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ESL Faculty
Mary Gross - Lead Instructor
 Mary began her higher education as a student of Mount San Antonio Community College in Walnut, California. She then earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Cal Poly Pomona University, and her Master of Science in TESOL Education from Cal State University Fullerton where she was awarded the Outstanding MS Candidate in TESOL. She also holds a Certificate in Online Teaching from the UCLA.
In the 1980s , Mary taught Academic ESL Writing, Reading, and Listening/Speaking at Cal Poly University and local community colleges in the Los Angeles area. Upon moving to San Diego in 1993, Mary joined MiraCosta Community College as an Associate Faculty member where she taught all of the ESL course offerings as well as served as the Associate Faculty Representative to the Academic Senate.
In 1999, Mary attained a full-time position at San Diego Miramar College where she taught both English and ESL. She was a faculty leader in ESL program revision and development as well as served as the Team Leader for General Education course development for SDCCD Online.
Mary was thrilled to return to MiraCosta in 2005 as the Lead Instructor for the Credit English as a Second Language Program and is dedicated to helping ESL students succeed in college and meet their academic, personal, and vocational needs.
Zakia Farouq
 Zakia was born in Kabul, Afghanistan and moved to the United States in May of 1981. She speaks Farsi, English, and Spanish. As an ESL student, Ms. Farouq attended elementary, middle, and high school in New York. Receiving her BS and Master’s in TESOL from St.John's University, she began teaching ESL at Long Island City High School in Astoria, Queens where she coordinated the Saturday institute which emphasized essay writing in preparation for the New York State Regents Examination.
In August of 2001, she moved to San Diego and has been a special education teacher, a reading instructor, and an ESL instructor at Palomar and MiraCosta Colleges. Zakia says, “I love teaching especially because I was in my student's seat once. I can relate to the hardships that my students feel and go through everyday because I went through the same struggles. My goal is to help each individual student be able to reach his or her dreams. I am very enthusiastic about helping my ESL students be as successful as they can be in college and whatever path they may choose to pursue for their future or their career.”
Carol Forseth
 Carol Forseth arrived at MiraCosta College, the latest stop in her enjoyable career of teaching and writing, in January, 2006. She completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education, with a minor in Spanish, at the University of North Texas. After teaching music at the elementary level, she took a job teaching Spanish and English at an American high school in the Dominican Republic. She developed a love for teaching English as a second language to adults during a summer teaching assignment in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, so she returned to school to earn a Master’s degree in English, specializing in TESOL, at Colorado State University.
In 1990, she and her husband moved to Nanchang, China, to teach English at the Jiangxi Teachers’ University. Later they moved to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where Carol taught English at the National University of Mongolian Arts and at the Teacher Upgradation Institute. In 1998, her family moved back to Colorado and Carol taught English composition and education at her old alma mater, Colorado State University. When her husband accepted a job transfer to Vista, California in 2005, she was sad to leave her work in Colorado but is thankful to begin teaching at MiraCosta College.
In between and during her travels, Carol has also been employed as a curriculum writer, editor and proofreader. She has a passion for good writing and for teaching writing. She believes that being a good writer is not a matter of natural ability as much as it is a skill that can be developed. She loves to see students grow in their ability to express themselves in writing, and is fond of saying, “When you can write well, people think you are smarter than you really are.”
Debbie Hanley
 Debbie's introduction to ESL was quite unusual. During a year of volunteer work in Morelia, Michoacan, she contracted typhoid fever and was forced to stay at home. When neighbors heard that she as a teacher, they asked if she could teach them English so that they could go to "el otro lado." Having just completed her BA degree in Elementary Education/French from Bethel College in St. Paul MN, Debbie was unfamiliar with this kind of teaching, but found some books and dove right in. To her delight, she discovered her passion- teaching adults who are excited about learning English!
Upon returning to the states, she as able to continue teaching at Concordia College in River Forest, IL. Her teaching assignments have subsequently taken her to Minnesota, Florida, and finally to MiraCosta where she has been teaching for the past eighteen years in the noncredit ESL program. She received her Masters in TESOL from USIU in 1991 and spent the following year as the director of ESL at their London campus. During her years at MCC, Debbie has initiated the International Conversation Cafes, which is now a monthly event at MCC; she has also been awarded two innovation grants for her MENTOR and TEAM programs that have been successfully implemented at the Community Learning Center. Debbie has taught the ESL Bridging class for the past ten years and is excited about her new credit assignment, ESL 820, a grammar review class.
Shannon Jager
Biography Coming Soon!
Nikola Kaminsky
 Nikola was born and raised in the Czech Republic. She earned her Magister degree at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen where she double majored in English Language and Literature and Russian Language and Literature with emphasis on teaching both disciplines. During her studies, she was teaching ESL at different schools in her home country and later also at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen.
After finishing school, Nikola followed her husband to San Diego and enrolled in San Diego State University where she earned a Master of Arts degree in Education specializing in Policy Studies in Language and Cross Cultural Education with Emphasis on Linguistics. She also holds a Basic Certificate in Applied Linguistics and ESL from SDSU. During her studies at SDSU, Nikola is a member of several professional organizations including Phi Beta Delta - Honor Society for International Scholars, Pi Lambda Theta - International Honor Society and Professional Association in Education, and CATESOL – California Association of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.
During her graduate program at SDSU, Nikola developed a deep interest in the academic experience of international college students on American campuses. She is excited to be able to work with international students at the Mira Costa College helping them with their language as well as cultural adjustment challenges.
Sou Lackkaty
 Sou was born in Vientiane, Laos. She started her schooling in RoiEt, Thailand and continued her education in the United States. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Diego State University and a Master of Arts degree from Ohio University in Linguistics with emphasis in TESOL. In 2005, Sou went to Chile as a Fulbright Fellow and worked with the Universidad de Atacama.
Sou enjoys learning and teaching languages. She speaks, reads, and writes five languages. For the past 12 years, Sou has taught ESL and various other subjects with the San Diego Community College District in San Diego, California, The Northern Jiaotong University in Beijing, China, Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, and Universidad de Atacama in Copiapo, Chile. Currently, Sou is a part-time instructor with MiraCosta College and UCSD's ELI Program.
It is Sou's love for continued/lifetime learning and interest in peoples, places, languages, cultures, and customs that has motivated her to want to share this love and interest with others. Sou hopes to continue her lifelong "dream job" as a teacher who shares and inspires her students for the love of learning; the love of knowledge.
Victoria Lannen
Biography Coming Soon!
Holly Lecakes-Jones
 Holly Lecakes-Jones was born in New York City, New York and was raised in Goshen, New York. After completing her first year of college on Long Island she moved to the San Diego area. MiraCosta and Palomar colleges offered a bridge to California State University, Long Beach. There she received her B.A. in Spanish language and culture. Upon taking her first Linguistics class, it was love at first phoneme! She went on to pursue a M.A. in Linguistics and holds BCLAD and TESOL certificates.
In 1991 Holly returned to the San Diego area to teach full-time for the award winning Poway Unified school district. She coordinated the ESL/EDL program at Rancho Bernardo high school until 1998. She currently teaches full-time Spanish there.
In 2003 Holly took a sabbatical from RBHS and spent time with her family, created cultural Powerpoint presentations, and traveled to Mexico and Spain. Holly feels honored to return to MiraCosta as an instructor. She says, “Language learning is a long voyage; relax and enjoy the trip!”
Melissa Lloyd-Jones
 Melissa Lloyd-Jones has a B.A. in English and Spanish from the University of Redlands and an M.A. in Teaching English as a Second Language from UCLA. While in college, she studied Spanish in Guadalajara, Mexico and Madrid, Spain, experiencing the thrill and challenge of learning a second language. She began teaching ESL in Sacramento, California in 1994 and has been at MiraCosta since 1997. At MiraCosta, she teaches ESL 803, ESL 810, and English 100 with a multilingual emphasis, focusing on ESL issues.
Her highest priorities as a language teacher are to make learning interesting for students and to help meet students’ individual needs as they develop their writing, reading, and speaking skills.
Sarina Molina
 Sarina holds a B.A. in East Asian Languages and Literature with an emphasis on Japanese and a minor in Comparative Religions and an M.A. in Second Language Acquisition Theories with three areas of specialization which include Phonology/Morphology, Second Language Pedagogy, and Sociolinguistics. She is currently pursuing a doctorate in the School of Education and Leadership Sciences at the University of San Diego.
For the past seven years, Sarina has taught Pronunciation, Writing, Reading, and Speaking courses. She also teaches at the University of San Diego M.A. in TESOL program where she serves as an advisory board member and curriculum developer for the Certificate in TESOL program at the Division of Continuing Education. She speaks Japanese, English, and understands Sindhi and Hindi, which are both languages spoken in India.
Sarina's teaching approach: Acquiring a new language opens doors to other worlds and other ways of thinking. This opening of our hearts and minds is crucial in this age of globalization. In class, I encourage participation in a safe classroom climate. I incorporate technology through power point, jeopardy games, and online research. Most of all, I like students to have fun, learn, and take a step forward everyday in their journey to acquire English.
Heather Weldele
 Heather Weldele received her Bachelor’s of Arts in English, Magna Cum Laude, from San Diego State University. While attending, she additionally worked as a teaching assistant for the Rhetoric and Writing Studies Department. She received her Master’s in English at Queen Mary University of London, where she graduated with merit. She has also attended London Teachers’ Training College and University of California Santa Barbara Extension, earning both TEFL and TESOL certificates.
After receiving her Master’s degree and returning from London, she began to teach a variety of ESL courses at English Language Services, where she was also Student Advisor and Activities Coordinator. At the same time, she taught both transferable English Composition and remedial writing at The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Diego. Currently, she teaches credit and non credit courses, from basic skills to academic ESL at both Palomar and MiraCosta.
Heather is most passionate about education and travel. She has visited over twenty countries on six continents, and she has lived and studied abroad twice. She understands the difficulties of experiencing a new culture and greatly admires her students for studying in a second language. She finds teaching to be the most rewarding thing she does in her life and is inspired by her students’ determination and progress.
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