Clyne G. H. Namuo, Ph.D., dean of Business and Technology
Cochise College starts the academic year with a new dean of Business and Technology, Clyne G. H. Namuo, Ph.D.
Dr. Namuo, a long time faculty member at Cochise College and native to Hawaii, says he has taken big strides to plan out his first year in this leadership position. Much of his plans come from his experience teaching at Cochise College.
“I think it’s important for faculty and staff to understand the struggles that students may face,” Namuo said as he described what it was like to teach at a community college. “Our students have lives, they have families, and they have jobs and responsibilities. Classes may not be the center of their universe, but higher education is still a vehicle that will take them to where they want to go with their lives. Time after time I’ve seen our faculty walk with students through some of those life struggles, and it speaks to our mission as a community college.”
In his previous position, Namuo taught mainly Computer Information Systems (CIS), and for the last four years, he has been busy revamping the Cyber Security Information degree.
Namuo said the Cyber Security Information degree was revised to help Cochise College graduates understand topics that are essential to work for local industries.
“We created new courses like Network Defense, Computer Forensics, and courses in scripting and mobile security. We want to rely on the local industries to help support that degree plan and employ our students,” Namuo explained. “Before it was more of a generic information degree. Now, with the cyber focus, it’s more applicable to local employers.”
Namuo says he is going to miss the teaching aspect of his former position at Cochise College, “I’ll miss it every day, but (as dean) my operations are so diverse. Essentially, I’ll be overseeing about 1/3 of the college’s instructional activities including Business, CIS and Career Technical, and we are going to be exploring some really big plans in my area.”
Plans include helping departments work with the community through outlets such as outreach centers and military installations, as well as providing professional development opportunities for faculty and staff and a two-year innovation plan to help progress classes and degrees.
“President J.D. Rottweiler has set a strong vision, and it’s up to everyone else to grab hold of that vision and make sure that vision happens,” Namuo said.
The new dean is also part of several leadership roles in the community, one being the president of the Board of Directors of the Sierra Vista Area Habitat for Humanity organization.
“I imagine that my role at Habitat and my role at Cochise College will blend together and that we’ll be joining in an exciting partnership,” Namuo explained.
There are also plans to continue expanding CIS.
“We will be doing a lot more things in Cyber. There are plans to partner with the University of Arizona to grow the Cyber Security degree. We will be seeking a National Security Agency Certification, and we are also building a third advance technical lab.”
Most recently, the Cooperative Education program has come under the dean’s division.
“What this means is you can expect more of our programs to have a cooperative educational experience. Instead of just graduating with a piece of paper, you’ll graduate with real life experience.”
The Business and Technology Department has programs that include Business, Computer Information Systems, and a wide array of options within the technology field. For more information on these programs, go online to Cochise.edu.