A MiraCosta College computer programmer, known for his innovative solutions that help students to be more successful, has been selected to receive the statewide Classified Employee of the Year award from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office.
Mark Stramaglia, a senior enterprise applications developer and a faculty member in computer science at MiraCosta College, will receive the award May 23 at the Board of Governors meeting of the state community college system. He has been working in the Academic Information Systems department at MiraCosta College since 2013.
“Mark exemplifies the best qualities of our employees. He is dedicated to serving students and always has a positive attitude toward his job and the college,” said Sunita V. Cooke, superintendent/president of MiraCosta College. “This award is a well-deserved recognition of his many accomplishments.”
Stramaglia said he appreciates being able to use technology to serve students. “While I am humbled by this recognition, I want to acknowledge the collective efforts of staff and faculty across the District who work to provide important student support services,” he said.
The award nomination from MiraCosta College noted that when the pandemic began, Stramaglia worked with his peers so that Microsoft 365 was available to all MiraCosta College students within three weeks, giving them the vital access they needed to Microsoft offerings as the college moved to remote learning.
“He has worked on several major projects to explore and identify ways in which technology could be used to improve the student experience and provide equitable access and outcomes and keeping end-users in mind,” the nomination form stated.
Mark has been able to use his role in AIS to create meaningful internship opportunities for MiraCosta students and worked to promote the hiring of students to serve in project management and technical roles for major enterprise system upgrade projects for the District.
He also found solutions for student registration and grading issues that arose during the pandemic and has saved the Admissions and Records office hundreds of staff hours as a result of his work.
Stramaglia is active on college committees, including the Technology Advisory Committee, the Guided Pathways Technology Workgroup, and the Student Equity Task Force.
“Over and over again, Mark demonstrates a willingness to step up and take on new challenges to improve the student experience at MiraCosta College,” the nomination said. “It is evident that he is very proactive, supportive of the college’s mission and goals, and genuinely enjoys his work helping others.”
