Out @ BC

Email Helen: hacosta@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Helen Acosta (she/her) grew up in Bakersfield and moved away at the age of 15. A decade later, she was thrilled to return to Bakersfield to work at Bakersfield College. She received her BA and MA from California State University, Northridge in Communication Studies. Since 2009, she has been the co-advisor of record for the student LGBTQIA+ club at BC (previously known as the GSA, now SAGA). She is delighted to be a member of LUV (Lavender United Voices) at BC. 

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Email Dr. Damania: nicky.damania@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Dr. Damania began his career at Bakersfield College in August 2014. He hails from the rocky mountain state, Colorado. He attended Colorado College where he doubled majored in biology (emphasis in pre-med and electron microscopy) and drama (emphasis in technical theatre and directing). He earned his Master's Degree in Career and Technology Education, Training and Development of College Students, at Bowling Green State University in Ohio and completed his doctoral degree in Educational Leadership, Research, and Policy at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. His focus areas are on developing student leadership and creating effective and efficient student organizations.

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Email Adrianna: adrianna.oceguera@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Adrianna Oceguera has been BC's Campus Prevention Specialist since November 2019, transitioning to the role of Student Identity & Sexual Misconduct Education Liaison in October 2023. Adrianna has been a vital force in our Prevention Education Programming and now is the lead for Lavender Initiatives (2SLGBTQIA+ Programming).

Originally from Mojave, CA, Adrianna moved to Bakersfield after high school. Balancing raising three young children, they returned to college at 26. As an alumna of BC, they hold an AS in American Sign Language. They expanded their educational journey, earning a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management with a minor in Human Resources from the University of La Verne, and they recently obtained their Master's in Public Administration in May of 2024. Adrianna envisions a future in higher education, aspiring to provide unyielding support for 2SLGBTQIA+ students and champion human rights.

Adrianna's passion extends beyond the workplace. She finds joy in family, enjoys time with friends, co-facilitates a Native American/Indigenous talking circle, and is the Out & About Events Committee chairperson for the Pride Chamber of Kern. We are happy to have Adrianna on our team and confident that her contributions will resonate with you as much as they do with us!

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Email Gloria: gdumler@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Gloria Dumler (she/her) grew up in Bakersfield. She enrolled at BC in the early seventies and was part of a group that attempted to start a campus club called the Gay-Straight Alliance. The college president and his advisor told us we could not have the club because even though its mission was educational, we would be “encouraging illegal activity.” (This referred to acts that heterosexuals practice, too, but it served as an excuse for them to reject our application.) I love that I was able to return years later to BC as a professor in the English Dept. and that so many things have improved for LGBTQIA+ people over the decades—but I am very well aware of the attacks on our community today

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Email Ariel: ariel.dyer@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Growing up in Bakersfield, Ariel had to leave for college in Santa Barbara to finally come back to her hometown and appreciate it. She received her BA in English with a music minor at Westmont College in 2012 and did not return to school for her masters until 2018, graduating with a Masters in Library and Information Science from San Jose State University in December 2021. Her work experience is eclectic and includes nonprofit, education, technology, and library sectors. After three and a half years of public library experience with Kern County, Ariel now works as a reference librarian on the Panorama Bakersfield College campus and serves as the Shafter Library and Learning Center liaison. Their focus is on public library funding advocacy, intellectual freedom and the right to read and access materials, and media literacy and education as a tool to combat misinformation. In their free time, Ariel enjoys hiking, performing music, all things horror, and making very fancy cocktails for friends.

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Email Anne-Marie: anne-marie.hodge@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Anne-Marie and her wife are relatively new to California! They moved to Bakersfield from Virginia in 2022, to join the BC family. Anne-Marie moved frequently growing up due to her stepfather's military career, but home base was always Chattanooga, TN. She is a wildlife ecologist by training, and attended Auburn University for her Bachelor's in Zoology, with a minor in Anthropology, University of North Carolina-Wilmington for her Masters in Biology, and participated in the University of Wyoming 's doctoral program in Ecology. STEM outreach is a major passion of hers (science is fun), in addition to social justice advocacy. When she's not teaching Anatomy & Physiology at BC, Anne-Marie relaxes with her many pets, including four large dogs, and enjoys hiking, reading, cooking, and game nights.

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Email Savannah: savannah.andrews@bakersifeldcollege.edu

Savannah Andrews (she/her) grew up in Quartz Hill, CA and moved to Bakersfield in 2011. At CSUB, she completed her BA in Psychology, and MS in Educational Counseling with an emphasis in Student Affairs. Savannah started working at Bakersfield College in October of 2016 and has had many roles such as the Welcome Center Department Assistant, Early College Educational Advisor, General Counseling Educational Advisor, and is now the Program Manager of the Outreach department on the main campus. In her free time she likes to spend time with her dogs, watch movies, work on puzzles, and travel.

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Email Jenae: jenae.ortega@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Jenae grew up in the Central Valley and moved to Reedley, CA to begin her college journey at Reedley College before relocating to Fresno to pursue her bachelor's degree in economics at Fresno State. Returning to her hometown, she continued her education and received her MBA at California State University, Bakersfield. Shortly after, Jenae began her career at Bakersfield College in May 2022 and presently serves as an Educational Advisor in the Office of Student Life. Her educational journey has honed her abilities and knowledge needed to make a positive impact in her chosen profession — higher education and student support.

In her free time, Jenae enjoys weightlifting, coaching her powerlifting athletes, and spending time with her three dogs. She also takes pleasure in quality time with her family, indulging in comedy shows, and savoring seltzers on the beach.

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Email Jessica: jessica.esquivel@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Jessica grew up in Arvin, California where she went to Arvin High and later decided to attend Bakersfield College for her first two years of college. Jessica had a profound experience while at BC, and realized that professors looked like her: female, people of color, Hispanic - and wanted to give students the same kind of representation later on in life. While at UC Irvine, she came into her own SGM identities and will forever be grateful for that discovery. Today, she works at an LGBTQ+ organization which helps to gain better access to health care services, such as gender-affirming care, for LGBTQ+ folx. She teaches Public Health courses at BC, such as Intro to Public Health and Health and Social Justice. In her free time, she enjoys snuggling with a good book, watching LGBTQ+ shows and movies, and spending quality time with her friends and family.

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Email Chris: cdoyen@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Chris Doyen has taught literature and composition full-time at Bakersfield College since 2006. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Comparative Literature, with a minor in Creative Writing, from California State University Long Beach and then received a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts from the Critical Studies Writing Program at California Institute of the Arts. Having first started teaching at College of the Canyons in Valencia, he was faculty advisor for what at that time was called GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance). He then began teaching full-time at Cerro Coso College’s South Kern site - located at Edwards Air Force Base - where he stayed for two years before transferring to Bakersfield College in 2006. He is now permanently stationed at the Bakersfield College Southwest Campus (BCSW), and, having already completed the Safe Space training at BC, his office is a safe space; in this respect, he hopes to act as an ally and point of contact at BCSW for members of the LGBTQ+ community. Over the years, he has taught Mythology and Creative Writing as well as Argumentative Writing and Critical Thinking; he regularly teaches English 1B: Introduction to Literature and enjoys film, music, and art.

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Email Heather: heather.silvis@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Heather Silvis has taught Communication at BC since 2017. She received her BA in Communication in 2000 and an MS in Corporate and Strategic Communication in 2015. She has been an ally to the community her entire life, and her office at BCSW is considered a safe space. She teaches Comm B1: Public Speaking, Comm B2: Interpersonal Communication and Comm B15 Argumentation and Rhetoric.

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Email Leonardo: leonardo.ayala@bakersfieldcollege.edu 

Here to support all students, always. 
Leonardo Ayala grew up in Southern California (San Fernando Valley and the Antelope Valley) and attended the University of California at Santa Barbara where he double majored in Sociology and Chicana/o Studies and minored in Education Studies. He continued his studies at Colorado State University, Fort Collins earning his Master's in Student Affairs in Higher Education. Through his professional experience, Leo has worked in Student Housing, Student Conduct, Fraternity and Sorority Life, Academic Counseling, Student Retention, and as a K-12 Instructional Lead. He believes schools and colleges allow students to unearth and discover their best version of themselves. His focus is creating the conditions for students to do just that.

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