ginamarie Lyons joined St. John’s University as an instructional designer in September 2022 and works with faculty designing interactive, student-centered, online learning experiences. Ginamarie earned her B.S in Digital Media Technologies from East Stroudsburg University (2020) and a M.S in Instructional Technology from Touro University (2022). While attending Touro, Ginamarie was selected as an Intern for the Office of Online Higher Education’s Instructional Design team where she worked with a team of instructional designers throughout the Touro University System, designing and creating content for their online courses.