Looking for a way to branch out and explore the world of biology? Check out our Associate of Science in Biology program. With hands-on experience and expert guidance, you'll be budding with new knowledge in no time!
Graduating from our biology program opens up a world of possibilities. You'll be well-prepared to transfer to a four-year institution, continue your education, and ultimately launch a fulfilling career in fields such as research, education, healthcare, or environmental conservation.
Find more information, including wages and education requirements, on Career Coach!
Ms. Mahlmann received her B.S. degree at Sam Houston State University with a double major in Biology and Environment Science in 1992. After working in a Houston-area environmental laboratory for a year, she returned to school, obtaining her Master's degree at Texas Tech University in 1997. As a graduate student, Ms. Mahlmann's research focused on the differential establishment of native grass species in a sand-shinnery oak community. In addition, she participated in an extensive survey of the plant communities at Copper Breaks State Park near Quanah, TX. Having become a full-time faculty member at WCJC in 1999, she taught General Biology and Environmental Biology. Ms. Mahlmann won the WCJC Excellence in Teaching Award in 2006 and the Faculty of the Year Award in 2014.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 228B
Phone: (979) 532-6934
Email: jenniferj@wcjc.edu
Mr. Berezin received his B.S. degree from Sul Ross State University in 2007. After graduation, he immediately began to work on his Master’s degree at Sul Ross. While a graduate student, Andrew conducted ecological research on the American black bear in Big Bend National Park, TX, and participated in a Saltcedar biological control program along the Rio Grande. Mr. Berezin completed his graduate studies in 2009. Mr. Berezin began as a full-time instructor for Wharton County Junior College in 2010. He is currently teaching BIOL 1406 and BIOL 1407.
Office: Sugar Land Campus, Brazos Hall 230
Phone: (281) 243-8591
Email: berezina@wcjc.edu
Dr. Bhasin received her B.A. in Biochemistry at the University of Texas– Austin and her Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As a graduate student, she studied DNA transposition. After graduate school, Dr. Bhasin joined the U.S. Peace Corps and served as an Environmental Educator in the Philippines for two years. She returned to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to complete a Postdoctoral fellowship in Bacteriology during which she studied a bacterium-nematode symbiosis. She continued this research as a Microbiology professor at Valdosta State University in Georgia for six years before returning to Houston. Dr. Bhasin joined WCJC as a full-time instructor of Microbiology and General Biology in 2014.
Office: Sugar Land Campus, Brazos Hall 242
Phone: (281) 243-8556
Email: bhasina@wcjc.edu
Dr. Braeuer received his B.S. degree in Biology at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He received his Ph.D. in Cancer Biology at UT Health Science Center Houston / M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in 2013, where he studied the mechanisms of melanoma metastasis. After obtaining his Ph.D., Dr. Braeuer taught biological science courses for two years at Ho Chi Minh International University in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He then spent three years of postdoctoral research at the University of Michigan to study chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD) in murine lung transplant models. He is now a full-time instructor for Wharton County Junior College, where he currently teaches Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Richmond Campus, 240-I
Phone: 281-239-1578
Email: braeuerr@wcjc.edu
Mr. Cherukara received his B.S. degree in 1985 from Bangalore University, India. He then earned his M.S. degree in Zoology from Kumaun University, India. He started his teaching career as a lecturer in Zoology at St. Stephen's College in Kerala, India. He also worked as an associate teacher in the Houston Independent School District. He has been working with Wharton County Junior College as an adjunct instructor of Biology since 2005. He currently teaches Anatomy & Physiology and Microbiology courses.
Office: Sugar Land Campus, Brazos Hall 233
Phone: (281) 243-8462
Email: cherukaraj@wcjc.edu
Mr. Dees is an alumnus of Texas State University - San Marcos with a B.S. in Wildlife Biology ('91) and an M.S. in biology ('94). His graduate research focused on northern bobwhite reproduction and ecology. Following graduation and several years as a professional wildlife biologist, he joined the WCJC faculty in 1996. He has taught General Biology, Environmental Biology, Vertebrate Anatomy, Human Anatomy & Physiology, and Wildlife Management courses during his time at WCJC. Mr. Dees was a recipient of the WCJC Award for Teaching Excellence in 2009.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 228-A
Phone: (979) 532-6460
Email: kevind@wcjc.edu
Mr. Dettling began his teaching career in 1988 at Southside High School in San Antonio, Texas after graduating from Texas A&M University. After teaching in San Antonio for two years, Mr. Dettling attended Southwest Texas State University where he worked as a lab instructor and completed coursework towards a master's degree in Biology. Mr. Dettling taught for 9 years at Louise High School before joining WCJC as a full-time Biology instructor in 2001. He currently teaches Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 110
Phone: (979) 532-6314
Email: johnd@wcjc.edu
Ms. Doriski is a native of Arkansas where she obtained a B.S. degree in Biology from ATU. She attended LSU and obtained a Master of Science degree in Microbiology. Ms. Doriski worked in a research and development lab for Exxon Mobil in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for 10 years before moving to Texas. She taught at WCJC as an adjunct instructor for three years before becoming a full-time faculty member in 2005. Her classes include General Biology, Anatomy & Physiology, and Microbiology.
Office: Richmond Campus, 2401
Phone: (281) 239-1579
Email: CandaceD@wcjc.edu
Ms. Goswami received her B.Sc., M.Sc., and M.Phil. degrees, all in Zoology, from the University of Burdwan, India, and M.S. in Biology and Biochemistry from the University of Houston in 2000. Her thesis work was on cell signaling during the embryonic development of xenopus laevis focusing on the BMP4/MAP kinase signaling pathway. From 2000 to 2005, she held research positions in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at the University of Texas Medical Center, Houston where she investigated functions of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) in Dictyostelium discoideum. Since 2009, she has been teaching various Biology courses at Houston Community College as an Adjunct Faculty. At Wharton County Junior College, she briefly taught Anatomy and Physiology in 2007 and is currently back to teaching at its Sugar Land campus. Mrs. Goswami has published several research papers in international journals and conference proceedings.
Office: Sugar Land Campus, Brazos Hall 228
Phone: 281-243-8518
Email: goswamim@wcjc.edu
Dr. Reeve received his B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin in 2008. After completing his baccalaureate degree, he attended Sam Houston State University where he studied isotopic variation in rodent molars across several microhabitats from the area around the Koanaka Hills, Botswana. He received his M.S. In Biology from Sam Houston State University in 2012. He began teaching as adjunct faculty at Lone Star College in 2014, during which time he pursued his doctorate at the University of Houston studying the role of juvenile hormone in the blood-brain barrier for male courtship in Drosophila melanogaster. He received his Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Houston in 2022. Dr. Reeve joined the faculty at Wharton County Junior College as a full-time instructor in 2023.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 117
Phone: (979) 532-6405
Email: reevej@wcjc.edu
Ms. Smith received her B.S. degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She then obtained a Master of Science degree in Biology from Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. Her graduate research focused on methods of identifying sources of fecal contamination in Texas waterways. Mrs. Smith began teaching as an adjunct for the University of Alaska Southeast and joined Wharton County Junior College as a full-time faculty member in 2014. Her classes include General Biology and Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 107
Phone: 979-532-6313
Email: smitha@wcjc.edu
Mr. Valdez received his B.S. and M.S. in Biology from Stephen F. Austin State University. He obtained his teacher certification in 2008 and has taught high school science. Mr. Valdez joined Wharton County Junior College as an instructor of Biology in 2015. His classes include General Biology, and Human Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Sugar Land Campus, Brazos Hall 249
Phone: 281-243-8506
Email: valdezs@wcjc.edu
Dr. Waters received her B.S. in Animal Science, and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Reproductive Physiology from Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. While pursuing her advanced degrees, she was a teaching assistant and assistant lecturer for a senior-level reproductive physiology course.
Dr. Waters has extensive work experience in the biological field with Krug Life Sciences, Inc., as a Scientist, with Baylor College of Medicine as a Research Associate and as an Assistant Professor, and with Wyle Laboratories, Inc., as a Senior Scientist. All were government-contracted positions assigned to support the Cardiovascular Laboratory at NASA Johnson Space Center. She pursued research interests focusing on the effect of spaceflight on the regulation of blood pressure in astronauts as well as gender differences in the regulation of blood pressure. Dr. Waters became a full-time faculty member at WCJC in 2006. She currently teaches Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 112
Phone: (979) 532-6406
Email: watersw@wcjc.edu
Dr. Couvillon received his B.S. from Texas A&M University in 2009. He went on to earn his M.S. from the University of Texas - El Paso in 2011 for his work on amphibians and reptiles of the Trans Pecos region of Texas. In 2017, he earned his Ph.D. from Texas A&M University - Kingsville for his research on northern bobwhite response to habitat management and Texas tortoise ecology. Dr. Couvillon taught courses at Rose State College in Oklahoma and Texas A&M University - Kingsville. He joined the faculty of Wharton County Junior College in 2018 and currently teaches General Biology and Anatomy & Physiology.
Office: Wharton Campus, Science 126
Phone: (979) 532-6908
Email: couvillonr@wcjc.edu
Ms. Kellner received her B.S. degree and teacher certification from the University of Houston and a Diploma in Nursing from Memorial Hospital in Houston. She worked as a school nurse for twenty-five years. In 2003, she earned a Masters's in Nutrition from Mississippi State. Ms. Kellner has been a part-time instructor for Wharton County Junior College since 2005, currently teaching Nutrition.
Email: kellnerc@wcjc.edu
Ms. Lamberti received her B.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Texas A&M University in 2019. She moved to Dallas and attended UT at Dallas where she earned an M.S. in Biomedical Engineering and worked as a RA doing research on how the brain is affected after a stroke. This is Ms. Lamberti's first year teaching and she is working on her alternative teaching certificate during the school year. She currently teaches Dual Credit Biology at Bay City High School.
Email: lambertia@wcjc.edu
Ms. Richards received her B.S. in Biology from Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma, in 2015. She then earned her M.S. in Biology at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 2017. After graduation, she worked in the biology and education departments at the Medicine Park Aquarium and Natural Sciences Center in Medicine Park, Oklahoma. After moving to Houston, Ms. Richards taught Anatomy and Physiology at Houston Community College and University of Houston - Downtown. She joined the faculty at WCJC during the Summer 2023 semester and currently teaches Anatomy and Physiology and General Biology.
Email: richardsh@wcjc.edu
