Associate of Applied Science
in Business

My name is Andrea Maraska. While we moved every year while I was growing up, I ended up coming to San Diego State University to complete my bachelor’s degree in Journalism. After graduation in June of 1983, I went on to work in the construction project management for over 20 years. Following in my mother and sister’s footsteps, I finally pursued my growing passion for education. I returned to college to earn my master’s degree in Education, and also received California State teaching credentials in Secondary English and Special Education. Eventually, I was introduced to teaching at the college level, and have loved every moment of these opportunities. The rewards are immeasurable.

I continue to pursue my own education in terms of taking additional courses with the hope of becoming a more capable instructor. I have gone on to take graduate English courses in order to gain further insight related to teaching English and sociology in a collegiate environment. Recently, I also completed coursework that would provide me with the required number of units necessary to teach other college general education courses; including: history, philosophy, and psychology.

Last year, I earned my MBA Independence University. I love to learn and plan to continue taking courses beyond this in order to remain relevant, current, and professionally informed.

I live to help students. You are my heroes. I love to see each of you in your quest to reach your dreams and I am grateful for the opportunity and role that I play in that.

Will Palmer has been an instructor at California College San Diego for over three years. He teaches philosophy, psychology, and history courses at both the Associates and Bachelors levels. Will received his B.A. in History from San Diego State University in 2010. While at SDSU, he focused his studies specifically on world religions, and he chose to minor in Religious Studies. His interest in studying religion led him to Pacifica Graduate Institute where he completed an M.A. in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology in 2012. Not only did he continue research into world religions, but he began studying religion as a social and psychological phenomenon as well.

In November of 2012, Will was hired as an instructor at the San Marcos branch of California College San Diego. Desiring to go back to school, however, Will moved to Pasadena, California and studied Theology and Biblical Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary, receiving a second M.A. in 2015.

He returned to teach at CCSD and meanwhile became more invested in philosophy for day-to-day life, focusing on helping students with perceptions of self and purpose. He has also worked to improve student communication through writing. Aside from teaching, Will enjoys art (he was originally an art major), creative writing, blogging, hiking, disc golf, kayaking, and traveling.

Patrick Caze is a New York City native who enjoyed a 20-year career in the Marine Corps prior to venturing off into the corporate world. While in the military he was a forward thinking professional with wide ranging and comprehensive formal training in logistics and supply distribution management. Upon his retirement, he worked for Toyota, Wells Fargo, and CareFusion in various capacities to include business and investment analyst. His demonstrated and proven ability to lead personnel, plan, organize, execute multi-dimensional logistics, supply distribution, and manage programs to a successful completion allows him to maintain his unique perspective on team dynamics and leadership styles.

Patrick possesses a Bachelors in Business, a Masters in Human Resource Management, and is in the final stages of completing his doctorate degree in Organizational Leadership. He has always had a passion for learning which inspired his love of teaching. He garners great satisfaction knowing that he is contributing to student’s success and they are gaining life long knowledge. Education is important to him because it gives him an opportunity to learn from others. Gaining insight and trying to understand others is important. Knowing how others view the world helps him to better appreciate the wonderful things that are out there. He enjoys learning and sharing experiences from each student he has the privilege to come in contact with.

John Ross joined the faculty of California College San Diego, San Marcos in 2014 as an Adjunct Instructor in the School of Business. Mr. Ross enjoys helping students tap into the excitement of learning and professional development, encouraging them to see the potential in themselves. Regardless of the topic, Mr. Ross is an attentive, dedicated instructor who thrives on helping students gain confidence and successfully launch into a professional career.

Prior to joining the CCSD San Marcos team, Mr. Ross spent 20 years as a Corporate Trainer conducting business workshops and seminars throughout the United States, Europe, and Australia. He delivered over 3500 seminars on a variety of topics including leadership, management, business communication, conflict resolution, and grammar, as well as the Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics workshop.

His previous experience includes ownership of 19 successful franchises, owner and CEO of Challenge Systems Inc. and Wealth Integration Network Inc., and owner of restaurants in Utah and Nevada.

Mr. Ross earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Film and Television from Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana. He has had a variety of additional training including University Bookstore Management from Stanford University and Oberlin College, Certification in Neuro-Linguistic Programming from founder Richard Bandler, Tony Robbin’s Mastery of Self, and other professional development programs.

Although raised in Montana, Mr. Ross now resides in Carlsbad, California with his wife because she refuses to leave California. John is an avid reader and spends his free time continuing to learn and expand his knowledge on business topics and trends.

Instructor Jack Mangas joined the faculty of California College San Diego (CCSD) in 2016, and is an Adjunct Instructor in the School of Business at the San Marcos campus. Prior to coming onboard, Jack served twenty years on active duty in the United States Navy, fifteen of which were spent in Japan. He went on to earn a B.A. in Business Management at CCSD and an MBA from California Baptist University.

Jack’s teaching interests include Accounting, Finance, Business Management, and Microsoft Office Applications. As an alumnus of the college, Jack is able to relate to students on a unique level, with deep understanding of resources, policies, and procedures, as well as the sacrifices adult students make in order to reach their academic goals. Jack resides with his wife in the Temecula area of California. In his free time, he flies sport kites and serves at his local church.

Chitpasong (Chip) Vazquez holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She is also working towards her PHD with an emphasis in Leadership. Chip has 18 years of Corporate real-world experience in the finance industry focused on customer service, process improvement, sales support and analytical software. She has taught for over four years at the college level. Chip currently teaches business, management and technology classes at the San Marcos Campus.

Chip is the Owner of an event planning business for over a decade. She specialized in high-end weddings and corporate events, trade shows that are catered for small and large groups. Chip is a partner at Vivere Leadership Consulting which she focuses on Leadership development through building individual and group effectiveness through motivation and other behavioral factors.

Chip enjoys working with people through all her businesses and educational interactions. She especially enjoys working with students to help mentor them in becoming successful in preparing themselves to build their foundation for a better future.

I joined the United States Army right after high school and spent the next 20 years in the southeastern United States. While in the Army, I served as a paratrooper on several deployments and, later, as a criminal investigator and protective service officer where I served on the protection team for the secretary of defense and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In the corporate world, I worked over a decade for a major electronics manufacturer. During that time, I was a product manager and a senior buyer, and I worked in marketing. Today I serve as the founding/senior pastor and president of a church my wife and I started three years ago. We enjoy impacting the lives of people every day. I hold a bachelor’s degree in social science from Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina; an MBA in marketing from Walden University; and a master of divinity and a master of theological studies from Liberty University.

I believe in learning about what motivates my students, so I can reach them in a way that speaks to them. I believe the classroom is a magical place where each person, including the instructor, has a chance to learn from the other. I am married to the love of my life, Shalonda. We live in Vista, California, and are the proud parents of seven beautiful children.

I came to US from Iran on September 3, 1977, to continue my education in Chicago, Illinois. I am an IT person, and I have been teaching in the field of information technology for about 15 years at different colleges. I have been working with computers since 1989. I have a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology and a master of business administration degree from University of Phoenix.

I’ve been married for 14 years, and I have two boys. Nima is thirteen, Sina is eight, and Jennifer is my 30-year-old daughter.

My professional experience includes more than 10 years of market experience in management, customer service, and public relations, as well as 15 years of hands-on experience in building computers and upgrading hardware and software. I’ve also had over 15 years of teaching experience in the field of Information Technology.

I am also a Microsoft certified system engineer and A+ certified.

Prior to becoming a teacher, I worked as an accountant in a manufacturing firm for 16 years. I also earned my MSBA degree from San Diego State University. Later, I earned my Certified Internal Auditor’s license (CIA) and Certified Fraud Examiner’s License (CFE). I’ve taught for over 10 years and love it when I explain a topic and see that my students are able to do it for themselves. I’ve taught the entire program for the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and the Bachelor of Science in Accounting programs.

For more than 25 years, Henderson Communications, the consultancy and laboratory I founded in the telecommunications field, designed and developed modem products. Additionally, I taught VP-level telecommunications and marketing classes to such companies as Microsoft, IBM, MCI, AT&T and Pacific Telephone. For the last 11 years, I have taught math, electronics, and business courses for various colleges and universities.

I’m also a writer. I co-authored a book that hit number one in Amazon’s happiness category toward the end of 2011. Our second book on gratitude was a big seller, too. In July, 2013, we published Summer Memories of Gratitude. The next book, a transformational autobiography, should be done by September this year. In the interim, two more books are on their way: Make It New and Protocols and Manners.

I am also a facilitator for JustFaith, a social justice program that helps people serve one another, the world, and the planet. The course is a mix of classroom time, assigned readings, and immersions. One of our graduates started a food-packaging program that sent off 100,000 meals at Christmas. Another couple started a program that finds sponsors for the elderly in African countries. Yet another group has sponsored microbusinesses in South America. Some of these stories are covered in my book, JustMeQi.