Professor Turns Pilates Class into Safe Space

Michelle Pantaleo ‘02 always craved movement. She was a triathlete until she started falling over in pain after running, leading her intense training to end.

After a doctor's visit, she discovered she had Hip Dysplasia, meaning her hip bones are not in the proper position. “The surgeon said I am not going to be able to run again,” said Pantaleo.

She searched for a different way to exercise to get the same serotonin she did from being a triathlete. That was when she found Pilates.

Now as a Title IX investigator and a criminal justice professor at Marist College, she offers Pilates classes in the McCann Center every Thursday and Friday.

Pilates is a low-impact workout that Pantaleo can modify to work for her hip disability. She makes the Pilates class beginner-friendly so all students can move at their own pace and do what feels right for them.

“I like how it incorporates a lot of muscles that I have never been working before,” said Ava Carione ‘26.

Classes like Panteleo’s help students realize that imperfection is expected.

“I will tell my story so people are like, you know what, she has a hidden disability, but she is still doing it,” said Pantaleo. “The enthusiasm of everybody wanting to come together to do it is awesome.”

Pantaleo feels at peace when she hears students laugh and embrace a mistake. She makes increasing how students support one another a goal of each of her classes.

“Pilates as a whole has not been very accessible, especially as a college student trying to save money,” said Sophia Jernigan ‘26. “I am really glad someone had the idea to do this because now I feel like I can actually enjoy these classes.”

Pantaleo is ecstatic that Pilates is as calming to students as it is for her.

“It makes me so happy to think that we are becoming a little community within Marist,” Pantaleo says. “I hope we continue to grow.”