My name is Jair, but most of my students call me Professor J. Since graduating from the University of California Santa Cruz, I knew I always wanted to teach math at the community college level. I take so much pride in being a full-time instructor for Long Beach City College (LBCC) because I was once a student here taking some of my general education courses. Also, it is pretty awesome to see the growth of LBCC, especially when I can say that the building my office is currently located in was once the parking lot that I would park in when I was a student.

I take pride in teaching mathematics, but I am a strong believer that there is so much more to learning math than solving problems and memorizing formulas. It is vital for me to build connections with my students and help them build connections with each other in order to optimize the learning in the classroom. Not only that, but I want to challenge my students and help them master the skills they develop in my classes for they are essential skills designed to prepare them for their future careers regardless of the field they are studying.

Someone once told me something I would never forget. “I take every class and every job as a learning experience, whether career-related or not, and ask myself what can I learn from this class or job that will help me develop my abilities and carry it over to the next?”

I believe that life should always be about learning and developing ourselves to be better so we can give back to our communities and to the future generations the best way we know how.

Let’s take math to the next level.