College/University Faculty Representative

I want to serve on the CSTA National Board to help develop strong CS teacher communities like the one that has been so incredibly valuable to me for 15 years. I was hired as a High School (HS) CS teacher in 2007 with no formal teacher training. I was a “team of 1” in the math department, struggling to adapt college curriculum to suit my students in an accessible and inclusive way. Fortunately I heard about a local CSTA chapter forming and was invited to join. There I found a community who helped each other by sharing thoughtful classroom materials and pedagogy. The importance of building a strong CS teacher community across schools in our region is a driving force in the countless hours I’ve invested providing content to students with contests and connecting teachers through social meet-ups and providing professional development (PD) like our annual lightning talk event. If elected, I plan to continue this work on a national scale and help other chapters develop similar activities.

My leadership background is varied and will inform how I can contribute as a CSTA board member to develop a strong community of educators and quality professional development rooted in evidence based practices. Organizationally, I will lean on my skills from my roles as a PSCSTA leader, a leader on boards of two other non profits, as well as my membership ECEP alliance team for WA State. My experiences as a manager in the software industry and as a manager of up to 25 teaching assistants per quarter will be useful in navigating sometimes tough situations. I plan to help develop quality PD for teachers by leveraging my experiences as a Code.org CS Fundamentals, CS Discoveries, and AP CS A facilitator, and my work in developing high quality events for the college in the HS program and for our local CSTA chapter. This PD will be guided by the reality of K-12 teaching experiences (informed by 10 years as a middle and high school CS teacher), and 7 years as a university professor.

My work is informed by my belief that building equitable, inclusive classrooms is vital to quality CS education, the alternative will do more harm by turning students away from the subject. At UW I created numerous courses to support students in the Pathways for Inclusive Excellence (PIE) Allen Scholars and STARS programs. PIE programs support students from first generation, low-income, and underserved communities in their first year(s) at UW. My courses help students, many of whom never took a CS class before college, understand difficult concepts, learn study skills, and form community. PIE boasted a 98% retention rate in the 22-23 academic year – these classes contributed to that success. Another class I teach is Interactions Programming and developing accessible user interfaces. Additionally, I am a member of our DEIA committee, was in the first 3C fellows cohort, and was interviewed for the Code.org Equity in CS video where I spoke about the need for CS access in all schools.

My work is informed by my belief that building equitable, inclusive classrooms is vital to quality CS education, the alternative will do more harm by turning students away from the subject. At UW I created numerous courses to support students in the Pathways for Inclusive Excellence (PIE) Allen Scholars and STARS programs. PIE programs support students from first generation, low-income, and underserved communities in their first year(s) at UW. My courses help students, many of whom never took a CS class before college, understand difficult concepts, learn study skills, and form community. PIE boasted a 98% retention rate in the 22-23 academic year – these classes contributed to that success. Another class I teach is Interactions Programming and developing accessible user interfaces. Additionally, I am a member of our DEIA committee, was in the first 3C fellows cohort, and was interviewed for the Code.org Equity in CS video where I spoke about the need for CS access in all schools.

I have been part of the PSCSTA since its inception and a part of the leadership in at-large, secretary, treasurer, and president positions. As president I help with planning, accountability, transparency, and collaboration both in and out of the organization. I communicate with the CSTA national, our 142 active and 60 expired/in grace members, the local universities and colleges, and ECEP (CSforAllWA). Through PSCSTA and ECEP I helped draft responses to WA state bills regarding CS education requirements. I attended a CSTA conference at Google first in 2010, then regularly attended since 2019, and the ACM SIGCSE conferences regularly since 2017. I am also a regular reviewer for both conferences. I support teachers in my role as a College in the HS coordinator, advise undergraduate and masters students who are doing CS education research, and am the instructor for a CS education research reading group this academic year. I am also a member of a virtual cs-teaching Slack community.

I always wanted to ensure that everyone will be equally treated and provided with quality computer science education. Today’s generation needs enough skills and knowledge to be equipped to face different technological challenges. Our CSTA’s advocacy is to help and nurture our community with endless learning opportunities, especially in computer science, which is very vital and essential. In the Philippines, not all regions and communities can learn CS Education, and I would be allowed to continue my passion to help; it will be an honor for me to continuously provide and impart my skills, knowledge, and talent to those communities who are in need. In the 4IR, CS Education is very significant; we have to share our learnings and teach so it will be spread and reach other people.

I joined CSTA 10 years ago; I became a CSTA+ member when I was appointed to be a CSTA VP for Communications in 2022. This opportunity helped me to become a better person and an officer. I also serve different organizations in the Philippines. I used to be the Secretary of the Council of Deans for IT Education and am currently serving as the VP for External Affairs for the Multimedia Arts Association of the Philippines for NCR and director for Ways and Means of Multimedia Arts Association of the Philippines – National. These leadership roles have equipped me to excel and develop. These leadership opportunities helped me to reach other people to teach and share what I have. I was able to impart my knowledge and skills to ensure that the opportunity that I have will be shared and given too.

From the perspective of the continuous learning of computer science education, it is essential to find committed and dedicated volunteers and/or teachers. This teacher role will help us cater to more communities to teach and support CS education. Second, we must ensure that we will deliver to help the quality teaching of CS Education, especially in rural areas like the Philippines, where not all schools are equipped with computer facilities and software. Third, we have to ensure that we provide enough of a series of workshops and training so that teachers will be more equipped and skilled. These acquired skills and learnings will benefit the adopted community and its members. Lastly, we have to strengthen our capacity to support. Let us connect with these people, support them, teach them, and adapt to the generation’s needs.

My experiences with CSTA and CSTA Philippines were really memorable and substantial. Joining an organization like CSTA is an opportunity for me, an opportunity to extend my time and hand to help other people. Teaching them, like CS Education, allows me to develop my leadership skills. Currently, as VP for Communications of CSTA Philippines, I had projects handled already. My objectives in these projects were to reignite the passion for Computer Science Education and to ensure that this education is vital in this generation. One, I had this project entitled, Reigniting the Passion for CS Education, in which we invited several speakers and different K-12 teachers nationwide. Our aim was to inform them of the significance of the inclusion of CS Education in their curriculum and workplace. Recently, we conducted a community outreach program in Cavite, Philippines, in which we taught them how to use Microsoft Tools like OneDrive, MS Teams, and the like for 300 teachers.