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MEET THE INSTRUCTORS
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INSTRUCTOR |
ABOUT |
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Omer Thompson
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Known throughout the department as "Mr.
T", Omer Thompson has been a full-time professor for twenty-four
years. Besides teaching, as the Program Coordinator he is the glue
that holds the TCOM department together. He is also the man to see
if you want to speak to someone live and in person about the great
opportunities offered by this department.
He holds degrees in Electronics Technology and Vocational Education,
as well as various industry certifications and a Masters Equivalency
in Engineering.
Prior to teaching, he was a US Naval Communications Technician,
as well as an Electronics Technician, Telecommunications Technician
and System Engineer in the civilian sector.
Contact: thompsono@smccd.net
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| Elwood Agasid
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Elwood is a veteran instructor at Skyline
College as well as a graduate of Skyline's TCOM program. He also holds
a Bachelor of Science degree from SF State University.
He has more than twenty years' experience in electrical/electronics,
biomedical engineering and telecommunications. He has spent more than
five years as a telecommunications technician and field service engineer
installing and repairing voice systems, structured cabling, network
and computer systems.
When not teaching, Elwood enjoys spending time with family and
riding bicycles.
Contact: agasid@smccd.net |
Quintin Cortes
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Like some of our other TCOM instructors,
Quintin had a long and distinguished career in the US Navy, where
he was an Air Tactic Controller/Operator. He worked with radar and
computerized shipboard weapons systems and was responsible for testing
and evaluating tactical comunications equipment and software, as
well as training military and Department of Defense Civilian Staff
personnel. He currently works as an Information Technology Specialist
at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.
He is also a graduate of the TCOM program and has been teaching
at Skyline since the summer of 2000. In addition, he has been one
of the primary designers of the TCOM networking labs and has used
his expertise to create a learning environment that closely resembles
what a student would encounter in the "real world."
Contact: cortesq@smccd.net
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| Norman DelPrado
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Norman is our full-time Network Engineering instructor. Starting
in 1988 as a part-time evening instructor, he has been involved
in the development of all network engineering classes, certifications
and degrees. His education consists of an MS in Telecommunications
and an MBA in Information Systems. He holds professional and vendor
certifications: PMP, CISSP, CCAI. (Others he doesn't remember).
Norman has over 20 years of combined industry experience in computer
networks, telecommunication and Internet technologies at Exodus,
NetCom, United Airlines, Centigram, DSC Communication and Litton.
He has held positions from a PC technician to Senior Project Manager.
"I never think of myself as instructor; only a person sharing
knowledge with those interested to learn."
Contact: delpradon@smccd.net |
| Corey Fong
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Corey has recently joined the faculty at Skyline, teaching the TCOM
465 Wireless Local Area Networks course.
After years in the computer systems and networking corporate world,
Corey is very happy to be back teaching technical classes and helping
students learn new material, as well as learning from the great questions
posed by his students.
In his words: "I am very excited about teaching in Skyline's
networking program, especially with its hands-on approach to learning
technology subjects. Not only do you get to learn about the subject,
you also get to touch it, build it, see it work and make it work better
(or right)." In addition to wireless networking, Corey has
interests in digital audio editing, photography, and the intersection
of wireless networking with audio-visual and multimedia.
Contact: fongc@smccd.net |
John C. Frank
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John has been in telecommunications for
36 years, 24 of which were with Pacific Bell. The last several
years with Pacific Bell were spent in the training organization
in support of new technologies, such as SS7, ISDN, Packet Switching,
and Data Communications.
The other years were spent primarily in the education/training divisions
of various communications companies, dealing with such technologies
as: frame relay, voice messaging products for enterprise, Voice
over IP, integrated communications applications, and networked messaging.
He currently works for Kaiser Permanente's Information Technology
(KPIT) group in their national training organization.
He came to Skyline College at the start of the telecommunications
program and is the last of the original instructors in the program.
Contact: frankj@smccd.net |
| Pamela Hodel
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Pam has worked in the telecommunications
industry for over twenty years, working at XO Communications, MCI
and Wells Fargo Bank as well as for the Army and Air Force Exchange
Service. She has held a wide variety of positions, including technician,
Field Engineer, Project Manager and Shift Manager. One of her more
interesting projects was with MCI, where all test calls had to be
made from public payphones, requiring her to carry a large bag of
change with her at all times.
Pam has an A.S. in Telecommunications from
Skyline and is currently working toward a B.A. in Vocational Education
at SF State University, majoring in Telecommunications and Minoring
in Design and Industry.
She loves to travel and has made over twenty trips to Asia and
Southeast Asia since 1976, where she adds to her collection of Ming
ceramics. She has ridden a water buffalo through rice fields and
eaten many wonderful meals on banana leaves in villages. She also
enjoys cooking but would rather check out new restaurants in the
Bay Area.
Contact: hodelp@smccd.net |
Donald Lee
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Donald's telecommunications career started in the marketing sector,
but in 1995 he decided that the technical side was more interesting.
He started as an intern and is now a senior telecom specialist.
Like many of the TCOM instructors, he is a graduate of the Skyline
TCOM program. His knowledge and experience includes: switch-based
networks, switch translation and applications, data network, CCS7,
ISDN, ATM, Internet, frame-relay, computer-based integrated test
systems, technical writing, SOP instruction, telecom testing, protocol
analyzers, circuits designs and engineering, and hardware repair.
A saying he uses often is: "'If we could sell our experiences
for what they cost us, we'd all be millionaires.'' (Advice columnist
Abigail Van Buren,known to millions as ''Dear Abby'')
Contact: TBD |
Eric Lohmann
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In addition to being a former graduate
of Skyline Telecommunications Program, Eric obtained a good deal of
his background and training from nine years as an Electronics Technician
in the United States Navy. While in the service, he received a broad
range of training on various electronic computerized communications
equipments and systems, including RF and HF transmitters and receivers
as well as computerized satellite communications systems. In the private
sector, he supported printing/fax, voice dictation, computerized and
networked systems. Currently, he works in the IT department at the
San Francisco VA Medical Center where he supports and administers
specialized medical computers and software. Eric has been
a TCOM instructor at Skyline College since Fall 2000.
Contact: lohmannr@smccd.net |
Pete Perino
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Originally an instructor for the TCOM 100
class, Pete now concentrates his efforts in Cooperative Education.
He is the person to go to if you want college credit for work experience.
His degree is in Business Administration and his experience
includes over 25 years in the telecommunications industry. This experience
included a number of management positions in the areas of Marketing/Sales
and Human Resources. Additional experience includes providing telecommunications
consulting services to business clients and facilitating employment
workshops for military personnel transitioning to the civilian sector.
When he's not working with students at Skyline, Pete enjoys travelling,
golf and bowling.
Contact: perino@smccd.net |
| Herb Rankins
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Herb is a graduate of the University of San
Francisco, with a B.S. in Organizational Behavior, Minoring in Education.
Later, he attended Saint Mary’s College, pursuing a Masters
in Education, but after one year he decided that life in corporate
high tech was a better fit.
He spent four years in the US Air Force, as an Electronic Counter
Measures Technician, then twenty years with Pacific Bell in a variety
of positions, mostly in product management. After leaving Pacific
Bell, he worked on and off as a Technical Consultant, as well as the
odd fun job: Census Taker, volunteer janitor at a high school and
as a public speaker at K-12 schools and community colleges. The siren
song of High Tech drew him to a job as Senior Technical Trainer on
Voice Mail Systems at OCTEL. He then moved on to Clarent and spent
three years as Senior Technical Trainer on their Voice-over-IP system.
For the past two years, he has been at SnapTrack/QUALCOMM where he
is a Staff Technical Training Specialist on their Location Services
system. He has taught at Skyline since 1992.
Herb enjoys teaching. He has taught classes on four continents
and intends to increase that to all the continents (although he
feels Antarctica may be a problem). He enjoys visiting new places,
sampling the food, and learning about the culture of people in different
countries. At home, he likes gardening, construction, and fast cars.
His motto is “Work Hard, Play Hard, and leave some for the
next Person”.
Contact: rankinsh@smccd.net |
| Jill
Ross
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Another graduate of Skyline College's
TCOM program and a member of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society,
Jill has worked in the computer industry since 1984 and has been
an instructor at various organizations since 1979. In addition to
teaching, she is also the department's webmaster.
Her IT experience includes systems administration, application and
extranet development, graphic design, technical writing, network
engineering and hardware repair, as well as technical instruction
and course design.
Besides being a professional geek, she has taught the fine art of
diving in enclosed areas with sharks, was a civil servant, designed
clothing, restored cars, managed a cafe, illustrated textbooks,
designed custom scannable forms, was half of the human resource
department for an employment agency, tested sewers and storm drains,
wrote software teaching modules for junior high school students,
co-developed a database for a travel agency, taught archery and
swordplay, worked as a marine pathologist and repaired hydrolic
equipment. In her spare time she is a pirate reinactor and a professional
musician. She believes, as the great Robert A. Heinlein once said,
"Specialization is for insects."
Contact: rossj@smccd.net |
| Tina Simms
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Tina has a B.S. in Management and an M.S.
in Telecommunications Management from Golden Gate University. She
is also a graduate of the Skyline Telecommunications program. She
is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated, SF Alumnae
Chapter, a public service sorority. She is currently Chair of Skyline
College MESA Program's Industry Advisory Board
She ran Customer Service TCOM for Unocal 76, ran Call Centers
for Unocal, Shell, Mobil and First Data. She was one of only 200 high-potential
fast-track candidates hired by Pac Bell in 1995, but opted out after
two years, since it took too much time away from her daughter. At
SBC, she was a TCOM Design Engineer for three different districts
and is currently a DSL Project Manager. She is a second-generation
phone company employee.
She is the extremely proud parent of a daughter, Tracy. She is also
a World War II fanatic, a die-hard whist player and in her own words,
a "serious movie-a-holic." She also spends a great deal
of time fund-raising and her efforts have financially benefited Skyline
in the form of two grants in 2002 and one recently approved for 2004.
Her favorite mantra is a recently discovered quote:
I am only one,
But still I am one;
I can't do everything,
But still I can do something;
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.
Contact: simms@smccd.net |
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