> Colleges > Cabrillo > Dianne Sigman

ACE Faculty

NAME: Dianne Sigman

COLLEGE: Cabrillo College    

TITLE: Adjunct Faculty

DEPARTMENT: Psychology, ACE

EMAIL: disigman@cabrillo.edu

INVOLVED WITH ACE SINCE: Summer 2009

ACE COURSES TAUGHT/TEACHING:
Foundation Course
Team-Self Management 1

REASON FOR BECOMING INVOLVED WITH ACE:
I have very selfish reasons for becoming involved with ACE.  I believe that our ACE students are our best hope for improving our world for my children and grandchildren.  I have seen how the ACE program works and am extremely impressed with the philosophy and attitude of the program and the staff.  Rather than trying to fit the student into the educational system, our program is designed to assist students to learn about their own learning style so they can modify their learning environment to meet their needs.  By providing our students with these tools, we teach our students not only to be successful in school, but also to be successful leaders in life.

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND:
I earned my BA from University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA in 1977.  I returned to school to earn my BSN in 1980 from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA.  I have been an RN ever since.  After working in an inner-city trauma ED and in Occupational Health, I returned to school to earn my MA from LaSalle College in Philadelphia, PA in Clinical Psychology.  I worked as a successful therapist in Doylestown, PA prior to moving to California, focusing primarily on working with families referred by the school district for their children’s behavior problems.

In 2005 I moved to California. Since living here, I have had the honor of working both for a local hospice and teaching at Cabrillo College.  I have enjoyed teaching Biopsychology, Marriage and Family Relationships, Death and Dying, Decision Making, and Adjustment for the Psychology Department, as well as the Foundation Course and Team-Self Management for ACE.

I value incorporation of a non-traditional learning environment in the classroom; one that focuses on a variety of learning styles and experiential activities.  I believe students learn best when they can practice applying what they are learning.