Muhammad Zubair | Department Head | Kelowna
Muhammad completed his B.Sc in Computer Sciences, majoring in programming, and developed a curiosity for 
wanting to know what actually happens during communication and how to secure that information which lead him to pursue his Network Communication major in M.S. Computer Sciences.
Muhammad has been in the IT and education industry for more than 10 years and holds various industry certifications on different network platforms such as CompTIA, Microsoft, and Cisco, and on security platforms such as CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker). He has authored a computer book series for kids titled “Quickway to Learn Computers” and worked in the industry as a Systems Analyst, Network Administrator, and as a Security Professional.
His work has allowed him to travel around various parts of the world including the United States, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Canada.
Ron Smith | Department Head | Fredericton
Ron started working with computers in the 80s. During high school he learned to program in Basic, FORTRAN, COBOL, and Pascal. He turned down an offer to study computer programming at Penn State University to 
pursue a career in the US Air Force as a B-52 crew chief. After 9 years in the Air Force, Ron began working as an automotive technician. His passion for computers was more of a hobby rather than a career choice. In 2003 the US Department of Veterans Affairs paid for Ron to retrain in a new career. It was then that he decided to pursue his hobby as a career choice.
Ron enrolled in a local college IT program where he graduated with honours and completed 12 industry certifications. Before graduation, Ron was working as an instructor in some of his previous classes, as well as a Network Administrator for the college. He soon began online mentoring, helping others who were taking online courses to prepare them to write certification exams. Ron soon started his own company, writing courses for IT schools and on-the-job training programs for several companies. While designing a course for the Centre for Arts and Technology, Ron was asked to fill in for a class that needed an instructor. His realized how much he missed teaching in the classroom and was delighted when he was asked to be the Department Head for the Network Security program at the Centre.
Ron currently has 34 certifications from Microsoft, CompTIA, Cisco, and Novell.
Derek Lewis | Department Head | Halifax
Derek brings over 25 years of experience in computers, 16 years of those in the computer business. At the age of 12 years old, he started playing with Apple IIe’s and IBM Model 30’s. From there he developed a lifelong love of computers.
Derek has 12 computer certifications, including the prestigious Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) designation. He has also been the Technical Editor for several computer books. Derek developed and licensed cell phone games to 40 percent of Canada in 2002 - years before most programmers knew it was possible to do so.
Derek has been an Instructor on the college level for over seven years, under his tutelage Centre for Arts and Technology students are well served by his vast experience.
Rich Teer | Instructor | Kelowna
Rich has been playing with and programming computers for more than 30 years. His first exposure to UNIX was a VAX 11-750 minicomputer running BSD 4.2, and it was then that his love of UNIX was kindled.
A career as a C/UNIX systems programmer segued into one as a UNIX systems administrator, where he concentrated his focus on the Solaris platform. A big proponent of open source software, Rich was part of a by-invitation-only pilot program to guide Sun Microsystems' open sourcing of their Solaris operating system, and served on the OpenSolaris Governing Board. Rich is the author of a C programming text book published by Prentice Hall called Solaris Systems Programming, and numerous UNIX programming and sysadmin articles. He was also a technical reviewer for W. Richard Stevens' highly acclaimed book, UNIX Network Programming, 2nd Edition.
Originally from the UK and attracted to BC's lifestyle and scenery, Rich moved to Kelowna in 1999.
When he's not playing with computers, Rich is a passionate lover of music on vinyl records and high-end audio. Combining this and his interest in writing led to him publishing Vinylphile, the freely-downloadable, vinyl-centric audio magazine.
