Learn a bit more about Dr. P. and Crimson Coaching during her podcast appearance on Greek University from August 2023.
W.C. Mepham student Lorrayne Carter (left) and Dr. P. , Lorrayne’s 9th grade Social Studies teacher, in 1999
Dominique Padurano, or Dr. P. as we affectionately call her, founded Crimson Coaching to help all students fulfill their potential.
“I’ve loved teaching since I was six years old. My first-grade teacher didn’t know what to do with me when I finished all of my lessons early, so she asked me to teach my classmate to read — which I did!
My sister and me outside Eliot House on Memorial Drive, 1991
“Other kids started asking for my help with homework on the school bus, and as a high school student, I’d tutor my younger sister and her friends. Although the high school I attended had sent only one other student to Harvard before me, I applied in the fall of 1988 and got in! When I got to Harvard, I started SAT tutoring to pay for books (and mocha coffee with my best friend at the now defunct, forever beloved Café Pamplona).
“But, after I graduated from Harvard with high honors, I had no idea what I wanted to do. I tried law, banking, and even photojournalism, but it wasn’t until I stepped in front of a classroom that I realized why I was put on this earth! I quickly got certified to teach Social Studies, Spanish, Elementary and Art, and taught on Long Island (Great Neck North HS, Mepham HS) for three years.
Commencement 1993 (Dunster House Masters Karel and Hetty Liem — the best!) behind me
“In 2000, I went back to school and after earning my doctorate in History from Rutgers, I taught at Horace Mann School and Scarsdale HS in New York. However, I never stopped tutoring students that entire time. So when I wanted to try my hand at owning and operating a small business, there was no question at what I’d do!
“Since opening Crimson Coaching in 2014, I’ve been blessed with scores of students hailing from 14 states (including Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington) and a dozen countries (Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Germany, India, Israel, Kuwait, Mozambique, Russia, South Africa, Spain, and the UK). I love helping all these diverse students achieve their dreams!
When I’m not tutoring (or teaching U.S. history for City University of New York, which I’ve also been doing since 2015), I love swimming in the Great South Bay and Atlantic Ocean on Long Island, where I live, and spending time with my three nieces, and writing my memoir about my undergraduate years at Harvard.
Dr. P. was one of 31 alumnae of Harvard honored to celebrate Women’s History Month 2022 by the Alumnae-i Network of Harvard Women. While she encourages you to watch the entire video, Dr. P. appears around 06:52.
Dr. Padurano's Highlights
Dr. P.'s Media Appearances
2023
Podcast & Radio Appearances and Interviews
“College Admissions for the HS Class of 2024,” December 2023, Meet the Experts
“Cracking the SAT: Lessons from a Harvard Grad,” September 2023, The Good, the Bad, the Ugly of Business
“Diversity and the College Essay,” August 2023, Tests and the Rest
“Time Management in College,” August 2023, Greek University
Webinars: Dr. P. as Invited Speaker*
“The New Digital SAT for Expat Parents and How to Prepare for It,” June 2023, Dunhill Financial
“The Digital SAT: What’s New and How to Prepare,” March 2023, American Citizens Abroad
*Please see our YouTube channel for interviews conducted by Dr. P., as well as recordings of her in-person and virtual talks for libraries throughout the New York City region.
2022
Podcast & Radio Appearances and Interviews
31 Voices, March 2022, Featured along with 30 other Harvard-Radcliffe alumnae in honor of Women’s History Month
“Academic Success with Dr. P.,” September 7, 2022, Synergistic Stepparenting
“The Cost of Elite Educations,” November 2, 2022, The Brian Lehrer Show (10:22-14:01)
“Dr. P. Dominique Padurano on the 5 Things Parents Can Do to Help Their Children Thrive and Succeed in School,” February 1, 2022, Authority Magazine
“Set Your Goals Before School Starts,” August 16, 2022, College Scoops
“Small Group Classes vs 1-1 Tutoring for SAT & ACT Prep,” August 16, 2022, Tests and the Rest
“The Trouble with College Rankings” September 15, 2022, The Brian Lehrer Show (27:55-30:37)
Guest Blog Pieces
“Bright Eyed and Back to School,” August 11, 2022, HAERT
“Chess Holds Important Lessons for SAT-takers and College Essay Writers,” February 2022, Premier Chess
2021
Webinar, Podcast, and Panel Discussion Appearances
“Achieving Goals in Uncertain Times Panel Discussion,” January 26, 2021, New York Women in Business
“Dominique Padurano,” February 11, 2021, The Heart of Healing: The Healer’s Journey
“Introduction to U.S. Colleges, Universities, and Applications,” October 26, 2021, American Citizens Abroad
“Panel Discussion: Successful Business Owners Share How to Re-Start Your Business Post-COVID,” June 18, 2021, SCORE NYC
Guest Blog Pieces
“The Case for Embracing Self-Care,” February 17, 2021, A More Perfect Union
“Data + Iteration = Great College Essay Writing,” December 6, 2021, Breakout Mentors
“Test Prep Tips from Crimson Coaching’s Founder, Dr. P.” May 31, 2021, Geffen Careers
2020
Webinar Appearances
“An Introduction to U.S. Colleges, Universities, and Applications,” October 22, 2020, American Citizens Abroad
Podcast Appearances
“Our Chat with Crimson Coaching’s Dominique Padurano, aka Dr. P.” August 11, 2020, The American Citizens Abroad Podcast
DR. P.'S PUBLICATIONS
Her Italian ancestry, love of fitness, and interest in Depression-era culture led her to investigate the life of Charles Atlas during graduate school and beyond. Her Rutgers doctoral dissertation, “Making American Men: Charles Atlas and the Business of Bodies,” explored the ways in which Atlas, born Angelo Siciliano in 1892 Italy, used bodybuilding as a means to assimilate to his adopted country.
Later works, including her recently published, “Consuming La Bella Figura: Charles Atlas and American Masculinity, 1910-1940,” explained how Atlas incorporated ways of being Italian into his definition of the ideal American man. Her scholarship on Atlas, Italian America, and the first half of the twentieth century has also resulted in several other encyclopedia and book articles.
Finally, her work in the classroom led to an article on using images to sensitize students to issues of race and gender in The History Teacher, published by the Society for History Education in 2011.
To see Dr. P.’s curriculum vita, containing a full list of publications, click here.
Students' Accomplishments
Her students have been accepted to every Ivy League college, as well as other top universities such as Stanford, MIT, Duke, and the University of Chicago.
Student work written for her class and under her guidance has been published by The Concord Review, not once but twice: Justin Katiraei’s “The Panic of 1907” (Vol 22, Issue 2) and Gabriel Grand’s “The New York Times” (Vol 23, Issue 2).
Another student essay produced for her AP US History class was awarded the Cum Laude Society District 3 prize in 2010. This same student was named a Merrill Scholar at Cornell designating her in the top 1% of her senior class there; during the process, she named Dr. P. as the high school teacher who had the most impact on her intellectual growth.
Dominique Padurano (far right) pictured with her student Devon McMahon (center) and David J. Skorton, President of Cornell University
A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS
Avid traveler, former athlete, and amateur dancer and painter, Dr. P.'s wide ranging interests enable her to connect with students through a variety topics.
Dr. P.'s recent entry into “aunthood” brings her great joy and added insight to the developing minds of young children.