Lydia Garas

Faculty
Life, Ocean, & General Sciences

Phone: (206) 592-4524

Office: 29-350

Mailstop: 29-3

Email: lgaras@highline.edu

Link: Please CLICK HERE to schedule advising appointments!

Link: For Zoom office hours, use this link

Lydia Garas is a Biology instructor who has been teaching at Highline since 2017. She completed a Ph.D. in Animal Biology at UC Davis, a M.S. in Biotechnology and M.A. in Teaching at UC Irvine, and has been an educator since 2009, with a passion for science education. Areas of specialization include comparative anatomy, microbiology, immunology, and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract including infection and inflammatory bowel disease. Previous research includes genetic engineering (GE), milk from GE goats, and swine medical models of human disease.

My Advising Philosophy:
My guiding principle as an advisor is to help students achieve their goals – to get from where they are now to where they want to be. I’m passionate about student advising because as an undergraduate student, my own academic advisor was one of the most important people in my success! Each student will have a different path and different work/life demands outside of school. It’s ok if you are still figuring out what your goals are! Together, we can explore which pathway meets your career and academic goals. As a faculty advisor, I’m here for more than just course planning. If you need help and aren’t sure who to turn to, I am here to advocate for you – we can discuss ways to improve learning or pay for college, and I can help you find the campus or community resources that will help support you if you need help with non-academic concerns like food or housing needs, emergency funds, personal counseling, and many other things. Let’s work together to achieve your goals, whether it’s making a career change, planning for a transfer to a university to earn a bachelor’s degree, planning for admission to a nursing program, completing a certificate or professional/technical program, or continuing your education as a life-long learner.

If you have questions, please stop by my posted Student Assistance Hours (aka "Office Hours"). If you are unable to make those times, email me and we'll find a time that works!