Erudiel Bernal was born and raised in Mexico, where he started studying foreign languages as a high school student. He began with learning Italian and then English. After graduating from college, he moved to Paris, France where he worked as a garçon au-pair and studied French while being immersed in French culture. He also worked as a high school Spanish teacher in Valognes, a small town in the French region of Normandy. In 2007, he traveled to China to study Mandarin and Business at the University of Ningbo, also working as a Spanish and English teacher at different levels. From 2015 through 2022, he taught Spanish and Global Studies at Harris Road Middle School in Cabarrus County, NC. Erudiel loves traveling and has been to more than 30 countries thus far. When he is visiting a new place, he loves exploring and learning about its history, architecture, and culture, especially through the people and the food. 

Kristin Connor joined NCSSM in August 2017. She has taught a wide range of Spanish language and humanities courses such as Introductory and Intermediate Spanish, Advanced Grammar and Composition, Translation Studies, and humanities courses on the nature of “the truth” and the role of comedy in society and culture. More recently, she has taught a Mini-Term course on Chicano History and Culture. In addition to her time at NCSSM, she has taught at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the University of Virginia, and the UVA sponsored Summer Enrichment Program for academically gifted K-12 students. Kristin holds a doctorate in Spanish from the University of Virginia along with a Graduate Certificate in Advanced Pedagogy. At the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Latin American Studies and Spanish, a master’s degree in Spanish, and a graduate certificate in translation. Her research interests are in Feminist Theory, Masculinity Studies, and the Afro-Latina experience in the Spanish and Portuguese speaking Americas.

Fayez Kurdi joined the NCSSM-Morganton Community in 2022. He was born in Syria. Prior to his teaching career, Fayez graduated with a mechanical engineering degree and worked in an international oil company in the United Arab Emirates. He then obtained a BA and MA in Spanish from North Carolina State University. He has taught Spanish and Arabic at Durham Technical Community College, Piedmont Community College, and Elon University. He loves to learn and teach languages, read, and play classical guitar. For Fayez, traveling is a great source of learning, joy, and self-improvement. He has visited more than twelve countries on four continents. 

Robert Noffsinger joined NCSSM in August 2024 as an Instructor of Spanish and Humanities in Morganton while also collaborating on the teaching of Foundations in Data Science. With a diverse set of academic interests ranging from linguistics to limnology, he completed undergraduate degrees in both biology and Spanish at the University of Virginia before pursuing graduate work at Virginia Tech and UNC-Chapel Hill. Bridging humanities with the sciences, his research at UNC-Chapel Hill focused primarily on trans- and posthumanism in 20th- and 21st-century Spanish literature and film. He was also the recipient of both the Dana Drake Award and the Chancellor’s Award for Undergraduate Teaching at UNC. He worked as a medical interpreter and also as a visiting lecturer at the Universidad de Sevilla before returning to Carolina in 2019 to work with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Most recently he served as UNC-Chapel Hill’s Study Abroad Program Director for all programs and partnerships in the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world. In his free time he is an outdoor sports enthusiast and can be found snowboarding, kayaking, bouldering, or hiking around Morganton.

Keegan Storrs joined NCSSM in August 2024 as a Spanish instructor for the Durham campus. He previously taught Spanish, English, and linguistics at Roxboro Community School (Person County), where he also coached tennis and helped direct several musical productions. Since 2021, he has also been an adjunct instructor of Spanish and linguistics at Averett University (Danville, VA). In 2022, Keegan served as the North Carolina Charter School Teacher of the Year, and spent time advocating for the needs of North Carolina public schools. Keegan earned both his M.A. and B.A. degrees in Spanish and linguistics from the University of Florida, with minors and certificates in second language acquisition, ESL, and education. His research there primarily centered around the second language acquisition of phonology. Keegan has traveled extensively around Spain, studied at two Spanish universities, and still considers Sevilla a second home. He enjoys travel, advocacy, consuming Spanish-language media of all kinds, and spending time with his wife and two beagles.

Cecile T. Tougas, Ph.D., joined the NCSSM Humanities Department in 2005, teaching Latin and philosophy from the beginning. She teaches Latin Elements I and II, Latin Boot Camp, and upper level courses in Latin prose and poetry. She wrote “The Phenomena of Awareness: Husserl, Cantor, Jung,” published by Routledge in London, 2013. She co-edited “Presenting Women Philosophers” with Sara Ebenreck, published by Temple University Press, 2000. She uses these books in her philosophy course, “Knowing Mind: Maker of AI,” whose aim is knowing oneself better as living awareness.

Qian Wang joined NCSSM in August 2023 as an Instructor of Chinese on our Durham campus. She has taught Chinese to students of different age levels and diverse cultural backgrounds for over 14 years, in mainland China, Hong Kong, and the United States. She is also an expert in Chinese phonetics and has guided students to pass China’s national Putonghua Proficiency Test. Qian also used to work as a journalist in Hong Kong. She earned her bachelor’s in broadcasting and anchoring, and her master’s in linguistics and applied linguistics at Communication University of China. She earned her master’s of international journalism at Hong Kong Baptist University. When she isn’t working, Qian enjoys reading, cooking, watching movies, and traveling with her family.