FULL-TIME FACULTY

​Miguel Jimenez

Miguel has a doctorate in organic chemistry, as well as master's and bachelor's degrees in chemistry, all from UCLA. He has research experience in studies conducted at UCLA and taught several chemistry courses at UCLA as a teaching assistant. He is a member of the American Chemical Society, the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) and the UCLA Organization for Cultural Diversity in Chemistry.

​Robert S. McLeod

Education:
B.A. Chemistry 1971 University of California, Irvine
B.A. Mathematics 1971 University of California, Irvine
Ph.D. Physical Organic Chemistry 1975 University of California, Santa Barbara

The seminal years of both my personal and professional adult life were during graduate school. I married, had two sons and received a Ph.D. I have always felt fortunate to have a wonderful family life and a very satisfying professional life.

Following graduate school I spent a year in San Francisco doing postdoctoral research and teaching at CSU San Francisco and San Francisco City College. I have been at El Camino College ever since and have taught through most of the chemistry curriculum including Chemistry 20, 21A, 4, 1A, 1B, 7A, and 7B. I also taught for three summers in a program (Health Pre-Professional Program) at USC which offered an intense academic and supportive “live-in” experience to students planning a career in the medical profession. In addition to teaching, my other academic experiences at ECC include three years of administrative work in the Science Division Office and eight years as Director of the Honors Transfer Program.

In my free time I play racquetball and read novels. Between semesters I like to travel. I especially enjoy SCUBA diving, hiking mountain trails in search of waterfalls, and checking out interesting cities and towns.

​Soshanna Potter

​Rob Shibao

Education:
Santa Barbara City College (no degree, transfer student)
BS Chemistry UCLA
MA, PhD Inorganic Chemistry UCSB

Before El Camino, I taught at Santa Barbara City College and at UCSB.

The community college system is wonderful. I took advantage of it as a student in pursuing my interests and goals. After high school, I had little idea what I wanted to do. Fortunately, I was able to take a wide range of classes at the local community college and find what I was really interested in; chemistry. The community college system gives students, like me at the time, good preparation for the rigors of transfer and work. After finishing my degrees, I am happy to be back in the system and my goal here at El Camino College is to help students discover the field of chemistry and to prepare them for the rigors of the academic and/or industrial scientific fields.

Outside of teaching, I enjoy spending time outdoors (rock-climbing, mountain biking, hiking, motor sports) and hanging out with the wife and toddlers.

​Ana Tontcheva

Education:
Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from UCLA
B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Michigan Technological University

Ana was born and raised in Bulgaria and moved to the US in order to study Chemical Engineering at Michigan Tech. After completing her B.S., she did research on the synthesis of absorbent polymers at Kimberly Clark. She moved to the West coast for graduate school at UCLA and completed a Ph.D. degree in Organic Chemistry under Professor Yves Rubin. Her thesis work involved the synthesis of conducting polymers and fullerene derivatives for plastic solar cells. After graduate school she worked as Visiting Assistant Professor at Pepperdine University where she taught organic chemistry. She began teaching chemistry at El Camino College in the fall of 2007. In her free time she enjoys traveling, hiking, rollerblading and playing organ.