CBC Faculty and Staff Speakers

Looking for someone to speak to your organization, at your next group meeting, or conference? Below is a list of CBC faculty and staff and their areas of expertise. If the topic you're looking for is not in the list below, please contact Frank Murray, Communications Director, at (509) 542-4835 for more topics and speakers.

Political Climate
Gary Bullert, Assistant Professor for Political Science, Political Climate Expert, (509) 542-4816

In addition to more than 20 years of teaching college-level politics and religion, Gary has served as a Bradley Resident Scholar at the Heritage Foundation and Senior Policy Research Analyst for the Washington state Senate on K-12 and Higher Education. Gary lectures about a variety of topics, including but not confined to, "Does Democracy Have a Future?," "The Supreme Court and Judicial Review," "Is There Any Difference Between Republicans and Democrats?," and "What Happened to the Debate Over Term Limits?"

Future Vision for CBC
Rich Cummins, CBC President, (509) 542-4802

As the CBC President, Rich is able to speak on many topics related to the future of the College, board governance, peer accreditation, state budgeting, academic freedom, shared governance, public administration and democracy, and other topics related to the administration of higher education. Rich has also researched and published in the field of leadership and can speak about servant-leadership, the critical differences between leadership and management, theories of leadership, research in the psychology of leadership, and the effects of power on leaders. Rich also taught composition and poetry for many years and is able to talk about various topics within these fields.

Business Planning, Finance, Startup, and Growth
Bruce Davis, Small Business Development Center Director, (509) 542-5635

Bruce's background includes ownership of his own business, ongoing ownership of his own farm business, co-founding an export company, serving as a marketing consultant, teaching records and management in the community college system, teaching adult education in farm management and marketing for Washington State University Cooperative Extension, instructing for Washington State University Business Links in the Tri-Cities, and has held the Washington State Insurance License for the lines of Property, Casualty, Life, and Disability. In addition, he has held NASD Series 7, 63, and 65 registrations.
Bruce particularly enjoys helping business owners analyze their business and plan for success and growth. He works to assist new and existing businesses in planning and preparing business plans, and helps clients prepare financial proposals to best enhance their commercial loan presentations. 

Early Childhood Education, Childcare
Carolyn Fazzari, Early Childhood Education Director, (509) 542-4624

In helping to shape the lives of children, childcare professionals also help to shape the future of society. As Director for the Early Childhood Education program at CBC, Carolyn's focus is on the early learning professionals who care for children and the educational and developmental needs of children from birth to age eight, including their social, emotional, cognitive, creative, and physical development.
Carolyn has spent more than 25 years in the field of Early Learning, including work as a primary school teacher in the public school system, a parenting educator, a college-level Early Childhood Education faculty member, and a director and supervisor. She is the co-author of the Washington State Training and Registry System (STARS) 20-hour basic training curriculum, and developed the United Way "Making Everyday Moments Count" parenting curriculum, which was selected to be adapted into a national education campaign.

High Demand Careers in Health Sciences
Curt Freed, Health Sciences Dean, (509) 544-8302

Curt Freed has worked with CBC's healthcare programs as the dean since 2001. During this period, the healthcare programs have grown significantly. The Nursing program has been expanded to help meet growing community needs for nurses. New programs developed during this time include the Medical Assistant program, Surgical Technology program, and the Medical Imaging programs, including Radiologic Technology. Curt works closely with all of the healthcare related programs at the College, including Dental Hygiene, Diagnostic Ultrasound, Emergency Medical Technician, Fire Science, Health Information Technology, Medical Assistant, Nursing, Nursing Assistant, Paramedic, Phlebotomy, Radiologic Technology/Medical Imaging and Surgical Technology programs. Curt is also a tenured faculty member from the Human Services program, where he taught the Human Services and Chemical Dependency Counseling programs since 1994.

Employment Services for Students and Businesses, State Work Study
Daphne Lightfoot, Director for Student Employment Services, (509) 542-5559

The Student Employment office provides employment information to CBC students, graduates, and the community. Those seeking employment may register online to view jobs, upload their resumes, and apply for positions via the Internet. Employers may electronically post open positions, contact potential applicants, and query for student resumes. Student Employment also provides free workshops each quarter about job search strategies, resume writing, and interviewing techniques.
As Director for Student Employment Services, Daphne enjoys helping students find jobs that fit their interests, and helps CBC students find work placement through State Work Study. State Work Study is a program in which students who are eligible for work study through Financial Aid are matched with businesses according to their major, and the majority of cost to employ the student is paid by CBC.

Trends in Higher Education and at CBC
Joe Montgomery, Ph.D., Dean for Institutional Effectiveness, (509) 544-4935

Capital Projects, Budget, and Going "Green" at CBC
Bill Saraceno, Senior Vice President for Administrative Services, (509) 542-5546

Bill has served as the Senior Vice President for Administration, Operations, and Finance for Columbia Basin College for more than 20 years. His main areas of responsibility include fiscal affairs and budgeting, capital budget planning, building maintenance and grounds (150 acres and 700,000 sq. ft. of buildings), construction and bid management, and faculty and classified contract negotiations. He also oversees the departments responsible for ADA, Safety and Security, Facility Management, Energy Management, Environmental Health and Hazardous Waste Management, Recycling Programs, Business Services, Purchasing, Payroll, Telecommunications, Risk Management, Internal Auditing, and Parking Services.

Labor Market and Employment Trends
Dean Schau, Assistant Professor for Economics, (509) 542-4817

Dean is the Washington state regional Labor Market Economist and follows employment trends and numbers.

Dental Hygiene and Affects on Health, Low-Cost Dental Care at CBC Clinic, Dealing with Difficult People, Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace, and Generational Differences in the Workplace – Communication Expectations Gone Awry
Lynn Stedman, Program Coordinator and Instructor for Dental Hygiene, (509) 544-4991

CBC’s Dental Hygiene program offers low-cost dental care and preventative dental work to help people of all ages improve their oral health. Available services include exams, x-rays, fluoride treatments, whitening trays, and limited restorative treatments Monday through Friday at the Pasco campus clinic. Initial screening appointments are provided to determine the needs of the patient, the timeframe for patient care, and the cost for services. As Program Coordinator and an instructor for Dental Hygiene, Lynn also focuses on educating the community about the affects dental hygiene has on the overall body’s health.
In addition to her training in higher education, Lynn also has a master’s degree in clinical counseling and psychotherapy. In her work as a therapist, she was often hired to come in to small businesses to assess morale and increase motivation in the workplace. She has worked with a variety of businesses and industries including photogrammetrists (map makers), environmental engineers, dental offices, commercial window companies, family owned businesses, and more. Lynn has 10 years of experience as a Toastmaster and is a lively and interesting speaker.

Diversity
Martin Valadez, Vice President for Diversity & Outreach, (509) 542-5558

As Vice President for Diversity & Outreach, Martin is working to increase diversity curricula at CBC and the number of diversity activities, speakers, artists, and forums to connect more members of the community to CBC.
Martin has taught history at CBC since 2006, and has been a key element in expanding course offerings in social sciences at the College. His program development includes writing curriculum for the new Latino and Latin American Studies degree, as well as for the Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration degree. He has also created courses on the History of Africa, India, and Mexico.

Paying for College, Financial Aid, Grants, Scholarships, and Loans
Ceci Ratliff, Director for Student Financial Services, (509) 542-4811

As Director for Student Financial Services at CBC, Ceci's role is to administer Federal, state, and institutional student aid programs to assist students in funding their education. She has spent more than 25 years in financial aid in the Washington state community and technical college system, and more than 30 years working in higher education.

Student Services
Maddy Jeffs, Vice President for Student Services, (509) 542-4449

Foundation
Bob Rosselli, CBC Foundation CEO, (509) 542-4688; Debbie Risk, CBC Foundation Operations Officer, (509) 542-4436

The Foundation, with a volunteer board, raises funds to enhance educational opportunities at the College and to fill the funding gap that exists between public and private funding. Bob and Jenny focus their efforts primarily on scholarships for students and special projects for academic programs. To learn about the College and campus, scholarship funding opportunities, and special community-based projects, call for a presentation from the Foundation staff.

Athletics
Scott Rogers, Athletic Director, (509) 542-4369

Scott has 19 years of experience coaching college baseball, including seven at Gonzaga University. During the summer of 1997, he left Gonzaga to take over the baseball program at CBC. Scott's first nine years at CBC were also spent in the classroom where he was a tenured faculty member. On July 1, 2006, Scott was named the College's Athletic Director, but continued to coach baseball here through the end of the 2008 season. Scott retired from coaching as the all-time leader in program history in both wins (398) and winning percentage (.742). During his tenure he was named East Region Coach of the Year five times, NWAACC Coach of the Year twice, and ABCA National Coach of the Year in 2001 and 2006. After winning the first NWAACC baseball championship (2001) since 1964, CBC was recognized with three national rankings during the next six years (No. 9 in 2002, No. 8 in 2005, and No. 30 in 2007).
Scott speaks on several topics related to athletic development, facilities, and direction of the overall Athletics program at Columbia Basin College.

Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations
Frank Murray, Communications Director, (509) 542-4835; Dawn Alford, Assistant Director for College Relations, (509) 542-5524

The College Relations staff is the communications team at CBC. Using marketing tools such as publications, news media, the Internet, and other forms of communication, they inform the community about the high quality and diversity of CBC’s programs, promote upcoming campus events, and celebrate the achievements of students, graduates, faculty, and staff. They have extensive experience in a variety of media, both print and electronic.
The College Relations staff helps plan, design, and execute communication tactics that target prospective students, attract an audience to an event, represent the College and its programs, or otherwise deliver important information in a timely and effective manner.

Astronomy, Robert & Elisabeth Moore Observatory, Future Planetarium
Mike Durst, Director for the Robert and Elisabeth Moore Observatory

As Director for the Robert and Elisabeth Moore Observatory at CBC, Mike is also responsible for the school’s Astronomy program. He is the former manager of the Radiochemical and Processing Laboratory (RPL) for Battelle's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington. He has devoted 34 years of his life to the nuclear physics arena, a career that covers nearly every aspect of nuclear science and technology. He is the author or co-author of more than 60 nationally and internationally published technical reports or journal articles related to nuclear science and technology. Furthermore, Mike is the co-author of three U.S. and one Russian patent on the future design of nuclear power systems. From 2000–2004, Mike managed a team in Slavutych, Ukraine, which designed a new safe confinement for the destroyed Chernobyl Power Plant. When construction is completed in the next few years, the building will be the largest moveable building in the history of mankind. In 2005, while a diplomat with the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, he, along with other IAEA staff, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to prevent nuclear energy from being used for military purposes. Mike has a Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering from Louisiana State University and a Bachelor of Science in Physics from University of Washington in Seattle.

Worker Retraining
Deborah Brown, Worker Retraining Program Director, (509) 542-4443