Susan Malone

Faculty

Susan Malone headshot

Susan Kohl Malone

PhD RN

Assistant Professor

1 212 992 7047

433 First Ave
New York, NY 10010
United States

Accepting PhD students

Susan Kohl Malone, PhD, RN, is an Assistant Professor at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. Her research focuses on understanding how sleep patterns and circadian rhythms impact metabolic health, with particular emphasis on preventing type 2 diabetes through personalized sleep interventions. She investigates how improving sleep health can reverse metabolic syndrome in diverse populations and addresses critical health disparities in sleep and cardiometabolic outcomes. Prof. Malone also teaches courses on lifestyle approaches to wellness and mentors doctoral students in sleep health research.

Malone has led multiple NIH-funded research projects, and is currently investigating metabolically-relevant hormonal rhythms in adults with prediabetes and short sleep duration, as well as multimodal dynamic biosensing for quantifying long COVID symptom progression. Her work combines nursing science, behavioral science, and circadian biology to develop evidence-based interventions that improve health outcomes across the lifespan.

Prior to joining the faculty at NYU Meyers, Malone served as a Senior Research Scientist at the college and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology. She brings extensive clinical experience as a certified school nurse and diabetes educator, having worked in various healthcare settings including diabetes treatment centers and school health programs. This clinical background informs her translational research approach to making sleep science accessible and applicable to real-world health challenges.

Among her many honors, Malone had the unique honor of having the annual Susan Kohl Award established in her name at Georgetown University.

She completed postdoctoral training as a Senior Research Scientist at New York University Rory Meyers College of Nursing and as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine's Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology, where she developed expertise in sleep and circadian health research. Her doctoral dissertation examined whether chronotype modifies the relationship between sleep duration and body mass index in adolescents, establishing her foundation in sleep health across the lifespan.

PhD in Nursing, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
MSN in Nursing, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
BSN in Nursing, Georgetown University School of Nursing

Cardiometabolic Health
Circadian Rhythms
Diabetes Prevention
Health Disparities
School Health
Sleep Research

American Academy of Nursing
Eastern Nursing Research Society
International Association of Circadian Health Clinics
Sigma Theta Tau Nursing Honor Society
Sleep Research Society
Society for Research in Biological Rhythms
Society of Behavioral Medicine

Marion R. Gregory Award for distinguished completed doctoral dissertation, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (2015)
Heilbrunn Nurse Scholar Award, Rockefeller University (2014)
Research Poster Winner, National Association of School Nurses Annual Conference (2013)
Leadership Identification Scholarship, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (1985)
Susan Kohl Award, Georgetown University (1985)
Sigma Theta Tau, Nursing Honor Society (1984)

Measurement and Interpretation of Body Mass Index During Childhood and Adolescence

Malone, S. K., & Zemel, B. S. (2015). In Journal of School Nursing (Vols. 31, Issues 4, pp. 261-271). 10.1177/1059840514548801
Abstract
Abstract
The landscape of childhood health and disease has changed over the past century, and school nurses are now in a unique position to address the conditions that lead to chronic disease, such as obesity. Measuring body mass index (BMI) during childhood and adolescence is the recommended method for screening and/or monitoring obesity in school communities. Yet changes in the size, proportion, and distribution of fat mass and fat-free mass during growth and development introduce challenges to interpreting BMI measurements. Understanding these challenges and ensuring accurate measurement techniques are the foundation for implementing school-based BMI measurement programs. This article will provide an overview of body composition during childhood and adolescence, introduce strategies to improve the accuracy of BMI measurements, and explore the school nurse’s role in BMI surveillance and/or screening activities.

The significance of abdominal obesity in youth

Malone, S. K., & Lipman, T. H. (2014). In Journal of pediatric nursing (Vols. 29, Issues 5, pp. 489-490). 10.1016/j.pedn.2014.06.005
Abstract
Abstract
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Sleep by age

Malone, S. K., & Kohl Malone, S. (2013). In Encyclopedia of School Health. Sage Publications.
Abstract
Abstract
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Early to bed, early to rise? : An exploration of adolescent sleep hygiene practices

Malone, S. K. (2011). In Journal of School Nursing (Vols. 27, Issues 5, pp. 348-354). 10.1177/1059840511410434
Abstract
Abstract
Cognition, memory, safety, mental health, and weight are all affected by inadequate sleep. Biological studies indicate significant changes in sleep architecture during adolescence, such as changes in melatonin secretion, and a need for greater total sleep time. Yet, social contexts and cultural values impinge on these changing biological sleep needs making adolescents vulnerable to the dangers of insufficient sleep. Sleep hygiene practices are purported as potential mediating factors between biological sleep needs and the sociocultural context of sleep. The purpose of this literature review is to highlight biological and social factors contributing to insufficient sleep in adolescents, to explore the evidence of several recommended sleep hygiene practices, and to stimulate further research about how adolescents negotiate their shifting biological sleep needs amid increasing social demands.

School nurses save lives : Can we provide the data?

Malone, S. K., Malone, K. M., & Bergren, D. B. (2010). In Journal of School Nursing (Vols. 26, Issues 5, pp. 344-351). 10.1177/1059840510376384
Abstract
Abstract
Vigilance has been central to nursing practice since Florence Nightingale. Often, the nurse's work of surveillance goes unnoticed and the public never recognizes the value of the nurse's work. The 1999 Institute of Medicine report on hospital deaths due to preventable errors has lifted the veil shrouding professional vigilance. But how to measure vigilance remained elusive, until the concept, failure to rescue (FTR), was proposed. FTR has taken a prominent role in health care since its adoption as a patient safety indicator by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and as a measure for nursing performance in acute care by the National Quality Forum (NQF). However, its applicability to school nursing has been unexplored. This article provides an initial review of the literature and an analysis of anecdotal stories and media accounts that illustrate professional vigilance in school nursing practice.

Improving the quality of students' dietary intake in the school setting.

Malone, S. K. (2005). In The Journal of school nursing : the official publication of the National Association of School Nurses (Vols. 21, Issues 2, pp. 70-76). 10.1177/10598405050210020301
Abstract
Abstract
The dramatic increase in our understanding of the brain's development throughout childhood has increased our knowledge of the significance of micronutrients, such as iron and vitamin B-12, for this development. Deficiencies of these micronutrients have been shown to have an impact on students' cognitive development. Regardless of this knowledge, students continue to make unhealthy food choices and develop poor dietary habits. School environments are places where there is an opportunity to practice healthy eating habits. Yet many school policies fail to address the sale of foods of minimal nutritional value in the school setting. School nurses can play a vital role in planning policies at the local and national level that support and encourage healthy food environments, performing assessments of the nutritional status of students, and spearheading the implementation of evidence-based health promotion programs. It is time for school nurses to take the lead in efforts aimed at improving the quality of students' dietary intake in the school setting.

11 ways you are sabotaging your sleep

Malone, S. K., & Malone, K. Sophia Mitrokostas.

A Day in the Life - Susan, Nurse Educator, MSN, RN, Ph.D. Candidate (5 years later),

Malone, S. K., & Malone, K.

Does Chronotype modify the Relationship between Sleep Duration and Body Mass Index in Adolescents?

Malone, S. K., & Kohl Malone, S.

Does Chronotype modify the Relationship between Sleep Duration and Body Mass Index in Adolescents?.

Malone, S. K., & Kohl Malone, S.