Faculty

Dr. Emmie Mercer

Department Head

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321BB

919-866-5274 (office)

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Dr. Emmie Mercer

Department Head

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321BB

919-866-5274 (office)

Education

DBA, Data Analytics, Grand Canyon University
MS, Management Information Systems, Florida Institute of Technology
BS, Mathematics, Auburn University of Montgomery

Certifications / Training

MS Office Specialist: Excel Associate (Office 2019)
PCEP - Certified Python Programmer
Raspberry Pi Certified Educator
Tableau Desktop Specialist

Dr. Frank G. Chao

Professor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326Q

919-866-5359 (office)

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Dr. Frank G. Chao

Professor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326Q

919-866-5359 (office)

Education

BS ‐ Peking University
MS ‐ North Carolina State University
PhD ‐ University of Missouri

Certifications / Training

Oracle Certified DBA and Application Developer

Peter Chen

Associate Professor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 340

919-866-5360 (office)

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Peter Chen

Associate Professor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 340

919-866-5360 (office)

Education

AAS ‐ Wake Technical Community College
BS ‐ Fong Chia University
MIS ‐ North Carolina Central University

Allister Chhatrala

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 327G

919-866-5362 (office)

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Allister Chhatrala

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 327G

919-866-5362 (office)

Education

BS, North Carolina State University
MS, North Carolina State University

Certification/Training

Oracle Certified Associate (OCA)

Hong Cui

Professor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326Q

919-866-5996 (office)

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Hong Cui

Professor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326Q

919-866-5996 (office)

Certifications

MS Office Specialist Word & Excel 2003 Core
IC3 Certified Professional
Microsoft Specialist: Programming in C#
Microsoft Certified Professional
Information Technology Specialist Certification in Python

Education

BS ‐ Ocean University of China
MS ‐ North Carolina State University

Ethan Gardner

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326L

919-335-1304 (office)

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Ethan Gardner

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326L

919-335-1304 (office)

Education

MS, Information Systems, Harding University
BBA, Information Systems, Harding University

Certifications / Training

CAPM - Certified Associate in Project Management
PCEP - Certified Python Programmer
Tableau Desktop Specialist
CCST- Networking

Katherine Grimshaw

Assistant Professor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326M

919-335-1305 (office)

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Katherine Grimshaw

Assistant Professor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326M

919-335-1305 (office)

Education

BS, Applied Mathematics, North Carolina State University
MS, Analytics, North Carolina State University

Certifications / Training

SAS Certified Base Programmer for SAS 9
SAS Certified Advanced Programmer for SAS 9
SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9: Regression and Modeling
SAS Certified Predictive Modeler Using SAS Enterprise Miner 7

Cindy Halliday

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 342

919-532-5685 (office)

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Cindy Halliday

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 342

919-532-5685 (office)

Education

B.S. - Troy University
MBA - Western New England

James (Jim) Matlock

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 306L

919-335-1317 (office)

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James (Jim) Matlock

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 306L

919-335-1317 (office)

Jim Matlock teaches beginning and advanced Python courses. He has more than 30 years of software engineering experience, having worked at IBM, Texas Instruments and other companies. Jim holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from Virginia Tech and a master's degree in computer science from North Carolina State University. Since joining Wake Tech in March 2021, Jim has brought a wealth of practical industry experience to offer students a comprehensive and real-world-relevant education in technology.

Russ McCuen

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

919-866-5201 (office)

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Education

BS, Computer Science, Oregon State University
BA, English, North Carolina State University

Certifications / Training

ITS Certified Specialist in Python
CCST- Networking

Don Sommerfeldt

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

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Education

BS, Old Dominion University
MS, East Carolina University

Certifications / Training

MTA Software Development Fundamentals
MTA Java Programming
Learning Tree JavaScript Developer

Ryan Steffes

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321L

919-866-5368 (office)

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Ryan Steffes

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321L

919-866-5368 (office)

Ryan Steffes is a distinguished educator and software developer, currently serving as the course lead for the CTI-110 course at Wake Technical Community College. In this role, he offers invaluable assistance and support to students, especially when they encounter difficulties that their instructors cannot resolve. Steffes' journey into the world of programming began with a unique first programming language, learned at a summer camp during his high school years. His initial foray into the digital world also included accessing his first email account by dialing into a server through a bulletin board service.

Steffes boasts Microsoft ITS certifications in HTML/CSS and JavaScript, underscoring his expertise in these fundamental web technologies. His professional experience spans more than a decade in the software development industry, where he has worked on diverse projects ranging from radar system software to developing a professional website in the events services industry. His work as a defense contractor for an engineering firm, where he developed web-based languages for various applications, highlights his versatile skill set.

Education

MS, Online Education and Professional Development, Appalachian State University
BS, Computer Science (Business Systems concentration), Taylor University

Alex Tabbal

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321AA

919-866-5139 (office)

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Alex Tabbal

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Southern Wake Campus
Building E - 321AA

919-866-5139 (office)

Alex Tabbal is a computer programming instructor in Wake Tech's Computer Programming and Information Sciences program. His research interests include online education, big data technology and artificial intelligence. He is a certified Scrum Master and Product Owner, and he enjoys running platform-level engineering teams in the cloud and on premises.

Education

MS, Computer Engineering, Louisiana State University
BS, Computer and Communication Engineering, American University of Science and Technology (Lebanon)

Richard Tillies

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 342

919-532-5754 (office)

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Richard Tillies

Instructor

~ Campus Info ~

[email protected]

Scott Northern Wake Campus
Building B - 342

919-532-5754 (office)

Richard Tillies, aka "Professor T," is an educator by trade with more than two decades of college classroom teaching experience in information technology and mathematics. His formal education includes degrees in Computer Science and IT Education. Within the tech industry, he held positions as a database specialist and software engineer. Outside of teaching and industry, Professor T is a certified kickboxing trainer who can perform a backflip and solve a Rubik's Cube – although not at the same time.

Education

MS, Education (Information Technology), Radford University
BS, Computer Science, Radford University

Certifications / Training

EPIC Online Teaching Certification - Wake Tech
PCEP – Certified Python Programmer - Python Institute
Pearson IT Specialist - Java
Pearson IT Specialist - Python
Google Cybersecurity Certificate
Certified Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE)
Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT)
MS Office Specialist Master (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access)
IC3 Certified Professional

Dr. Lorrie Tomek

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

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Lorrie Tomek transitioned to teaching after a 30-year career in the technology industry. She held roles at IBM as a senior technical staff member and at Fidelity Investments as director of Cognitive Computing Architecture. Her professional background includes artificial intelligence, cloud computing, enterprise systems architecture and software development.

Lorrie brings a wealth of industry experience, a strong commitment to lifelong learning and a passion for teaching and student success. Her current interests include applied AI in education, instructional innovation, ethical and responsible technology use and helping students connect academic learning with real-world computing careers. She is especially interested in how generative AI and transparent pedagogy can foster student engagement and achievement in open-access community college settings.

Education

Ph.D., Computer Science, Duke University
MS, Computer Science, UNC-Charlotte
BS, Computer Science & Mathematics, Binghamton University

Certifications / Training

EPIC Master Certification in Online Teaching and Pedagogy – Wake Tech
Advanced Certificate in Effective Teaching Practice – ACUE
QM-Certified Higher Education Peer Reviewer – Quality Matters
Certified in Cybersecurity (CC) – ISC2
PCEP – Certified Entry-Level Python Programmer – Python Institute
IT Specialist in Python – Certiport

Dr. Jing Wang

Instructor

~ Contact Info ~

[email protected]

RTP Campus
Building 1 - 326Q

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Education

MS, Computer Science, University of Texas at Dallas
Doctor of Science, Applied Information Technology, Towson University

Certifications / Training

Sun Certified Java Programmer (SCJP)
Oracle Certified Associate (OSA)