Faculty Spotlight on Matthew Maddex
Wednesday, Novemebr 7, 2023
Dr. Matthew Maddex is one of the newer additions to the Bakersfield College staff, joining the team in the Fall of 2022. He is new to BC but has been teaching in the Communication field for over 18 years, including stints at schools in Florida and New Jersey.
When asked what drew him to education, Dr. Maddex mentions his experience attending Long Beach City College and discussing with a professor there, who was a BC Alum, about joining the speech and debate team. “I fell in love with the competitive aspect of it. I was excited to get trophies for talking!” he says. This experience led him on a journey to earning a Bachelor’s, Master’s, and a Ph.D., and pursuing teaching. “Mainly, I wanted to be a speech and debate coach. I wanted to coach other people to find their voice. So, for me, teaching is about helping people find their voice.”
When asked what brought him to BC, Dr. Maddex replies, “What really drew me to the opportunity was to be part of something new. Here at BC Southwest Center and eventually the Arvin Center, these are brand new opportunities to really be a part of the community; and I don’t just mean the academic community but the literal, physical community.”
Dr. Maddex currently teaches courses at the BC Southwest campus, and he also teaches early college courses at Arvin High School. “Last semester I taught a course at Arvin with about ten seniors, and it was kind of like their last college course (while at Arvin),” he explains, “but this semester, I have a group of freshmen and I am teaching their first college class, and I am literally breaking them into the early college program. It has been a unique experience.”
When asked to talk about the goals for students who take his courses, Maddex replies, “I look at success more as what are you being taught and applying, not only in the classroom but in your life. That may not always translate to an ‘A,’ but it translates into skills that shape you are, not only at home, but in your job and in your community."
