Email: Computing Part-time Studies:
As Program Assistant for Computing PTS, I work with a PTS Coordinator and Program Head to support 70 Instructors. My COMP portfolio includes; all programmimg languages and networking courses plus thier related Associate Certificates and the CSC.
Other duties include general department administration and financial reconciliation for the Program Head. I am also a part-time student in Computing and currently working toward the Applied Software Development, ASD – Associate Certificate.
I work with thousands of students in 70+ different COMP course sections every term to manage priority registrations. Due to a limited available seats student priority is based on two main factors; prerequisite completion and program declaration.
My main goal is student success and to help students find answers or point them in the right direction. Every term when registration opens we are very busy, please contact me by email and allow 3 business days for a reply in some cases.
As the PTS Coordinator for Computing my role includes leading 2 Program Assistants and collaborating with the Program Head. I work directly with 70+ instructors to organize and manage scheduling to set-up over 150 COMP PTS course sections every term.
Computing PTS is the largest single department area in the School of Computing and Academic Studies, SoCAS. We deliver COMP courses into 15 different computing programs including laddered credentials to the CST/PTS Diploma.
For more than 16 years it has been a privilege to be a part of the BCIT Computing PTS team. As well as helping to grow our department I have grown personally and have been able to earn credentials in business management and education.
I am a PTS instructor for Advanced MS Excel and I have volunteered for several committees including the BCIT Education Council. My focus is on the year round planning, sustainable operations, academic integrity and the success of over 3,000 individual students every year.
As Program Assistant for Computing PTS, I work with a PTS Coordinator and Program Head to support 70 Instructors. My portfolio includes; MS Office, Computer Applications, Dental Reception, IT Skills and Web Technologies.
I work with thousands of students over 70 different COMP course sections every term to manage priority registrations. Due to a limited available seats student priority is based on two main factors; prerequisite completion and program declaration.
My goal is to help students find answers or point them in the right direction. Every term when registration opens we are very busy, please contact me via emails and allow 3 business days for a reply.
I came to BCIT with 20 years of technology business experience that included: operations, revenue generation, training, product development and marketing. My first career started as a branch manger and within two years was promoted to regional supervisor. After five years, I had expanded physical locations by 300% with 28 direct reports, and was generating $6M per year, equivalent to $14M today.
As an early adopter of personal computers for business, I was recruited by a Texas-based computer manufacturer and I started my second career in the computer business. My initial focus was in marketing to advance the use of stand-alone PC systems to business and education. At that point the PC was a new tool not in wide use, my mission was to position PCs as a potential replacements for mainframes and minicomputers.
After one year I was promoted to supervise provincial government, health care and education accounts in Victoria. We also provided integrated PC solutions with hardware and software for accounting, MSP billing, touch-screen Point of Sale, and desktop publishing as turn-key systems with set-up, training and support services to business.
In 1989, I was promoted to branch manager of the Vancouver Computer Centre where I had the distinction of delivering some of the first networked PC’s with education software into BC schools. My responsibilities included top-line management, supervising the outbound sales team, increasing the bottom-line, and delivering classroom training.
Moving into a more technical role, I became the systems integrator for BC and the lead for computer support for western Canada. Then I completed several IT certification courses and moved to the distribution channel in 1994. Working with VARs, I provided memory and certification training, initially for SCO UNIX, Novell, then MCSE.
After 11 years in the computer and IT training business, I transitioned to post-secondary education, and started my third career at BCIT as Operations Coordinator, Computer Systems Technology, CST Part-time Studies. My job description included expanding courses and programs, increasing student satisfaction and doubling registrations. We achieved that goal in 1999 and grew Computing to the single largest PTS program area at BCIT.
I produced one of the first department websites at BCIT and branded the CST department as “BCIT School of Computing”. In 2002, I became Program Head for Computing, Part-time Studies and since have focused on curriculum and student success.I developed a landing page with a single URL for marketing all 30 computing programs, full and part-time in 2007, and later re-branded of the entire department as “BCIT Computing”, which now includes 3 full-time diplomas, 4 fast-track programs and Computing PTS.
As PTS Program Head I lead 70 instructors with a PTS Coordinator and 3 Program Assistants. I work with local IT industry experts to keep our courses and programs relevant. Every year we offer over 500 COMP course sections as part of 15 different part-time computing programs. We have maintained well above the sector average for student satisfaction ratings.
I created a Computing PTS Student Guide to help students understand course and program requirements, and who to contact. Every term I conduct multiple information sessions and as well I provide individual course and program plans for students. COMP PTS is a safety-net for the full-time students who need to make up credits in 4 diploma programs or move entirely to PTS delivery to complete a program.
My methods were documented as best practices for PTS Coordinators and Program Heads across BCIT in 2012. I have volunteered for many selection committees and multiple councils; Life Long Learning, ITS User Chair, and Marketing. In 2019, I was elected to the FSA Board of Directors. I have also received multiple BCIT employee excellence nominations and awards.
Since the 90’s, I have developed a series of Applied Associate Certificates as sub-sets of the CST Diploma. During this time, I have also produced over 100 new industry driven COMP courses which have generated $75+ million in tuition for BCIT. These new courses have brought our graduates and local industry practitioners into part-time teaching careers, and provided new jobs.
Outside of work, I enjoy cooking, travel, road trips and restoring classic cars. I have adopted 3 dogs from the SPCA, each living well into old age. My volunteer work includes 15 years on my strata and I am currently vice president. I have completed my 43rd anniversary in the workforce, building sustainable operations, with high levels of customer satisfaction, and repeat business.
My tag line, “Start with just one course” has guided people to explore and learn IT skills one course at a time. We have helped more than 50 thousand individuals advance their careers by studying at night and on weekends. BCIT Computing credential programs are recognized by industry, and our graduates are known to be job-ready.
Not sure where to begin?
- COMP 1002 – Applied Computer Concepts
COMP 1002 is the foundation for all Computing Part-time Studies courses.
Each of the following core courses is an introduction and designed to determine your interest in different aspects of Computing and IT.
- COMP 1516 – Programming Fundamentals Part 1 (Python)
- COMP 1630 – Relational Database Design and SQL
- COMP 1850 – Introduction to Web Development