Meet the Faculty

Kathy Diamond, Ph.D., Professor of Biology
Telephone: (650) 574-6602
Office: 36-205F
Email: diamondk@smccd.edu
Kathy Diamond was born in San Francisco. Starting college as an undeclared major torn between philosophy and French literature, she became overwhelmed by curiosity and completed a B.A. in Biology at U.C. Santa Cruz, an M.A. in Zoology at UCLA, and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry at UCSF. She did research and lectured at UCLA until discovering the superior lower-division science education offered by community colleges. Kathy loves teaching CSM students, hiking, walking, gardening, movies, novels, family and friends. And chocolate.

Paul Hankamp, M.S., Professor of Biology
Telephone: (650) 574-6626
Office: 36-205B
Email: hankampp@smccd.edu
Paul Hankamp has a Master's degree in Biology with a concentration in Plant Ecology and Systematics from San Francisco State University. He specializes in botany and has spent recent years teaching students in the field, classroom and laboratory. At CSM, Paul teaches Biology, Botany, and Environmental Science, both online and on campus. He has a passion for bringing active learning strategies into the classroom and motivation to share his enthusiasm with students.

Theresa Martin, M.S., Professor of Biology
Telephone: (650) 574-6252
Office: 36 - 205B
Email: martin@smccd.edu
Theresa Martin teaches Human Anatomy and Physiology. Her fascination with the human body began as a competitive runner and coach. She received Master's degrees in Exercise Science and Endocrinology from UC Davis and UC Berkeley, respectively. She enjoys working with students to prepare them for careers in allied health. In her free time she raises two young children and enjoys the outdoors.

Javier Silva, Associate Professor of Biology
Email: silvaj@smccd.edu
Javier Silva attended San Francisco State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and later with a Master of Science in Physiology and Behavioral Biology. As a grad student, he was fortunate enough to be accepted by the Student Enrichment Opportunities program at SFSU. He received NIH funding to research catecholamine stress hormones. During his study, he also worked for the National Park Service and Eastbay Regional Park Service. This is where his appreciation for the outdoors grew. To recharge and maintain focus, he enjoys going to places like Zion National Park in Utah.

Christopher Smith, Ph.D., Professor of Biology
Telephone: (650) 574-6516
Office: 36-205E
Email: smithchris@smccd.edu
Christopher Smith's professional interests include microbiology, immunology and pharmacology. He was raised in Massachusetts, where he attended Suffolk University in Boston and the University of Massachusetts earning first a B.S. and then an M.S. in Biology. After earning a Ph.D. from the Biochemistry Department of the Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, he worked for several years as a research scientist in the pharmaceutical industry. His approach to scientific education is that Science is just as much critical thinking as a collection of facts to memorize. Chris hopes to bring his enthusiasm for scientific inquiry to the classroom.

Huy Tran, M.S., Professor of Biology
Telephone: (650) 574-6241
Office: 36-205C
Email: tranh@smccd.edu
Huy Tran was born in Vietnam and came to the United States in 1975. He grew up in southern California and spent much of his childhood in his backyard catching creepy-crawly critters with his brothers. He received his Bachelor's of Science in Biology from the University of California, San Diego, and his Master's of Science in Biology from California State University, Hayward (East Bay). When he's not making life difficult for his students in class you can usually find him hiking on one of the many trails in the greater Bay Area. Besides his love for anything science-related, Huy's other interests include photography, art, camping, and distance running.

 

Nathan Churches, Ph.D., Lecturer Faculty, Biology
Office: 26-205C
Email: churchesn@smccd.edu
Nathan Churches earned his Ph.D. in molecular biology from USC, where he focused on evolutionary forces that affect marine organisms and their population genetics. After graduate school, he co-founded Holdfast Aquaculture, where he remains the Chief Science Officer. The company focuses on using modern scientific tools to create sustainable and regenerative solutions to ocean-based foods. Churches teaches at CSM and at San Francisco State University, primarily delivering courses on ecology, marine, cell, genetics, and biological topics. He also is the Aquaculture Faculty Lead at Santa Monica College, where he works to develop aquaculture and marine science courses. In his free time, you'll most likely find Nathan surfing in the cold waters of the Bay Area.

Eileen Mackusick
Email: mackusicke@smccd.edu
Eileen Mackusick, MS, RD has a 30-year career as a clinical dietitian and college instructor after obtaining her Master's of Science in Nutrition with an emphasis in education from San Jose State University (SJSU).  She completed a functional medicine certification in 2012 with the Institute of Functional medicine and now incorporates an integrative approach to health and wellness in all of her classes. In addition to teaching at The College of San Mateo, she has been teaching at SJSU since 1998 and Cabrillo College in 2013.  In addition to Eileen's passion for health, wellness and education she is also an avid Nordic skier, hiker and mountain biker and foodie of locally sourced, organic food!

Wendy L. Whyte, MS, PhD Molecular Genetics 
Email: whytew@smccd.edu   
Yeshiva University [Albert Einstein College of Medicine] Bronx NY, BA Biochemistry, UC Berkeley CA [Go Bears!] Transfer student from College of San Mateo, Chemistry [Go Bulldogs!] Research experience in cancer and gamete generation and lots of biotech. I have taught biotechnology and life sciences courses since 1994 - mostly at my alma mater, CSM. Love to meet and engage in students' learning - See you in class! and as you can see in the photo, I enjoy scoring baseball games.

Douglas Woods Ph.D., M.P.H
Email: woodsd@smccd.edu
Doug Woods was born in Wellington, New Zealand. At college I studied Biochemistry earning a B.Sc. from the University of Auckland. After this, I traveled to London, England, to complete my Ph.D. at Imperial College where I focused on the biochemistry and molecular biology of Cancer. Later I returned to school to complete a Master's degree in Public Health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore Maryland. My favorite hobbies include Triathlon training and racing. In Triathlon I have represented the United States as an age group athlete several times. This compliments my love for teaching nutrition and my passion for sports nutrition. Favorite foods include walnuts, berries, and dark chocolate.