Jul 24, 2026
2 min
There are times when following your instincts in an emergency can put you in even greater danger. A swimmer caught in a rip current fights desperately toward shore, exhausting themselves when swimming parallel to the beach would carry them in seconds to safety. A driver caught in a sudden whiteout may instinctively slam on the brakes, turning a single dangerous moment into an multi-car pileup.
Jase Bernhardt, director of Hofstra's meteorology program and associate professor of geology, environment, and sustainability, is Hofstra's lead voice on rip current safety at Long Island beaches — what causes them, how to spot one before wading in, and the counterintuitive escape move that keeps swimmers from panicking themselves under. He's taken that safety mission past the beach-flag-and-pamphlet stage: Bernhardt builds virtual reality simulations that put students and the public inside a rip current, a Category 3 hurricane, a storm surge, and a snow squall, so the correct response is already muscle memory before anyone's actually in danger.
What he can speak to:
Reach Dr. Bernhardt through the Contact button on his profile below.
Dr. Bernhardt's current research is focused on using VR technology to teach about dangerous weather conditions.
1 min
Starting with the class of 2028, high school students will no longer need to pass their Regents exams in order to graduate. Professor Emeritus of Education Alan Singer talked to WNYW-TV Fox 5 and WCBS-TV about the change. “I don’t have confidence that many districts will actually maintain a high standard with these alternatives,” he said.
1 min
Alan Singer, professor emeritus of learning, teaching, and technology, appears in a Newsday article about how teachers are approaching the 25th anniversary of 9/11 in their classrooms. “For the generation that lived through 9/11, it was a day that will live in infamy,” he said. “But for [younger] people, it may not. So the question then becomes, what do we want kids to learn about 9/11?”
1 min
After an EF1 tornado touched down in Atlantic Beach on August 20, Dr. Jase Bernhardt, associate professor of geology, environment, and sustainability, talked to Newsday about this rare occurrence. Some parts of the country – particularly in the central United States – are more likely to have the atmospheric conditions required to form a tornado. One key condition these cyclones require is “a clashing of contrasting air masses,” said Bernhardt. “We just don’t have the ingredients that are necessary. The water around the island tends to moderate the climate a bit.”
Check out some other posts from Hofstra University
1 min
Starting with the class of 2028, high school students will no longer need to pass their Regents exams in order to graduate. Professor Emeritus of Education Alan Singer talked to WNYW-TV Fox 5 and WCBS-TV about the change. “I don’t have confidence that many districts will actually maintain a high standard with these alternatives,” he said.
1 min
Alan Singer, professor emeritus of learning, teaching, and technology, appears in a Newsday article about how teachers are approaching the 25th anniversary of 9/11 in their classrooms. “For the generation that lived through 9/11, it was a day that will live in infamy,” he said. “But for [younger] people, it may not. So the question then becomes, what do we want kids to learn about 9/11?”
1 min
After an EF1 tornado touched down in Atlantic Beach on August 20, Dr. Jase Bernhardt, associate professor of geology, environment, and sustainability, talked to Newsday about this rare occurrence. Some parts of the country – particularly in the central United States – are more likely to have the atmospheric conditions required to form a tornado. One key condition these cyclones require is “a clashing of contrasting air masses,” said Bernhardt. “We just don’t have the ingredients that are necessary. The water around the island tends to moderate the climate a bit.”
