Meet our 9 new Residential Faculty here at GCC. If you see them passing by please welcome them to our amazing campus.

Each was asked to share a little about themselves. Here is what they had to say:

Manuela Jimenez, Psychology Faculty

Originally from Colombia, I moved to the US to pursue my doctoral studies in Educational Psychology – Applied Developmental Sciences from the University of Virginia. After graduation I worked as a research professor at ASU, where I (re)discovered my love for teaching and mentoring undergraduate students, so I decided to look for a place that focused on those areas. I am very excited to have found it at GCC!

I love to spend my down time exploring this beautiful state camping or hiking with my husband and my tiny dog. I also love all types of dance and performing arts, from ballet to belly dancing. I am very excited for the opportunity to join GCC and work with all of you!

Genea Stephens, Public Safety Sciences (AJS) Faculty

Throughout my first career in law enforcement, I had the opportunity to be involved in different types and levels of employee development and I made the decision that I wanted my second career to focus on helping people achieve their goals, which led me to teaching.  I served  in law enforcement for more than 20 years at local police department where I held the rank of sergeant for 14 of my 20+ years.  I completed my doctorate just prior to becoming eligible to retire in 2015. When I retired, I accepted a position with a national online University as the Program Chair for Law Enforcement Administration and Public Administration.  Four years later an OYO position in the Public Safety Sciences department at Glendale Community College opened up and I jumped.  I started teaching as an adjunct at Glendale Community College in 2007, so it was like coming home.  In addition to teaching Administration of Justice classes, I am also the Director of Law Enforcement (Training) Operations at Glendale Community College, which includes over seeing law enforcement specific training courses and the Law Enforcement Training Academy.  I believe my experiences as a practitioner will enrich the courses I teach for my students.  I want to share not only the topical content, but my experiences with my students to help them succeed.    I am a first-generation college graduate and was a working adult throughout my educational journey, so I have great empathy for our students who are balancing personal, professional, and school responsibilities.  On a personal note, I am an Arizona native and currently live with my two Australian Cattle dogs, Jasper & Percy, whose antics keep me busy. I enjoy spending my “spare” time working on DIY projects around the house.

Alisha Stott, Nursing Faculty

My name is Alisha Stott, and I am one of three NUR 152  “Block I” professors for the nursing program at GCC .  I have been a Registered Nurse for 20 years, primarily in the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU), with some time in Oncology, Perioperative Services and other various locations as a float nurse. I am nationally certified as a Critical Care RN (CCRN-K).  I first found my love of teaching when I became a Critical Care Educator for a large healthcare system in 2008. I came to GCC in 2020 as an adjunct professor for NUR 252 “Block 3”, but transitioned to NUR 152 after two semesters. I love teaching people what is in my brain and showing how nurses are compassionate and caring, even from day 1 of nursing school.  

On a personal note, I have been married for 10 years and we have an 11-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter.   Both keep me on my toes as one is obsessed with swimming, Xbox, music and animals and one is obsessed with volleyball, golf, unicorns, and every animal ever created. We love to go camping at the beach.  We are obsessed with the Phillies, as our nephew is the starting shortstop for the team. We also watch a lot of football, and fight over who’s team gets to be on tv. I am also obsessed with Broadway musicals- Hamilton, Phantom, Rent and Wicked are my biggest obsessions. I almost always have one of those playing in my office while I’m doing work and playing in my car. I can’t wait to continue my career at GCC and grow our future nurses!

Matt Pearcy, Biology Faculty

I earned a B.S. in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from the University of Idaho and a Ph.D. from the Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccinology at Arizona State University.  My work focused on the interactions between viruses and the human immune system.  I currently teach Microbiology and General Biology.  Prior to working at GCC, I was a full time faculty member at Yavapai College for 15 years.  I serve as a peer reviewer and member of the Institutional Actions Council for the Higher Learning Commission.  During the Summer I work as a river guide in the Grand Canyon.  I’m excited to be part of the GCC community!

Natalie Dominguez, Fitness and Wellness Faculty

Hello everyone! My name is Natalie Dominguez and I am new faculty in the Fitness and Wellness department. I am beyond grateful to have been offered a position here at GCC. I was a student at GCC myself at several different times in my life and have always considered this to be “home”. I attended school here in 2006 to become certified as a group fitness instructor.  Since then I have worked at a multitude of places around the phoenix metro area teaching group fitness classes, teaching yoga, doing personal training, and working on wellness programs. I have had the opportunity to work on everything from youth wellness programs to health coaching for retired adults to doing physicals for professional baseball during spring training. In 2015 I returned to GCC to start working towards completing my Masters in Exercise Science so that I could transition into the fitness industry full time. It was at that time that I discovered my passion for teaching and knew that I never wanted to leave GCC.  I was fortunate enough to get hired as a lab tech for the Sports Performance Lab here on campus after completing my associates, and worked my way up to teaching for the Fitness and Wellness department as I completed my education.  I have been here at GCC for about five years now.  A fun fact about my journey here at GCC is that two of the instructors/mentors that I had when I attended classes in 2006 are now my coworkers!

Kate Hope, English Faculty

My name is Kate Hope, and I am GCC’s newest English department residential faculty member. Most recently, I was an assistant professor of English Education at California State University, Stanislaus, where I taught upper-division English education courses, as well as children’s literature and writing for teachers. Prior to Stan State, I taught first-year composition and secondary English methods at ASU, I supervised student teachers for Mary Lou Fulton’s Teachers College, and I taught first-year composition and remedial writing at Yavapai College, all while completing my PhD at ASU. I also taught English at Queen Creek High School for seven years. This semester, I am teaching ENG 101 and ENG 102. 

Outside of teaching, my time belongs to my family. My husband, Brian, and I have three daughters: Meghan, Charlotte, and Jillian. Our favorite activities include camping, mountain biking. All of my daughters play soccer, so our Friday nights and Saturday mornings are spent on the field. As a family, we also eat more guacamole and tacos than I’d like to admit, we love to laugh with and at each other, and of course, we talk about and share great books. 

Stacy Colaiacovo, Math Faculty

Hi fellow Gauchos!  My name is Stacy Colaiacovo, and I can hardly express in words how thrilled I am to be part of the residential faculty.  I worked at GCC as an evening adjunct for 8 years while teaching high school math.  I then worked in our math department as an OYO for the last 3 years.  So, this is technically my 12^th year, but also my first!  Outside of work, I’m an Uber driver (for my kids), a chef (for my kids, husband, puppy and tortoise), and a maid (for the already mentioned dependents).  I’m kidding of course! Jokes aside though, I love every minute of service to my family, my friends, and my students, and I look forward to the many new relationships that will spark this year.

Matt Lowenkron, Business and Information Technology (Accounting) Faculty

I am originally from Los Angeles, California.  After graduating from Northern Arizona University with a BSBA in Management, my educational pursuit continued at Arizona State University with the completion of a post-baccalaureate in Accounting.  As a resident of Peoria, Arizona, the field of tax preparation offered a successful career that involved serving a very dynamic clientele.  My role to assist clients with satisfying their tax obligation was greatly enhanced when I became an Enrolled Agent (EA). 

My interest in hiking and other outdoor activities has developed into a passion. In Maricopa County, there is an entire network of people available to help discover and enjoy the beauty of Arizona.  The great amount of effort and sense of achievement that result from successfully navigating Arizona’s spectacular mountain scenery serves as a primary source of inspiration.  The freedom I enjoy from hiking and mountain biking is only enhanced by the friends and contacts I’ve acquired while living in Arizona.  It’s also a great stress reliever.

I love to teach!! Since 2016, I have taught accounting at Glendale Community College and have expanded my course load to include business communication and business statistics. My favorite class to teach is managerial accounting since the prerequisites for this course require students to demonstrate an understanding of the accounting model.  This facilitates the interactive environment that I strive for students to enjoy in all my classes. 

Lea Lanz, Math Faculty

My full name is a very long one: Rosidian Aprillya Endang Palupi Esti Rahayu Widyastuti Lanz, and I go by Lea.  I am originally from Jakarta, Indonesia and I have been living in the U. S. since 1991.  My education background ranges from materials science and engineering (MSE) to mathematics.  I cannot be any happier to finish my education journey in mathematics when I earned my doctorate degree from Auburn University (go War Eagles!).  So, here I am at Glendale Community College (GCC) doing what I love the most, teaching mathematics.  With my academic background, I have been fortunate to teach a wide range of mathematics courses. This semester, I am teaching College Algebra and PreCalculus courses.

If you were a student in my class, then you would know that my current first love is Ashtanga yoga. Ashtanga yoga fits the physical challenges that I need. Although I am not at the point where I appreciate the practice for its spiritual benefits, I hope one day I will get there.  I recently celebrated my first Asthangaversary and it felt such an accomplishment.  Every day is a different practice; there is always a way to improve a pose…every time I get on my mat!

At home, I have two doggies, Mr. Blue and Miss Bella…and my husband.  We adopted the doggies from SPCA and they are hoots! Blue is a tripod and Bella loves to wrestle him. My husband, who is not so much as a hoot, is a full professor of MSE at ASU. We both love to laugh and eat. We love to watch stand up comedies and go out to eat. His favorite is seafood. So, if you have any suggestion where we can get good seafood, please let me know!