College for Kids

Our College for Kids instructors are so fantastic that I thought it would be fun to do an “Up Close and Personal” column.  I asked each to give me an autobiography and here’s what they came up with when I put them on the spot. 

Roy Hastings teaches Survivor: Pioneer Skills in the Computer World. 

            My friend, Fred Thompson, mentioned several times that the Heritage of the Americas Museum was a great place to volunteer.  I tried it and it is.  My background of many years at the sixth grade school camps and many more leading 5^th graders around Balboa Park is helpful as a volunteer docent at the museum.  Before retiring, I was an elementary school teacher for San Diego Unified School District for thirty-two years.

            As a docent, I became aware of the summer program sponsored by Cuyamaca College through the museum.  It seems there was a place for hands-on educational and natural activities tied to artifacts and exhibits in the museum.  Putting together the best activities for fun and excitement for students ages 10 to 14 resulted in Survivor:  Pioneer Skills in the Computer Age.  Several fellow docents volunteered to help me supervise the class, providing safety and experience.

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Diana Kam teaches both Art Stars and You, the Artist. 

            I retired from teaching after 22 years with Cajon Valley School District and found the museum to be the perfect place to volunteer, keeping me in touch with students and still allowing me time to continue pursuing my many outside interests.  I enjoy guiding students through the four wings of the museum, but my favorite is the Art Wing.  I was thrilled when the opportunity arose to teach art classes through the College for Kids program.

            I have been an artist throughout my life and have had work presented and sold at art shows in Spanish Village in Balboa Park, at U.C.S.D., at the Heritage Museum, as well as at other locations.  I am currently drawn to Chinese Brush Watercolor Painting and attend classes under Master Artist Lucy Wang.  College for Kids allows me to open the world of art to students during their middle years, such a pivotal time in their lives.

            My interests that I currently pursue are varied and keep me very busy.  They include writing, reading, learning foreign languages, gardening, arts, crafts, drawing, painting, photography, Tai Chi, hula dancing and the music of the Hawaiian culture.  And I must add traveling.  As a native Hawaiian, the favorite escape for my husband, Anthony and me, is visiting the Garden Island of Kauai where I grew up.

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Mike Wake is our instructor for  The Earth is a Mystery - Dig It! 

            I have been a teacher in the Cajon Valley School District for 36 years, teaching grades 2-8.  My most resent assignment has been at Hillsdale Middle School since its opening.  I teach 6^th grade math, science, and art.  In addition to my classroom duties, I help coordinate the 6^th grade camp program, am the lead chaperone for the 8^th grade East Coast Tour, and serve as the science department chair.  I have written, trained, implemented, and field-tested curriculum in science, math, health, and social studies.  I am also a mentor and support provider for the first and second year teachers in the district.

            My “out-of-school” interests are varied.  I play lead guitar in a wanna-be garage band called “The Broken Strings.”  I enjoy working on and around the house, doing everything from cabinetry, to gardening, to cement finishing.  I see myself as an amateur naturalist and outdoorsman.  My outdoor hobbies include scuba diving, backpacking, trout fishing, skiing, and taking time to smell the flowers and listen to the wind.

            My wife of 37 years, Linda, and I enjoy our home and outdoor activities together.  As retirement approaches for both of us, we plan to travel more, pursue our creative and artistic interests, and find new ways to love life.
 
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To register, please go to www.cuyamaca.edu/museum/  and/or download the College for Kids Information Packetor call the Museum at 619-06780-5194