DAVENA BURNS-PETERS

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ASL Instructor, Department Co-Chair

Professor Davena Burns-Peters is known around campus as Mrs. D.  She is the full-time American Sign Language Instructor at San Bernardino Valley College.  She is considered a "near native" user of the language as she began learning American Sign Language as a toddler.  She was raised within the Deaf community and initially learned the language through native social interactions.  She began her American Sign Language interpreting career in 1987 and went on to earn her A.S. in American Sign Language and Certificate of Interpreting from Riverside Community College.  She continues to practice her craft as a nationally certified, free-lance interpreter in the community.  She later completed her B.V.E. in Vocational Education at California State University, San Bernardino and her M.A. work in Education with an emphasis in Instructional Technology at the same institution.  Mrs. D comes is thrilled to be a part of the San Bernardino Valley College campus as a full-time instructor after many years of being an adjunct instructor at multiple local community colleges. 

Mrs. D is a Disney fanatic who enjoys traveling, camping, motorcycle riding, the outdoors, cooking, entertaining and spending time around the dinner table with her family.  Her office is always open for students to come by for assistance, seek mentoring in the area of American Sign Language or just to check in and have a quick chat. 

 

NORI SOGOMONIAN-MEJÍA

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Spanish Instructor, Department Co-Chair

Nori Sogomonian-Mejía earned both her BA and MA in Spanish with an emphasis on linguistics from UCLA. 
She also studied at the University of Guadalajara, Mexico and the University of Madrid, Spain. She has been teaching Spanish at SBVC since spring 1994. In fall of 1999 she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and spent the semester teaching courses in linguistics at the Central American University in Managua, Nicaragua.
She earned her Ed.D from California State University at San Bernardino in Educational Leadership in spring 2011.

She enjoys teaching all levels of Spanish and interacting with the diverse student population at San Bernardino Valley College.

 

MICAH J. MARTIN

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Spanish Instructor

Professor Martin was born and raised in Southern California. He was first exposed to Spanish in high school and decided to make it a career while living in Venezuela. He went on to complete academic degrees in International Studies, Linguistics, Spanish, and Literature. He loves language and also studied Italian, French, Portuguese, and Arabic. He started teaching college Spanish in 2006, and came to Valley College in 2016. He has a deep appreciation for literature, language, philosophy, history, and art. 

 

YON CHE

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Spanish Instructor

Professor Che was raised and educated in Quito-Ecuador until she was 21 years old. She has earned her BA in Spanish & Linguistics and MA in Applied Linguistics from UCLA. She has taught elementary, intermediate and advanced Spanish language classes at different Universities and community colleges such as UCLA, West Mont College, Glendale Community College, Citrus Community College, and Santa Barbara City College. 
She has been teaching at San Bernardino Valley College from fall 2005.

 

JOSE RECINOS

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Spanish Instructor

“Hola y bienvenidos.  My name is Dr. Jose Recinos, and I was born in El Salvador.  I graduated from the University of California, Davis in 1992 with a B.A. in Spanish and French and received my Ph.D. in 2003 from UC Davis.  I have taught Spanish and Literature for several years at the university and community college level and enjoy my time here at San Bernardino Valley College.

I really love traveling, dancing, playing basketball, and reading about diverse cultures and issues.  My interests include bicycling, hiking, camping, and writing poetry and short stories.  Come visit me and we can practice Spanish or discuss current issues.   Hasta pronto!

 

Faculty Contact Information