Profiles

Frank Snyder is the Vice President of Advancement for San Miguel Program, where he oversees the daily operations of the program. He works closely with staff to develop enriching experiences that help students reach their full potential. Frank successfully helped San Miguel Academy obtain accreditation status in 2019 by completing a multi-year review of the program while ensuring that San Miguel Academy met all the accreditation standards. Previously, Frank served as Dean of S.T.E.M. development at San Miguel Academy and taught science. Frank earned a Master’s Degree in Education and a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology, both from Mount Saint Mary College. Prior to San Miguel Program, Frank was a forestry technician at the United States Military Academy. Frank joined the San Miguel Academy staff in 2009 and immediately became involved in the school’s Curriculum Enhancement Project. Recognizing that low-income boys do not find success in traditional learning environments in our country, the Curriculum Enhancement Project was developed to create an innovative and effective curriculum for this population of underserved boys. Frank also inaugurated an innovative pedagogy for STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) learning at San Miguel Academy which allows students to learn about science in a natural setting while still completing rigorous academic projects. Toyota’s TogetherGreen sponsored the program with a combined grant total of $66,000. As a result of the program’s success, Frank was invited to consult with other organizations addressing urban learning styles including the National Audubon Society, which is developing its own experiential science curriculum for students during the summer across the nation. Frank participated in the International Boy School Coalition action research team, which conducted a year-long study of our school’s STEM pedagogy. Frank presented the results at the New York State Science Teacher Association annual conference in 2013 and at the International Boy School Coalition conferences in Nashville, Tennessee, and in Cape Town, South Africa in 2015. Frank and his wife Kerri have a one-year-old son.