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Professional Facilitators

Deiana Jackson

The American public school is a place that provides services to the community. For most people school represents an institution for learning and guidance, for others it may represent a safe haven or escape from the negative aspects of the community. Deiana  decided to pursue a career in education to educate and positively impact the next generation of young adults. As well as, design math lessons to increase relevancy through teaching math history, math application, and discovery based project learning. Deiana aims  to continue to learn and develop her instructional techniques to serve all student populations.

She was born in Long Beach, California. Since her graduation from Norwalk High School, Deiana has spent the last 6 years tutoring and teaching sixth through twelfth grade students in mathematics, ranging from pre-algebra to calculus.

Deiana has taught Algebra, Geometry, and Precalculus to a diverse group of students in an urban school setting. As a graduate of Loyola Marymount University she earned the following degrees: Master of Arts in Secondary Education, Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics, and Bachelors of Arts in African-American Studies. Deiana's life experiences have drawn her to education and have strengthened various aspects of Deiana's character, such as patience and respect.  These attributes of her personally have shaped Deiana into a flexible and open minded person, who encourages all students to reach their highest potential.

 

Jessica McDaniel

Jessica was born in Northridge, CA. Jessica moved to the city of Long Beach when she was twelve years old and went to Millikan High School and graduated in 2002. From there Jessica went straight to Cal State Long Beach and graduated in 2009. Jessica decided to teach because she has a love for sharing what she knows. And for some crazy reason, Jessica enjoys spending time with children. In her free time Jessica enjoys reading, watching TV, crocheting and knitting. While she does not participate in sports, Jessica enjoys watching her brothers play soccer and her sister dance. Eventually, Jessica is hoping to travel to Europe to see the castles and super old buildings. If you ever want to see a really happy Jessica, present her with pancakes with peanut butter!

 

Joel Mendes

Was born in San Diego, California but moved to Huntington Beach at the age of seven and kept going north a bit more to Long Beach where he currently lives and plays. Joel grew up playing all different kinds of sports: baseball, volleyball, football, basketball, tennis, and water polo, but by the time he got to high school at Ocean View High in Huntington Beach, Joel played just baseball and Volleyball.  He studied very hard and succeeded academically--especially in my English, Math, and Spanish classes.  Joel knew he wanted to teach by the time he graduated high school because he felt that good teachers can help young people reach their potential more than anyone else in world (except maybe their own parents).  Joel went on to study English Education at Cal State Long Beach where he studied English Language and Literature, but also how to teach it to our youth.  Joel finished his Bachelor's Degree and continued on to get a California Teaching Credential in English and continue his career life in school!  He has coached volleyball and baseball, tutored children of all ages in many subjects, and taught English to adults who moved here from foreign countries and he loves teaching people to be better people and better students at the same time.  Joel still tries to speak Spanish as much as possible to keep it fresh, and he enjoys photography and playing the guitar when he has some free time.  He travels when he can and has been to 6 countries so far, but he has'nt been out of Europe or North America and wants to see what life is like in Japan and Korea.  Joel's life is currently changing a lot as he and his wife are expecting their first child, so as Joel grows, he's very excited to help grow the best possible learning community we can in Long Beach.

  

Katelyn St. John

Katelyn St.John was born in Boston, Massachusetts. When she was four her family moved to Colorado where she lived for eight years. Katelyn still misses Colorado! She returned to Hudson, Massachusetts and went to high school at Hudson High School. Katelyn attended Syracuse University where she was a duel major in English Textual Studies and Education. Upon graduation Katelyn moved to Boston and worked at Seaport Campus, a small non-profit high school. She worked closely with Massachusetts General Hospital's Reading, Language and Speech clinic to educate herself and to provide services for her students. While in Boston Katelyn joined the Learning and the Brain Society, a group of universities and teachers who are dedicated to link education with neuroscience. Katelyn relocated to San Francisco in 2007 and worked at Leadership Public Schools-Richmond as a ninth and eleventh grade teacher for two years. She then relocated to the Long Beach area to attend a Reading and Literacy Masters program at CSU Long Beach. Last year (09/10) Katelyn worked with a team of educators to pilot an intervention program at Santa Monica High School. She is excited to join the dynamic staff at MECA.

 

 


 

 

 
 
Administration

Marvin Lynn Smith

M.E.C.A. CEO/Executive Director

Mr. Smith is a community leader and always knew that he was destined for something BIG! He has great ambition and vision, and has always envisioned himself accomplishing that which others told him were unattainable. Mr. Smith has achieved great accomplishments, he has held distinguished positions in the “corporate” realm, but Marvin had an entrepreneurial heart and until he decided to venture out, is when he discovered he had the heart of a social entrepreneur. He always had a sense of giving back to community through youth programs with a focus of leadership, knowing that would create young leaders, who could make a difference in their community and someday help to rebuild communities. By using technology, leadership and micro-enterprising as a tool, Mr. Smith founded an organization that reaches today’s youth with a message of accountability and excellence, and by working hand-in-hand with corporate leaders, political leaders, and community leaders, he has been successful in impacting communities.

Mr. Smith played in the NFL for the Los Angeles RAMS and Oakland RAIDERS, as his playing time came to an end, due to an injury, he experienced no difficulty finding prestigious positions with major corporations. Others in the business arena seen him as someday holding a top-level position in literally any corporation he chose.

Marvin Smith earned his Masters degree in Business with an emphasis in Organizational Management and Leadership from Azusa Pacific University. He received a Certificate of Marketing from the University of Southern California (USC), and he earned his Bachelors in Psychology from California State University of Fullerton. He also attended Vision Bible College where he received his ordination.