DETAILED BACKGROUND
While serving in the military, I completed both a Bachelor and a Master Degree in Police Science and Administration. Though these programs emphasized administration, supervision, and accounting in nonprofit organizations, I included several upper level and graduate courses in data processing. The exposure to computers resulted in a career change and self-study in microcomputers. The self-study included machine language programming for the 6502 (which Apple computer used at the time), Z80, and the 8080 processors.
Upon leaving the Air Force, started on a Master Degree in Business Administration, and selected computer information systems courses for electives. I pursued a Master of Business Administration rather than a Computer Information Systems degree because there were many highly skilled computer professionals, but few had mastered accounting and business information needs. At the time, the Arizona State University MBA program did not have a CIS related emphasis.
Overall, the graduate and upper level course work included the following:
- Computer Programming for Graduate Students (combined with an independent study course that covered BASIC, COBOL, and FORTRAN programming)
- Management Information Systems
- Accounting Information Systems
- Systems Design and Evaluation
- Security of Computer Systems
While pursuing the MBA, I worked for a small startup company named Electronic Directory, Inc., principally writing machine language routines (for the 6502) that communicated with custom electronic circuitry and controlled a commercial grade VCR. The design allowed for communication with other industrial machines. Ultimately, became the team leader for the three-member team of new product development personnel. Also performed some consulting on a small scale, assisting other businesses with installation and operation of personal computers.
Following completion of the MBA program, I began work with Financial Information Systems Inc., writing COBOL programs for a UNIX based minicomputer system. The majority of the project involved porting an accounting program written in COBOL for a single user DOS operating system and converting it for use in a multi-user, multi-tasking UNIX environment. Designed and developed COBOL code that interfaced with C routines providing access to operating system features. One feature included screen display of printed reports, including scrolling up, down, left, and right for a complete view of the information. Designed and developed a method of interfacing the Informix database product with the accounting data for developing custom reports. Created custom reports with Informix for internal use. Though this firm is no longer in business, I currently provide computer consulting services to Allen Financial Insurance Group, which is owned by the same individual as the former Financial Information Systems, Inc.
During this period I met Mr. Mark Montanus from
Managed a computer lab for the Arizona Department of
Transportation in cooperation with
Have taught virtually every semester and all levels of CIS and BPC courses at Maricopa Community Colleges for fourteen years as a part-time adjunct faculty member prior to becoming full time. My teaching experience has been in a variety of environments, including traditional classroom, a computer lab, teleconferencing, and the "Sun Sounds" radio station. Some classes were directed at visually impaired and homebound students.
I have been a member of Community College Advisory Committees that decide on the requirements for the various Computer Information Systems and Business and Personal Computer certificate and degree programs. Have identified a need for and designed CIS/BPC courses at Rio Salado that are in use throughout the Maricopa Community Colleges.
Due to my teaching experience, was hired to review a college level WordPerfect tutorial by a publishing company before final publication. Have developed a short tutorial using advanced DOS skills for an advanced DOS course.
In 1985, I was a principal in starting a company that has employed five
full-time and six part-time personnel. The earlier projects included
implementing five separate Novell networks for the Department of Juvenile
Corrections and juvenile institutions in remote locations. This system is their
principal means of data processing. Obtained a contract to
teach classes for the Arizona Department of Transportation in conjunction with
During the early 1990's, spent five years performing system's analysis and design of a premium finance program and supervised up to eleven programmers implementing the design using structured programming techniques (based on Yourdon and Constantine). The use of structured design resulted in significant labor savings by developing unique libraries of code that simplified writing other components of the system. Wrote complex functions, including financial programs (functions) for calculating fixed payments that maximized the firm's income. Assisted personnel with programming and debugging difficult routines.
The program written for the finance company is used for tracking loans and payments and has an exporting capability for the accounting software. It automatically tracks the value of the assets (which decline in value over a short period of time), handles all notices, and collection efforts, then calculates the financial impact of the loans and transfers accounting related affects to the accounting program. The handling of payments went from processing four to six per minute with a high number of errors, to fifty or sixty per minute with near zero errors. The system also provides substantially more information about operations and accounting effects.
Have operated a wide range of microcomputer software in a mixed server environment (Netware 3.11, 4.1, and Windows NT 4.0/2000 server.) Provided support for clients' Netware and NT based LANs, various accounting systems, and application software. The primary focus was to integrate corporate wide information between disparate applications, simplifying access to all corporate assets.
Currently, I am a full time residential faculty member of
FUTURE ISSUES
The focus of my expertise will continue to be access to information and teaching the latest versions of Microsoft products.
SUMMARY
OF EXPERIENCE
Maricopa Community
College District,
- Have taught business and personal computer courses such as Survey of Information Systems, Microsoft Windows (XP), Microsoft Certification courses, C programming, and Database courses.
. MicroComputer Advisors, Inc., Phoenix
Arizona. President. (10/85 to
- Increased efficiency and accuracy of a client's business operations over 200% by meeting with managers and employees, analyzing existing operations, then designing, developing, and implementing improvements.
- Supervised development of custom finance package consisting of over 12 man-years of xBase (Clipper 5.x) programming effort using structured programming techniques.
- Assisted programmers with difficult and highly technical programming issues.
- Solved complex problems involving diverse hardware and software technologies.
- Increased business' operational efficiency and effectiveness by providing analysis, design, development and maintenance of databases, spreadsheet models, and accounting.
- Worked with accounting products such as State of the Art's MAS90, CYMA, Great Plains, RealWorld, Solomon, Dac-Easy, State of the Art's BusinessWorks, and Quicken.
- Currently support word processing software such as WordPerfect and Word; spreadsheet programs including Lotus, Excel, and Quattro Pro; xBase database products such as dBase and Clipper; and presentation software such as Powerpoint.
- Trained clients and managed various microcomputer systems, operating systems/environments, applications, and networks including MCA's in-house mix of Novell 3.11, Novell 4.1, and Microsoft Windows NT server with workstations using DOS, Windows 3.1, Windows95, and Windows NT for workstations.
- Assist small businesses and government agencies in the selection of micro/minicomputer systems and upgrading of existing equipment and software.
- Perform or supervise all in-house accounting tasks. Personally complete the corporation's tax return.
Maricopa Community
College District,
- Teach business and personal computer courses (currently at Glendale Community College) with near perfect evaluations. Have taught every semester since 9/83.
- Provide 24 hour, 7 days per week access for students (home and work numbers).
- Initiated C programming course in college district as a member of the Glendale Community College CIS Advisory Council. I have been a member for over 12 years.
- Developed new courses, outlines, and course materials for various technologies such as teleconferencing and radio for students which included visually impaired.
- Initiated and managed computer lab for the Arizona Department of Transportation in cooperation with Rio Salado Community College.
Financial Information
Systems, Inc.,
- Customer support of AT&T 3B2/5 computers with UNIX operating system
- Porting of accounting software written in COBOL from IBM-PC to UNIX
- Managed five member team of COBOL programmers
- Designed and developed various Informix database applications which were integrated with the RealWorld accounting data.
Electronic Directory,
Inc.,
- Programmed in assembly language. Created custom interfaces for industrial equipment and Microsoft BASIC programming language for the Apple computer.
- Managed three member new product development team. Successfully completed.
- Supervised six man law enforcement element.
- Managed Luke Air Force Base Corrections facility.
- Developed and trained six man Tactical Neutralization Team.
- Promoted to Staff Sergeant within four years.
EDUCATION
Master of Business Administration, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, December 1983.
Master of Police Science and Administration, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, December 1979.
Bachelor of Police Science and Administration, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, July 1976.
Associate of Police Science.
Professional Associations
Past member of the Board of Directors.
Chairman of Education Committee.
Researched, proposed, and implemented a successful benefits package.
BPC/CIS Advisory Council since 1985
TEACHING METHODOLOGY
After providing students with an extensive syllabus, we review it
together during the first class. The reading is assigned for the week prior to
the class in which the material is discussed. During each class, the
assignments are referenced in the syllabus to keep the students on track. The
students find that performing the assignments as designed increases their
knowledge by being exposed to the material prior to the class discussion. This
also permits much more interesting and lively discussions with the students,
where they are provided ample opportunities to respond to questions put to them
and show their level and clarity of understanding.
Once the students demonstrate they have grasped the material presented in the book, the key issues are emphasized and difficult material is clarified. Supplemental information that is not covered in the class materials is also imparted to the students. In other words, valuable time is not spent unnecessarily repeating material the students already understand from the assignment allowing adequate time to discuss difficult and supplemental material.
Have also incorporated animated presentations where appropriate, with such topics as understanding the terminology for window screens, or tasks that are difficult and require step by step demonstration.
Once the information is disseminated to the students, they proceed to an exercise. The exercise is a series of carefully laid out tasks, which round out the learning experience. When students request assistance, their learning and confidence is reinforced by having the student solve the problem themselves by my use of carefully crafted questions, rather than showing the student what to do. This method teaches the student about the problem solving process so they may solve future problems on their own.
Experience has shown that the students learn best by working on their own with an exercise which stresses the most recent material but also incorporates some previous material for review. After the students complete the exercise, we review it together by having them place the various answers for each question on the board and discussing the different approaches. The class is challenged to have not only a correct response but also the best or most efficient answer for the task.
As an instructor, I make myself available to students not only during lab, but also by telephone, so they may have quality assistance while working on the course materials from their home or office computers. Many of my students continue on to my other classes, as well as recommend my classes to their friends and acquaintances simply because of the ease at which they find they are able to learn.