In science, there is always something new to be learned and explored. This fact makes it easy for someone like myself to learn and become certified in new skills. I am an Adjunct Professor at Pasadena City College and have taught three exciting Health Science courses for our students at La Salle. This semester, we introduced a new course, Human Disease, to add to our offerings of Medical Terminology and Introduction to Health Sciences. Last year, I became certified as an American Red Cross Instructor for basic life support skills; the next step is to get certified in teaching and certifying students for advanced life support.

Another area of growth I seek to address is my understanding of computer coding. Many projects in our prosthesis design end that use robotics require coding knowledge. I took a coding course in college, but my skills are incredibly rusty. I hope to enroll in an online coding course to help me improve my coding skills. Another area of technological growth I will be pursuing is becoming more advanced in my virtual reality scenario skills. We have some great scenarios for students already in place; however, adding more personalization to the skills and objectives would greatly benefit the learning experience. On that same note, I would like to bring augmented reality to our program. Virtual reality is great; however, augmented reality offers students more of an immersive experience. This summer, we toured Kaiser Permanente’s School of Medicine and saw all of their innovative equipment and learning tools. They had a neat augmented reality program that was far more detailed and life-like than our virtual reality. Although transitioning to augmented reality will come with a hefty price tag, the investment is well worth it.

All in all, this list is nothing but a glimpse of what I hope to accomplish this coming year. Learning new skills and bringing innovative equipment and experiences to the CARLOW Center is what I strive for continuously. My intellectual growth translates into the intellectual growth of our students. I will forever be a student of science and technology!

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By: Elizabeth Parga M.S. Chemistry