Current position & academic appointment

• 2020 - Present: Adjunct Lecturer, Education & Language Acquisition Department, LaGuardia Community College

• 2018 - Present: Associate Director of ePortfolio & Digital Learning, The Center for Teaching and Learning, LaGuardia Community College

Highlights

• Faculty professional development seminars for the 2024-25 academic year that I co-design and co-lead. For more information about these seminars, click here.

  • COIL Seminar: Developing Culturally Inclusive Pedagogy through International Virtual Exchange

  • New Faculty Colloquium

• Campus service:

  • Lead trainer for campus-wide migration to new LMS, D2L Brightspace

  • Lead Instructional Designer for COIL Initiative

  • Member of Online Learning Senate Committee

  • Member of Information Technology Senate Committee

• External service:

  • Faculty Reviewer, International Journal of ePortfolio

  • Faculty Mentor, Institute on ePortfolios, American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U)

• Certifications:

  • Data Analytics. Google, March 2024.

  • Instructional Design Foundations and Applications. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, February 2024.

  • Designing Hybrid-Flexible (HyFlex) Courses to Support Multimodal Learning Environments. EDUCAUSE, February 2024.

  • Project Management Certificate. Google, October 2023.

Education

• Ed.D. In progress, Higher & Postsecondary Education. Teachers College, Columbia University.

• M.A. 2015, Educational Psychology. Hunter College, The City University of New York.

• B.A. 2011, Psychology. Hunter College, The City University of New York.

• A.A. 2009, Liberal Arts Social Science and Humanities. LaGuardia Community College, The City University of New York.

Invited Talks, Presentations & Workshops

• Monroe Community College, Rochester, New York. LaGuardia’s ePortfolio Journey. June 15, 2023. Presenter.

• Paradise Valley Community College, Phoenix, Arizona. Understanding the value of digital portfolios. January 10, 2023. Presenter.

• American Association of Colleges & Universities (AAC&U), Washington D.C. Embracing the Identity of Showcase and Learning Portfolios. January 24, 2022. Plenary Session Speaker Presentation at the 2022 Virtual Forum on Open Learning and ePortfolios.

• San Juan College, Farmington, New Mexico. ePortfolio: A hands-on Approach. February 26, 2021. Workshop Facilitator.

Selected Conference Presentations

• Reclaiming Liberal Education, AAC&U – 2023 Virtual Forum on Open Learning and ePortfolios, January 23, 2023, Virtual – Capitalizing the Use of ePortfolios to Foster Integrative Learning, Digital Communication, and Identity Development across Program Curriculum for Education Majors at LaGuardia Community College (CUNY). Presented along with Michele De Goeas-malone (LaGuardia) and Caterina Almendral (LaGuardia).

• The Future of Education – International Conference 12th Edition, July 1, 2022, Firenze, Italy – Leveraging the Integration of HIPs to Foster an Equity-centered Reflective Practice Among Entering Education Major Students. Presented along with Michele De Goeas-malone (LaGuardia) and Caterina Almendral (LaGuardia).

• Revolutionizing Higher Education after COVID-19, AAC&U – 2021 Virtual Forum on Open Learning and ePortfolios, January 21, 2021, Virtual – Towards Supporting Vulnerable Students and Faculty during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Panelist with Jarett D. Haley (University of Michigan), Karla I. Loya (University of Hartford), H. Kenny Nienhusser (University of Connecticut), Omar Romandia (University of Connecticut), Kiara Ruesta (University of Connecticut) and Dominique Zino (LaGuardia Community College). Moderator: Jessica O. Mitchel (University of Michigan).

• Revolutionizing Higher Education after COVID-19 2021 Virtual Conference – 12th Annual Forum on Digital Learning and ePortfolios AAC&U, January 22, 2021, Virtual – How to Ensure Success: Launching, sustaining, and Growing an ePortfolio Program, Panelist with Renee Houston (University of Puget Sound), Amy Anne Powell (IUPUI), and Leeann Waddington (Kwantlen Polytechnic University). Moderator: C. Edward Watson (AAC&U).

• 2020 NASPA (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators) Annual Conference, December 8, 2020, Virtual – Beyond the College Transcript: Live Briefing, Panelist with Heidi Leming (College System of Tennessee) and Jonathan Poon (University of South Carolina). Moderator: Pam Powers (University of South Carolina).

Publications

• Avila, P. & Zino, D. (In Press). Pausing for the Pandemic: Engaging Community College Students during the COVID-19 Health Crisis. In J. O. Michel (Ed.), Higher Education Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic: Supporting Teaching and Learning Through Turbulent Times. Rutgers University Press.

• Almendral, C., Avila, P., & de Goeas-Malone, M. (2022). Leveraging the integration of HIPs to foster an equity-centered reflective practice among entering Education major students. In Pixel (Eds), Conference Proceedings: 12th International: The Future of Education (Hybrid Edition, 30 June-1 July 2022, Florence, Italy) (pp. 442-445). Filodiritto Editore. ISBN 979-12-80225-23-8; ISSN 2384-9509; DOI 10.26352/F701_2384-9509 (Please note this was accepted for both a conference presentation, and a peer-reviewed journal publication.)

• Campbell, C. M., Chadi, D., & Avila, P. (2020). Who, Where, and in What Contexts? Applications of Teaching Practices espoused by the Learning Sciences to Higher Education. Chapter 5. New Directions of Teaching and Learning.

• Avila, P. & Eynon, B. (2020). Who Am I?  Who Am I Becoming? Transcending the Transcript at LaGuardia Community College. In Bowers, P. (Ed). Beyond the College Transcript: Innovative Strategies for Assessing and Documenting Student Learning. NASPA Publications.