Cindy Morrin
Department Chair~Teacher~Counselor~Mentor
~2007 California Online Teaching Award~

I am currently the Department Chair and Personal Development Counseling (PDC) Outreach Coordinator for an amazing instructional program in our counseling department at Cuyamaca College.  I am fortunate to oversee and run over 30 classes a semester both on campus and off campus.  Half of my classes are on the Grossmont Unified High School District (GUHSD) campuses and a few Charter schools.  I have a variety of on-campus programs which include learning communities (our bridges to success) and our Summer Bridge Success Program.  Experienced and wonderful counselors teach my classes and I am fortunate to have such a strong, collaborative team in my department.  My counselors have said, "you have created a community of counselors in East County with the PDC program."  We have partnered with GUHSD to offer the 2008 GOT PLANS? (College, Career, and Transfer fair) of East County at Cuyamaca College!  This amazing event took place on October 21, 2008 and we will do it again in 2009!  Please market this event to everyone you know in East County.  Middle school through college age students are encouraged to attend!

I have taught a variety of classes besides PDC, including graduate courses in counseling/psychology, ESL (English as a Second Language), Language Arts, Work Experience and more.  I’ve worked with underrepresented, first generation college students and also highly gifted students in a variety of settings.  I’ve coordinated AVID (Advanced Via Individual Determination) and GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) programs at high schools.

I was a high school guidance counselor and loved working with high school students.  I feel I can continue my connection with high school students through our PDC programs and courses.  My passion is to build comprehensive counseling and instructional programs  where we connect high school, community college, and university transfer students to resources to help them choose a major, career, and goal in life.  Recently, I have started outreach programs with the juvenile court system with online classes.  We are getting more underrepresented students from different areas interested in college.

I LOVE technology and have always used technology in my counseling and teaching.  I was fascinated with online learning early on and took the time to learn various Learning Management Systems (LMS) to teach online.  I have taught online and hybrid at San Diego Mesa College, National University, Chapman University and most currently, Cuyamaca College.  I am involved in online outreach by being a mentor to faculty and teaching faculty how to teach online through my course, Education 214, Developing an Online Course.  I have won awards for my online teaching and I present at online teaching conferences.  I am very active with the @One project and our campus Online Teaching and Learning Committee.

Psychological type is fascinating to me.  I teach the concepts of personality type and the MBTI through my courses.  I also present on type at Career Development and Student Success conferences.

2008-2009 Committees and groups I serve:

• Officer at Large for the Academic Senate

• Co-chair for Student Services Master Plan Committee

• Online Teaching and Learning Committee

• 508 Compliance Review

• Coordinated Outreach Committee

• Basic Skills Initiative Committee (OnTrack)

• Got Plans? Career/College/Transfer Fair Task Force

• Member of Instructional Council  for (IC) Department Chairs and Coordintors

• Member of Student Services Advisory Council (SSAC) for student services managers

I am raising a family in beautiful San Diego and am very active in my community and my children's school programs.  My children are both into art, sports and music.  My oldest is an amazing jazz pianist and I have grown to love the variety of music he shares from his bands.  Chase is a national ASCAP award winning jazz composer.  I am highly active in the San Diego music scene and outreach to promote live music in San Diego.  Check out my son's website here:

www.chasemorrin.com
~yes, he is my child~

My youngest is an incredible artist (drawing) and Lego builder.  I'll post photos soon. 

Here is a UT story on a Science Olympiad program I coordinated, 2005-2007:  Science Olympiad Feature of Cindy in the Union Tribune.  I met Dr. Cary Willard, Science faculty, at Grossmont College who also coordinates science programs for middle and high school students.  Cary and I brought a number of students to our campuses in 2006-2007 in an outreach project.  Cary continues this project and can be reached through Grossmont College faculty.  I have left science outreach to focus on music outreach. :)

My mom, Connie Palmer, is an amazing athlete and was just inducted into the United States Bowling Congress Hall of Fame on 8/2/08.

My husband works for Starbucks Coffee and we all enjoy going to Starbucks for coffee.  I can't go anywhere without everyone socializing with my husband about Starbucks!  My husband also coaches soccer through the Del Mar Sharks.

I love quotes and affirmations.  Here are a few of my favorites:

"Be daring,
be different,
be impractical;
be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers,
the creatures of the commonplace,
the slaves of the ordinary." — Cecil Beaton

"Let every obstacle become an opportunity"

"We~are~all~connected"

THANK YOU FOR READING ABOUT ME AND GETTING TO KNOW ME MORE.  I love what I do!