alicia sprow
Alicia
Sprow
Coordinator of Master of Arts in Leadership program
Assistant Professor of Leadership & Healthcare Science
Associate Director of Sustainability

Biography

Dr. Alicia Sprow began her dual faculty appointment in Leadership Studies and Healthcare Science at Alvernia University in August 2019. Her other Alvernia roles include Co-Director the First Year Program and the Sustainability Initiatives Coordinator in the Holleran Center. Prior to joining higher education, Dr. Sprow was an environmental education director providing experiential learning opportunities for people of all ages.

Student leadership development and real-world learning opportunities are the focus of Dr. Sprow’s teaching, service, and scholarship. She incorporates leadership and active learning components into her course content through the SEARCH Seminar and First Year Program, Healthcare Science courses, and the MA in Leadership program. Dr. Sprow also enjoys working with the student leadership team on the Bog Turtle Creek Farm project in the Holleran Center and with the executive officers as a faculty advisor for Alvernia’s student outdoor adventure organization, OAK. Through these opportunities, Dr. Sprow has facilitated learning experiences regionally within Pennsylvania, in her home state of New York along the Shawangunk Ridge (“The Gunks”), and to the Nanahala Outdoor Center in The Great Smoky Mountains. She has also led real-world learning trips internationally to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, Mont Tremblant in Montreal, Canada, and to her ongoing community-based project location on Grand Manan Island in New Brunswick, Canada.

Combining her passion for the natural environment, outdoor adventure, and community-based work, Dr. Sprow developed the Canada Sustainability Global Immersion Program that introduces students to an island community in New Brunswick, Canada. During the immersion experience, students provide service alongside community members, while they learn about leadership for sustainable change and sustainable living principles, and expand their worldviews and exposure to other cultures during regular interactions with the island residents.

Dr. Sprow holds a Ph.D. in Community Leadership and an M.Ed. in Urban Education from Alvernia University, an M.Ed. in Counseling and Human Services from Lehigh University, and a BA in Psychology from the University at Albany - SUNY.