CalWORKs - Team
Supporting parents to achieve their academic goals; helping them to create new opportunities for themselves; their children; & their communities.
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- CalWORKs
- New Horizons
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CalWORKs Team
Gabrielle Gosselin
CalWORKs Program Coordinator/Counselor
Speaks: English, Italian and Kinyarwanda
I lead and counsel for the CalWORKs/New Horizons Department. I am grateful that I engage daily with a diverse department serving students who speak over 27 languages and transcend socioeconomic barriers.
I hold a Bachelor’s in Africana History, Master’s in Counseling, Multiculturalism/Cross-Cultural Education, and specialized training in trauma informed care, culturally responsive counseling, and inclusive and belonging pedagogy.
CalWORKs and New Horizons Counselor
Speaks: English and French
Hi everyone, I am proud to be working with amazing human beings at CalWORKs. I’ve been with Grossmont CalWORKs/New Horizons since 2016. I earned my Bachelor’s in Sociology and Ethnic Studies, and later earned my Master’s with a concentration in Multicultural Community Counseling.
CalWORKs Counselor/Grossmont Justice Scholars Program Coordinator
Speaks: English and Spanish
Hello everyone, I am happy to work at this department. I’ve been with Grossmont CalWORKs since 2015. I graduated with my Master’s in Multicultural Education with an emphasis in Counseling and Social Justice from the CBB program at San Diego State University, as well as my Bachelor’s in Sociology with a minor in Spanish.
CalWORKs Counselor
Speaks: English
Hi everyone, my name is Cierra, like the mountains. I’ve been with Grossmont CalWORKs since I was an intern fresh out of graduate school in 2019.
I am a first-generation student, and earned my Associate’s at Grossmont College before transferring to SDSU, where I earned a Bachelor's in Psychology with a minor in Counseling and Social Change. From there I went back to SDSU for a graduate program in Education Counseling. I am currently in a program completing my Master’s in Social Work so that I can do both educational counseling and mental health counseling. I am certified in Trauma Informed Care and also work as a crisis counselor/advocate for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.
CalWORKs Counselor/New Horizons
Speaks: English, Arabic, and Chaldean
My name is Sandi Duraid, and I love working with CalWORKs student population. I have been with CalWORKs since 2019 as a counselor. I have a Master’s in Education with concentration in counseling from SDSU as well as a Bachelor’s in Psychology and minor in Counseling and Social Change. I am also certified in Trauma Informed Care.
Noora Al Saegh
CalWORKs Counselor
Speaks: English and Arabic
My name is Noora Al Saegh, and I greatly enjoy working with the CalWORKs department. I have been with CalWORKs since 2019 as a counselor. I am a licensed Conflict Resolution Trainer and hold a certificate in Project Management (PMP). I have Bachelor’s in English Literature and Art and Master’s in Educational Counseling in Higher Education.
CalWORKs Counselor
Speaks: English
My name is Theron Page CalWORKs Adjunct Counselor. I majored in Sociology at UC Berkeley and obtained my Master’s in Higher Education Counseling from Point Loma Nazarene University. I have always had a passion working with students and CalWORKs has allowed me to do it..
Gerardette Nutt
Program Specialist
Speaks: English
Bill Rapolla
Account Clerk Senior
Speaks: English
Finley Rafael Cazzorla
Speaks: English and Spanish
I am a Projects Lead, Outreach Committee Member, and Cultural Committee member for the CalWORKs/New Horizons Department, and am constantly honored to work with such a creative and forward-thinking team. I come from a first-generation, multi-cultural, and multi-lingual background, and am always looking to bring different perspectives into my work. I speak English and Spanish with working knowledge of German and French, and keep conversational Arabic and Persian as a future goal.
I graduated from San Diego State University in History with minors in Arabic & Islamic Studies, Classics, and Journalism. I love to continue practicing a plurality of skills I have learned from being a K-7th grade English Teacher, working in immigrant & refugee services, language translations, and magazine editorial and copywriting positions with whatever new work project I tackle. Having worked in classrooms from California to Turkey, with copyediting and content creation experience for projects based in the USA, Mexico, Columbia, Portugal, and Iran, I bring various points of view into the already beautifully multi-cultural space that is CalWORKs/New Horizons.
When away from my work computer, I love spending time in the sun and trying different food spots with good company, as well as writing poetry, listening to new music, and dancing.
Jose Dizon
Speaks: English
Joseph Dizon
Speaks: English
My name is Joseph and I am a digital media organizer here at CalWORKs at Grossmont College. I majored in Cinema and Digital Media and Asian American Studies at UC Davis, obtaining my bachelor's degree. My previous work has been creating and showcasing stories of the underrepresented through different types of media projects in order to uplift and bring light to issues that not everyone is aware of.
At CalWORKs, I am able to hear more stories from a community that was not made aware of before in my life and is opening me up to new cultures and struggles that I have not experienced or heard of myself. Through this I am able to share these stories through a medium that everyone can digest and really know about the students they may not know about. Additionally, I assist with creating outreach material to be used in order to get the word out about our program and what we do.
In my free time I like to read, play video games, and listen to podcasts.
Philip Phan
Speaks: English
Hello Everyone,
My name is Philip Phan (aka Mr. Phantastic, aka Dr. Phantom). I have recently graduated
with a Bachelor’s in General Biological Sciences from University of California, San
Diego. I am currently working on getting into Dentistry School where I would like
to pursue a dental degree. I have experienced all three levels of California Colleges
and the processes that go into registering and transferring between them.
Within CalWORKs, I handle a variety of tasks for the program that include both front-desk
work as well as work behind the scenes such as what you are seeing here in this very
moment. With my wide knowledge as a transfer student and what I gained through CalWORKs,
I am more than happy to assist with any problems for which you may have and hope to
speak to you all soon.
During my free time, I enjoy sleeping, traveling, watching anime, and trying out new
food :D
Matthew Jakubczak
Speaks: English
Uhmbaya Laury
Speaks: English
Sudad Abdulrazak
Speaks: English and Arabic
Marie Robinson
Speaks: English
Bojin Haji
Speaks: English, Arabic, Farsi, and Kurdish
Nabeel Shano
Speaks: English, Arabic, Chaldean
Hamsa Al Mashhadani
Speaks: English and Arabic
Sospeter Kamau
Speaks: English and Swahili
Suha Karakushe
Speaks: English and Arabic
Ajmal Fazli
Speaks: English, Pashtu, Dari
Rajiha Abdulrahmam
Speaks: English, Arabic, Kurdish
Ghalib Hamad
Speaks: English, Arabic
The CalWORKs Inreach Team works to promote the CalWORKs Program on campus by hosting fun and educational events.
The CalWORKs Outreach Team conducts events outside of campus to reach out to the San Diego community. If you're interested in having CalWORKs present at your event, call us at (619) 609-7430.
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