Three professors are granted tenure

Congratulations to professors Heidi Fay, Mackenzie Loyet, and Heather Reynolds for being unanimously granted tenure by the Clark College Board of Trustees.

Tenure is awarded by the college’s board of trustees based on professional excellence and outstanding abilities in their disciplines. The granting of tenure is based on the recommendations of tenure review committees to the Vice President of Instruction, which are then forwarded to the President, who presents a final recommendation to the board of trustees. Recommendations are based on self-evaluations, tenure review committee evaluations, student evaluations, supervisory evaluations, and peer evaluations. The final decision to award or withhold tenure rests with the board of trustees.

Heidi Fay, pharmacy technician

Heidi Fay began teaching at Clark College as an adjunct in 2009. She has been a full-time professor since 2010. Fay is the department head, lead instructor, and clinical coordinator. She began her tenure-track position in 2021 after the program returned from hiatus.

Fay has taught nearly every course in the pharmacy technician program at Clark College and developed two new courses recently added to the program, Pharmacy Capstone, and Pharmacy Advanced Simulation Lab.

She said, “As the program’s department head, I am responsible for all aspects of the program including scheduling of classes, ordering equipment and supplies, participating on committees and in recruitment activities, maintaining the state credential, and preparing for program accreditation.”

She worked as a certified pharmacy technician at Legacy Health including Legacy Good Samaritan and Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Centers for 15 years.

Fay earned her Associate of Arts degree at Clark College. She earned her pharmacy technician certification from Clark College.

She is an active member of several pharmacy professional organizations including the Washington State Pharmacy Association (WSPA), Oregon Society of Health-System Pharmacists (OSHP), and Pharmacy Technician Educator’s Council (PTEC).

Teaching philosophy: “As someone who completed the Clark College Pharmacy Technician program years ago, my goal as an instructor is to bring a positive attitude,

enthusiasm about pharmacy and healthcare, and real-life experiences. I strive to motivate students to be their best by providing a safe, welcoming environment for them to learn through hands-on, real-world simulations, and studies.”

Mackenzie Loyet, biology

Mackenzie Loyet earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology and biology at Knox College, Galesburg, Illinois. She attended graduate school at Indiana University, earning a Master of Arts in biological anthropology and a Master of Science in anatomy education.

Loyet joined Clark College as a tenure-track biology professor in September 2021. Previously, she taught anatomy to medical and dental students at Midwestern University in Chicago. She was an instructor and laboratory coordinator at Midwestern University in Downers Grove, Illinois for seven academic years and an adjunct instructor at City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College, Chicago for one academic year.

At Clark, she teaches General Biology, Anatomy, and Physiology I and II. She is an active member of the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society (HAPS) and a certified yoga instructor. She published the book “Yoga and Anatomy: An Experiential Atlas of Movement” and has led several yoga/anatomy sessions at HAPS meetings in previous years.

Loyet has completed both the Clark Universal Design for Living certificate and the Clark eLearning professional certificate. She values the scholarship of teaching and learning and plans to complete more eLearning workshops.

Teaching philosophy: “My goal is to make sure all course materials and content are accessible to students. I recognize that students have different learning styles and come from different educational backgrounds. I truly believe that education is a fundamental human right. As I continue my career at Clark College, I want to ensure that courses are accessible and that students have a strong, supportive environment in the classroom.”

Heather Reynolds, nursing

Heather Reynolds earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the University of Washington and her Master of Science in Nursing Education at Western Governors University.

She started her nursing career in a burn center and has worked in critical care and emergency nursing. She was part of the opening of Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center.

Reynolds said, “In all my roles, I have always had a passion for teaching.”

She started teaching nursing at Clark as an adjunct professor in Fall 2015. She left to teach full-time at Portland Community College, where she was faculty for two years and director of nursing for three years. Desiring to return to the classroom, Reynolds returned to Clark College as a tenure-track faculty in nursing in September 2021.

Reynolds is co-lead of the sixth quarter (final quarter) of Clark’s Nursing program. She teaches students a course on ethics and policy in healthcare and in their final clinical practicum.

She said, “I enjoy volunteering and getting involved around campus to build community with colleagues and to support students. I enjoy ushering at Clark College theater productions, volunteering at graduation, and being a volunteer patient for the dental hygiene program students. I am also passionate about encouraging youth to consider a career in nursing and have been involved in several programs including Clark’s Healthcare Pathways Camp and the Alliance of Black Nurses Association of Oregon’s Mini Nurse Academy.”

Teaching philosophy: “I am a nurse educator who is passionate about empowering future nurses to recognize their value and worth, and their capacity and duty to improve themselves, the lives of others, and the healthcare system to create a more equitable and just world. I do this through modeling authenticity, vulnerability, and continual personal and professional growth with empathy, humor, and grace. I strive to approach others with curiosity and care.”