Our Commitment to Math & Science Excellence
The mission of the Mathematics and Science Division at GateWay is to:
- Inspire students from diverse backgrounds with a variety of educational goals to become life-long learners and productive citizens
- Offer a dynamic and innovative education that promotes critical thinking to meet the changing needs of our community
Students completing their math and science coursework at GateWay will acquire the knowledge and develop the reasoning skills necessary to be successful in reaching their academic goals. Students will be prepared to pursue rewarding and challenging careers in a variety of fields including STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), Business, or Healthcare. Our courses are taught in a variety of modalities by dedicated faculty who utilize innovative techniques to engage students and facilitate learning. Students are provided a progressive educational experience whether they seek to transfer, complete an associate degree, or expand their own horizons.
Our Math and Science classes will get you started toward an exciting career.
Mathematics
Our Mathematics curriculum can prepare students to transfer to a four-year university to earn a bachelor's degree in a variety of fields including math, engineering, business, and computer science.
Biology
Our Biology curriculum can prepare students for careers in numerous fields such as healthcare, veterinary medicine, environmental studies, or biochemistry.
Chemistry
Our Chemistry curriculum can prepare students for professions in areas such as healthcare, chemistry research, biochemistry, or chemical engineering.
Physics
Our Physics curriculum can prepare students to transfer to a four-year university to earn a bachelor's degree in subjects including physics or engineering.
Meet our Faculty
Alyssa Finch, M.A.
IE3124
alyssa.finch@gatewaycc.edu
Alyssa Finch has been teaching mathematics in higher education since 2014, joining GateWay in January 2020. She obtained her Master’s degree in Mathematics from Central Michigan University and her Bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics from Ferris State University. Her areas of focus include student attitudes and beliefs toward math and their effect in the classroom, improving the classroom experience, and developing her at-a-distance learning delivery. She enjoys being involved in her local church and has recently become a certified yoga instructor. Depending on the season, you can find her on the slopes, hiking, or staying in cuddling her rescue kitty, Cheeto.
Doug Walker, Division Chair
IE3108
walkerd@gatewaycc.edu
Doug Walker has been teaching college mathematics for over 30 years and has been a faculty member at GateWay CC since 2005. Currently, he also serves as the Chair of the Mathematics and Science Division. Doug earned his Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from St. Olaf College in Minnesota and his Master of Science in Mathematics from Iowa State University. Based on his experience of having taught a wide variety of courses at all levels of math, he believes each student learns math in a unique way. As such, he employs an assortment of teaching methods to accommodate a variety of learning styles. In his free time, Doug is an avid bowler and likes to spend time with his family.
J.W. Gaberdiel, M.S. Mathematics, M.A. Education, B.S. Mathematics, B.A. Communication
IE3122
j.w.justin,gaberdiel@gatewaycc.edu
Math Education Experience:
GateWay Community College (2013 - present)
Metropolitan Arts Institute (2009 - 2017)
Sylvan Learning Center (2007-2009)
Education:
Emporia: Masters in Mathematics (May 2021)
ASU: Masters in Education (May 2011)
UofA: BS Mathematics, BA Communication (Fall 2002)
Interest:
*Supporting students to develop a growth mindset about mathematical problem solving
*Emphasis in treating the handwritten work of mathematics as communication to an audience
*Research in the history of mathematics and logic
*Dad jokes (Q: Why did the scarecrow get a promotion? A: She was outstanding in her field!)
*Trail running
Luis Danny Vingochea, M.Ed
IE3125
vingochea@gatewaycc.edu
Luis “Danny” Vingochea is originally from Tucson, AZ, but has been in the Phoenix area for over 30 years. Danny received his bachelor’s degree (Mathematics) in 1998 and his master’s degree (Education) in 2006, both from Arizona State University. Danny also took five Graduate Level math courses at NAU, from 2016 to 2018, in order to meet the HLC qualifications.
Danny has 26 years of teaching experience (at both the high school and college level), and he has been GateWay since the Fall of 2005. Danny has taught MAT 081, 082, 085, 091, 092, 115, 121, 122, 126, 142, and 151 over the years for GWCC.
Danny is also very involved with several committees and campus organizations on campus. He is currently serving on Dev Ed RIT, Guided Pathways, GateWay Gives, the BRIDGE Academy, Runway To Success, STEM Scholars, and the GIFT Committee. He also has taken part in a number of hiring committees. All these experiences have allowed him to build a stronger bond with the faculty, staff, administration, and students at GWCC.
Shannon Ruth
IE3101
shannon.ruth@gatewaycc.edu
Shannon Ruth joined GateWay Community College in 2010 as a mathematics tutor in the Learning Center, and has been mathematics faculty for the college since 2012. Helping people understand and enjoy mathematics is really her dream job. She enjoys fostering a strong sense of community within the classroom as a way to meaningfully contribute to the success of her students. Shannon also serves as the math coordinator. She earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in mathematics. Shannon enjoys spending time outdoors in any way, especially hiking in the beautiful Arizona desert!
Dr. Elizabeth Dunphy, DVM, DACVECC
BIO160, BIO201, BIO202
elizabeth.dunphy@gatewaycc.edu
Dr. Dunphy is originally from Burlington, Vermont and has been in Arizona since 1996 except a 4 year stint in Missouri from 1999-2003. She is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, and Board Certified in Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care Medicine. She practiced as an Intensive Care Veterinarian here in the Valley for 7 years but switched to teaching for GateWay in 2010. She has also been an adjunct instructor at Chandler-Gilbert Community College and ASU. In her free time she is chauffeur, cook, maid, and homework enforcer to her 14 year old daughter. She is a die hard New England Patriots fan and loves cooking/baking and anything food related in general and has aspirations to start a garden and grow her own fruits and veggies.
Mr. Herbert Wildey, B.S., M.S.
BIO181, BIO182
IE3123
herb.wildey@gatewaycc.edu
Herb Wildey was born and raised in Flagstaff, Arizona. He developed an interest in science and nature at a young age and while attending Northern Arizona University settled into the Biology major. He began teaching zoology labs in 1996 and has been working in a teaching capacity ever since. While at NAU, his biological interests grew to include the evolution of mating systems, population genetics, animal behavior, marine biology and ecology, and natural history. His MS thesis centered on the natural history of a marine mud shrimp of the northern Gulf of California. He began teaching part time at Mesa Community College in 2004, and held positions at Arizona State University-West and Phoenix College. He has served as residential faculty at GateWay Community College since 2016. His teaching philosophy is simple: strive to be able to explain a complex concept or system to somebody else, because if you can do that, then you really know it. His current interests are focused on integrating course-based undergraduate research opportunities (CURES) into his introductory biology classes.
Dr. James Crimado, Ph.D
BIO201, BIO202
IE 3109
jamfy98551@gatewaycc.edu
Jim Crimando, B.S., Ph.D from Arizona State University. has been a Residential Faculty since 1997 teaching mainly Anatomy & Physiology. Dr. Crimando served as Math/Science Division Chair for ten years, as well as Science Coordinator for several years. He enjoys teaching and interacting with students, helping find ways to learn and connect with what they learn.
Since most of his students are heading into a healthcare program/career, he makes a point of helping them apply their learning to their lives and their career goals. Dr. Crimando regularly emphasizes building better habits for success in life and career, as well how to learn the heavy content of A&P.
Jim has lived in the valley area for over 40 years. He enjoys the outdoors, hiking, camping, gardening, being out with nature, and continuing to grow in his Catholic faith with his family.
Dr. Jennifer Foltz-Sweat, Ph.D
BIO105, BIO156
IE 3112
jennifer.foltz-sweat@gatewaycc.edu
Jennifer Foltz-Sweat received her Ph.D. in Environmental Science, Policy, and Management from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2013. Her research focused on wild bee communities in grassland habitats of the Central Valley of California. Jennifer currently mentors students who are researching bee communities in urban and natural habitats. She is passionate about motivating students to learn science by applying what they know to real-world scenarios and fosters an accepting learning environment for a diverse student body.
Dr. Tsuhen Michelle Chang, Ph.D
CHM151, CHM152, CHM130, CHM230
tsuhen.chang@gatewaycc.eduNo
Dr. Tsuhen Michelle Chang earned her BA in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley in 2001. She then spent a few years developing drug therapy targets for a pharmaceutical company in the Bay Area. She has many different interests and has completed a two-year post-graduate Christian program in California in 2006 as well as obtained her PhD in Chemistry from the University of Arizona in 2012. Dr. Chang has been teaching Chemistry at GateWay Community College since 2014 and has been the Science Academic Coordinator since 2018. As she likes to hike, you may encounter her on the many hiking trails in Arizona.
Dr. Sanjiv K. Jha
PHY101, PHY121, PHY131
sanjiv.jha@gatewaycc.edu
Dr. Sanjiv K. Jha has been a Residential Physics Faculty at GateWay Community College (GWCC) since 2022, where he teaches a variety of Physics courses (such as University Physics I and II, Introduction to Physics, etc) in face-to-face and online formats. Jha received both his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Physics from New Mexico State University (NMSU) in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Before joining the GWCC, he held positions as Assistant Professor of Physics at East Central University (ECU) in Ada, Oklahoma, and Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama; Post-Doctoral Research Associate at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) and the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Mississippi; and Lecturer of Physics at the Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Dr. Jha loves teaching, and he brings a decade of award-winning teaching and mentoring experience to GWCC. In his typical Physics classes, students can expect an active/engaging learning experience where they learn how to apply math and theory to real-world problems to learn important concepts. He has been a dedicated educator, researcher, and mentor to several undergraduate students, helping them to complete their research projects, and enabling them to succeed in their academic pursuits. Students mentored by Jha have earned co-authorships in journal publications and they have presented their research in conferences. In the past, some of his students were selected for the NSF-funded Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Program, which has helped them gain high-quality research experience in a larger research university.
Dr. Jha is very interested in Physics Education and enthusiastic about implementing active learning strategies and course-embedded research in his classes to improve access to education and research activities for all students. He believes that when students are exposed to the research environment, they learn beneficial skills that may not otherwise be developed. Jha has developed a fine record of research and published several papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals with international repute and has spoken at numerous conference presentations. For more information regarding the publications, please check the following link: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=7k1KgmgAAAAJ&hl=en
Dr. Jha believes that diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential components of academic excellence. He has a robust history of mentoring students, especially underrepresented groups, financially challenged, and first-generation students, and he is aware of the various challenges/problems they face. Jha’s expertise will assist in bridging gaps for students from underserved populations at GateWay.
Selected Awards/Fellowship:
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U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) 2022 Summer Faculty Research Fellowship, DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory (ARL) (2022)
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Outstanding American Association of Physics Teachers Teaching Assistant Award 2014, American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) & Department of Physics, New Mexico State University (2014)
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Bravo Award for Outstanding Performance as Teaching Assistants of Physics Laboratories during the 2010 summer session, Department of Physics, New Mexico State University (2010)
Dr. Saroj Chirravuri, Ed.D
BIO205
chirravuri@gatewaycc.edu
Dr. Saroj Chirravuri has been teaching Microbiology and Introductory Biology courses at GWCC since 2004 as an adjunct and as residential faculty since 2020. She has an MS in Biotechnology, MS in Natural Science, and a Doctorate in Education (Higher Education). She has served as Faculty Senate Representative and is one of the Academic Coordinators for Science. She is with the Social Justice and Equity Alliance (SJE), International Education committee, ALRISE alliance (initiative of Center for Broadening Participation in STEM, ASU) etc. at GWCC. She is currently in her 3rd year offering Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CURES). She has trained as a partner instructor for Tiny Earth consortium, Science Educator Alliance (SEA)- Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolution (PHAGEs) and has been part of DNA Barcoding and Microbial Annotation workshops and hopes to offer CRISPR related projects in the classroom in the near future.
Tara Coleman, M.S.
CHM130/CHM130LL
IE3107
tara.coleman@gatewaycc.edu
Tara Coleman teaches chemistry at GateWay Community College. Tara joined GateWay in 2016 after teaching for several years around the Phoenix Valley and in Denver, Colorado. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Ohio University and a Master of Science degree from The University of Akron. Before teaching, Tara worked as a chemist in the pharmaceutical industry working on projects such as synthesis of A.P.I.’s and natural products isolation. In 2011, she began teaching chemistry part-time at the Community College of Denver. Although the pharmaceutical industry was exciting and challenging, Tara quickly realized that teaching was her true calling. In 2012 she left the pharmaceutical industry to focus solely on teaching. Not long after, she moved to Arizona to be closer to family. In her spare time, Tara likes to run, bike, hike, and watch her two girls play soccer.
Dr. Timothy Cejka
BIO201, BIO202
cejka@gatewaycc.edu
Timothy Cejka earned his Doctorate in Chiropractic from Palmer University in Davenport Iowa. He studied Acupuncture and herbal medicine at the Northwest Institute of Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine and his postgraduate work is in Neurology. Dr. Cejka specialized in Upper Cervical Chiropractic and practiced for 10 years in the treatment of traumatic brain injury, migraines, epilepsy, and associated syndromes. He has received numerous board certifications in his field and traveled to Southeast Asia to study meditation, herbal medicine, and barefoot doctors. Dr. Cejka has been teaching for over 24 years with 20 years teaching Anatomy & Physiology at GateWay. He loves being a father, teaching about health and happiness, traveling, kayaking, hiking, nutrition, gardening, martial arts, and music.