Mark Harrington, EdD

A former academic and student affairs dean, chief mission officer, advancement and student life director, academic and career advisor, and student support advocate, Dr. Mark Harrington serves as the director of the Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration (HESAA) master's program and assistant professor of graduate education and leadership. Additionally, Dr. Harrington serves as the AVP for Student Development and Academic Success. Check out his administrator profile here.

At Canisius, Dr. Harrington teaches courses in student affairs administration, higher education organizational leadership and management, strategic planning, student success, as well as independent research and seminars. Additionally, Dr. Harrington oversees all internship and practicum experiences for the HESAA program. Within the campus community, Dr. Harrington is faculty representative for the college-wide Retention Committee, on the steering board for the Center for Urban Education, the Title IX process faculty representative, and serves as the advisor for the graduate student association.

Prior to joining the School of Education & Human Services at Canisius College, Dr. Harrington served on the Student Affairs & Enrollment leadership team and the First Year Seminar faculty at Regis College, as an instructor in the master’s program in Higher Education at Merrimack College, and on the Board of Directors at Notre Dame Cristo Rey High School and Mission Grammar School. For over a decade, he has been an advocate for student success in positions within academic affairs, advancement and alumni relations, and student life at Regis College, Emmanuel College, MCPHS University, Loyola University New Orleans, and the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Harrington has also served as a faculty member and trip leader for service-immersion experiences domestically and internationally.

Dr. Mark Harrington earned his bachelor’s degree from Emmanuel College in Counseling and Health Psychology, master’s degree in College Student Personnel Administration from Canisius College, and doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Regis College. His dissertation was entitled “Leadership and Mission: Understanding the Relationship Between Leadership Orientations and Mission Perception Among Executive Administrators in Catholic Higher Education.” 

Courses Taught

HESA 501: Introduction to Student Affairs Administration
HESA 535: Assessment and Advanced Research
HESA 599: Independent Study
HESA 620: Counseling and Advising for Student Success
HESA 677: Capstone: Higher Education Leadership and Management
HESA 680: Internship 1
HESA 681: Internship 2
HESA 690: Special Topics in Higher Education
HESA 698: Comprehensive Seminar

Awards and Recognition

Academic Excellence Award: Outstanding Doctoral Student
Regis College

Best Paper Award
International Organization of Social Sciences and Behavioral Research (IOSSBR) Global Conference

Class Leadership Award
Emmanuel College

College Student Personnel Administration Community Development Award
Canisius College

Dream Makers Advancement Award
Mission Grammar School

Ignatian Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Jesuit Student Affairs
Jesuit Association for Student Affairs Administrators (JASPA)

Jennifer Grace Ford Campus Leadership Award
Emmanuel College

Leadership in Action Award
Omicron Delta Kappa Leadership Honor Society

Mission Integration Award
Association of Student Affairs at Catholic Colleges and Universities (ASACCU)

Scholarship Excellence Award
Jesuit Association for Student Affairs Administrators (JASPA)

Select Presentations and Publications

Harrington, M. (2022, July 14-16). Go forth and set the world on fire with a career in higher education and student affairs [Conference session]. National Jesuit Student Leadership Conference, Baltimore, MD, United States.

Harrington, M. (2022, July 10-13). Reenvisioning student success and retention in American higher education: Creating student-centered environments of belonging, support, and persistence [Paper presentation]. International Round Table Symposium, Oxford, England, United Kingdom.

Harrington, M. & Wilson, A. (2022, June 20-22). Bridging the great divide: From professional preparation to supervisor expectations [Conference session]. National Association of Student Personnel Administrators Conference, Niagara Falls, NY, United States.

Harrington, M. (2022, March 15-16). The academic impact of support programs and systems for students placed at-risk during the transition to college [Paper presentation]. International Organization of Social Sciences and Behavioral Research (IOSSBR) Global Conference, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Harrington, M. (2022, February 16). Reimaging institution-wide student success and retention: Using data, assessment, and conversation to create an inclusive and best-practices model [Conference session]. WNY Advising Annual Conference, Virtual, NY, United States.

Harrington, M. (2022, January 28). Mission Grammar School utilizes the 7 themes of Catholic social teaching as a map to ensure scholars are on the road to college! The Boston Pilot.

Harrington, M. (2021, October 18–21). Improving student achievement in higher education: Implementation of a strategic support system to increase student persistence and academic success [Conference session]. The College Student Personnel Association of New York State (CSPA-NYS) Annual Conference, Virtual, NY, United States.

Harrington, M. (2021, September 24). Five Years of Campus Improvement at Mission Grammar School. The Boston Pilot.

Harrington, M. (2018, February 23–25). Building effective campus partnerships for first year student success [Conference session]. Association for Orientation, Transition and Retention in Higher Education (NODA) Conference, Burlington, VT, United States.

Harrington, M. (2016, April 27–29). Leadership and mission: Understanding the relationship among leadership orientations and mission perception of executive administrators in Catholic higher education [Poster presentation]. New England Educational Research Organization (NEERO) Annual Conference, Portsmouth, NH, United States.

Harrington, M. (2015, May 29). Our Lady of Perpetual Help -- Mission Grammar School at 125. The Boston Pilot.

Harrington, M. (2013, July 23–26). Best practices for mission integration: The 1804 Society [Conference session]. The Association of Student Affairs at Catholic Colleges and Universities (ASACCU) National Conference, Washington, DC, United States.

Harrington, M., Kohler, C., & Troup, R. (2010, March 21–24). Jesuit pedagogy as a framework for programming and assessment [Conference session]. The American College Personnel Association (ACPA) National Conference, Boston, MA, United States.

Harrington, M. (2010, February 26–28). Living a life for and with others: The importance of servant leadership for a better tomorrow. [Keynote address]. The Buffalo Youth Convention, Buffalo, NY, United States.

Honor Societies

Alpha Alpha Alpha (Tri-Alpha)
The National First-Generation College Student Honor Society
Delta Gamma Chapter Founder and Advisor

Kappa Gamma Pi
National Catholic College Graduate Honor Society

Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK)
National Leadership Honor Society

Psi Chi
National Psychology Honor Society

News and Communications

Canisius Wins Big at National Jesuit Student Affairs Conference

First-Gen Students Find Support at Canisius College

Solving the Student Success Puzzle, Piece by Piece

Canisius Professor and Administrator Receives Ignatian Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Jesuit Student Affairs

Alumni Higher Education Professionals Discuss Passage into the Field

Aspirations Abounds: Service-Immersion Trip to Kenya Teaches the True Meaning of Community

Factuality Makes Impact at Student Leadership Summit