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Time management for instructor Kaitzer Puglia it is not a problem. In fact she seems to have mastered it.

“I don’t know how she does it, her area of child development is very demanding and she is constantly balancing all these jobs and doing it well,” said Cheryl Beard, political science instructor and Puglia’s colleague who shares an office with her.

Teaching child development and special education here at PCC, the mother of two is currently working on her PHD in higher education at Claremont Graduate University.  Puglia found time in between all that to run and campaign for an empty seat on the La Canada Unified School District Board, which resides in PCC’s District 1 area, and eventually won the race.

“There were eight candidates that were running and three seats that were open and now I’ve taken one of those seats. I’ll be sworn in on Dec. 10,” said Puglia.

Puglia ran for the board, which is a volunteer position, because she wanted to give back to her community and felt that the knowledge she has gained being a teacher could be used to help out the school district.

“The other candidates did not have a background in education. I wanted to offer the district my expertise and experience since that’s where my background is,” said Puglia.

With student learning being the core to what she does, Puglia believes it is important to communicate and interact with her students on multiple levels and despite her busy schedule she always makes time for them.

“As a professor at PCC my goal is to be here for students not only in the classroom but also during office hours and just being on campus. If a student feels that the they’re cared about, it really encourages them to continue learning,” said Puglia.

Puglia’s students reiterated this while sharing their experiences with Puglia, which ranged from her being there on an educational level to a personal one for her students.

“She engages us as students and is always open and available to help at any time,” said Jessica Otte, child development.

Maria Vargas, human development, attributed her academic success and clarity to Puglia, who helped her find her educational path. “I was confused in what I wanted to do and she guided me through the steps to find out what I wanted to do and thanks to her I will be transferring in the fall to UC Davis.”

Roseanne Reyna, child development, feels that Puglia is more than just a professor to her students; she is also a friend and mother figure at times.

“When we had a tragedy when a passed away she was very supportive and gave us advice on how to handle it and brought us together as a group and helped us cope with the loss of a classmate,” Reyna said.

As for her experience campaigning and running for the board, Puglia says she learned a lot about the political process and system and is looking forward to hearing more from the community.

“I’m excited about learning the different perspectives people have, even though I am very firm on my views I am also very comfortable listening and integrating other peoples perspectives.”

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