Dr. Wendy Comeau (PhD, MSc, BA)

Department Head Psychology

I am interested in the relationship between the brain and our behavior, ultimately asking the question of why we behave the way that we do.

Educational Background: B.A. (Psychology- Honours at Okanagan University College – transferred to University of British Columbia B.A. degree); MSc. (Psychology/Neuroscience: University of Lethbridge, CCBN); PhD. (Neuroscience: University of Lethbridge, CCBN); Postdoc (Neuroscience, Physiology and Behaviour, UBC); Research Associate (Neuroscience, Physiology and Behaviour, UBC); Instructor: Department of Psychology University of British Columbia; Instructor: Psychology Department Thompson Rivers University

Instructor: Corpus Christi College

Instructor: Alexander College

Courses taught at AC: Psyc 101: Introductory Psychology (basic processes and applications, Psyc 102: Introductory Psychology (Areas of Application), Psyc 217: Thinking Clearly about Psychology (Research Methods)

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Dr. Kevin Hamilton (PhD, MEnvSc, BA)

Psychology SASC Member

I am interested in a broad range of topics in applied psychology which fall under the general themes of Human Factors, Ergonomics and Environmental Psychology Educational background: B.A. (Philosophy / Psychology-Honours: University of Prince Edward Island); M.E.S (Environmental Studies: York University); Ph.D. (Expt. Human Factors Psychology-York University), Postdoc (NSERC-Defence Canada – Toronto). Professor: Department of Psychology Kwantlen Polytechnic University

Adjunct Professor: Department of Psychology University of British Columbia

Adjunct Professor: Royal Roads University

Member: Standing Academic Standards Committee Alexander College

Courses Taught at AC: PSYC 101: Introductory Psychology (basic processes and applications), PSYC 102: Introductory Psychology (Areas of Application), PSYC 218 Analysis of Behavioural Data

Dr. Lina Sweiss (PhD, MA)

Instructor

In addition to my passion for teaching, I enjoy doing research in psychology. When I am not teaching, I run my own consulting business where I use my research skills to assist organizations with their research needs.

Educational background: B.A. (Psychology; Justice Studies – Honours: Northeastern Illinois University); M.A. (Social Sciences / Human Development: University of Chicago); Ph.D. (Educational Psychology: University of British Columbia).

Instructor: School of Computing and Academic Studies: Psychology at British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT)

Instructor: Psychology at Alexander College

Courses Taught at AC: PSYC 101: Introductory Psychology (Basic Processes and Applications), PSYC 102: Introductory Psychology (Areas of Application)

Jas Makkar (PhD)

Instructor

Courses Taught: Introductory Psychology, Introductory Psychology- areas related to Applied Psychology, Life-span Development, Health Psychology, Seminar in Behavior Disorders.

Areas of Interest: stress; health psychology; coping with chronic illness; social support; behavioral disorders, and development of social cognition.

Renira Vellos (PhD, MA, BA)

Instructor

As an educator I believe every student should experience a classroom environment that draws from the extensive research about learning and school climate.

As a researcher I strive to constantly explore how educational policy plays a role in the experiences of students in school. My areas of interest include, alternative learning environments, critical discourse analysis, educational policy, sociocultural theory, and development.

Educational Background: B.A. (Psychology: Wheeling Jesuit University); M.A. (Human Development: University of British Columbia); Ph.D (Educational Psychology: University of British Columbia)

Courses Taught at Alexander College: PSYC101: Introductory Psychology (basic processes and applications), PSYC102: Introductory Psychology (Areas of Application), PSYC217: Thinking Clearly about Psychology (Research Methods)

Benjamin Wong (MA, BSc, BCACC Registered Clinical Counsellor)

Instructor

Benjamin Wong has been a Registered Clinical Counsellor in BC since 2005. A doctoral student at the University of Illinois, and holder of degrees from the University of British Columbia and Colorado Christian University, Benjamin held clinical positions in sectors including vocational rehabilitation, school counselling, education consultancy, and addictions. A sought-after advocate in the mindful use of digital technologies, he has spoken at professional conferences throughout North America on the prevention and treatment of Gaming Disorder. Over the past several years, Benjamin has focused his efforts on clinical supervision and teaching, with ongoing appointments at Alexander College. He is also a contractor of outreach services with the BC Government’s Responsible Gambling Program.

Emre Aydin (MA)

Instructor

Coming Soon.

Andrea Albonico (PhD)

Instructor

Coming Soon.

Pocholo Velasquez (PhD, MA, BSc)

Instructor

Pocholo has been teaching psychology since 2007 and plans to continue teaching psychology for as long as he is able to.

He holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines. He finished his Masters in Counseling Psychology and Bachelor of Science degrees from the same university. He has published studies in international journals and serves as a reviewer for some of them. He is a licensed psychologist in the Philippines.

He teaches Abnormal Psychology, human development, and introductory psychology classes at Alexander College. He is also an adjunct faculty in Adler University-Vancouver and serves as a member of the research ethics board of Adler. He has previously taught in other institutions in the Vancouver area.

He likes turtles.

Jame Batara (MA, BSc, PIDP)

Instructor

Coming Soon.

Erica Nye (MCP, BA, BCACC Registered Clinical Counsellor)

Sessional Instructor

Erica Nye is a sessional instructor teaching psychology courses for Alexander College’s Social Science Department. She also teaches career counselling and provides counselling skills supervision to Master of Counselling Psychology students at Adler University. In addition to being an instructor, Erica provides psychotherapy and career counselling services through her online private practice, Connect Student Therapy. She is passionate about supporting students in improving their mental health so they can make the most out of their post-secondary experience. Outside of work, Erica spends most of her free time doing outdoor activities and especially loves to go on long hikes with her two dogs.

Navdeep Kaur (PhD, BCACC Registered Clinical Counsellor)

Sessional Instructor

Navdeep holds a Ph.D. in Psychology and is a practising Registered Clinical Counsellor in the province of British Columbia. Her professional experience covers clinical counselling and post secondary teaching. She has recently co-authored a book chapter in “Teaching in the Post COVID-19 Era: World Education, Dilemmas, Teaching Innovations and Solutions in the Age of Crisis”- Springer: Switzerland- 2021. Her amin research interests are cross cultural psychology and social psychology.

Angus Chan (MA)

Sessional Instructor

Angus holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (2009) and a Master of Education in Educational Psychology (2012) from Simon Fraser University. Along with previously working his second Masters Degree in Divinity at Trinity Western University and his Provincial Instructor Diploma at Vancouver Community College, Angus has also completed his TESOL Standard II at Douglas College, Instructional Skills Workshop at Alexander College, Facilitator Development Workshop at the University of British Columbia, and Instructor Development (Standard First Aid) at St. John Ambulance.

Angus loves to keep on learning and working with others to build people, projects, and programs in growing teams, organizations, and communities. As a holistic educator, Angus continues to engage in a refining process where he is teaching how students can learn effectively while also learning how instructors can teach effectively, where every lesson, workshop, training session, and learning module reflects and records whether all learners have demonstrated that they know what they need to show and they show what they have come to know in academics, research, and career development

Daniel Barabanov (PhD, MA)

Sessional Instructor

Dr. Daniel Barabanov earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from Lomonosov Moscow State University, holds a Masters in personality psychology and has been instructing for over 7 years. He has taught at several universities in Moscow (Russia), at the University of the Fraser Valley, and Capilano University in Canada.

Daniel’s research is focused on self-control and volition regulation studies. The main purpose of this research is to understand how self-control and volitional regulation change and develop during the period of study at college/university and what are the differences between students in different countries.

Daniel has worked at Alexander College since 2023 and teaches an introduction to psychology course.

Azar Pakdaman Savoji (PhD)

Sessional Instructor

I decided to become a psychology instructor when I took my first psychology course as a bachelor’s student. As I was fascinated by psychology, I finished my master’s and Ph.D. in educational psychology. I was a faculty member in my home country for 15 years before I immigrated to Canada in 2015. After I finished my post-doctoral research at SFU, I started teaching at different colleges and universities in Canada. I enjoy teaching and doing research in the psychology area.

Rajpreet Kaur Harry

Sessional Instructor

Coming soon.