Oceanside CA— Mathematics professor Mohammed Rajah will receive a 40^th anniversary pin—the first ever for any MiraCosta College faculty or staff.
Originally from Mauritius, an island nation in the Indian Ocean approximately 500 miles east of Madagascar, Rajah began his tenure at MiraCosta College in 1975 and has been at the college ever since.
“I was teaching at Oceanside High School and learned there was a full-time opening in the math and science department,” said Dr. Rajah. “There were about 150 people applying for the position and I got the job.”
Being a faculty member for 40 years has its rewards including meeting up with students he taught more than 25 years ago.
“I’ve taught students whose parents were also my students,” said Dr. Rajah. “They would tell me their parents told them to take my class because I was the best math teacher they’ve ever had.”
While Dr. Rajah will not say when he will be retiring, he does give a hint that it will be soon. When asked what he will miss most when he does retire, he says he will miss the students and MiraCosta College as a whole. Other things, however, he won’t miss.
“I definitely won’t miss waking up at four in the morning to be at my 7 a.m. class. No, I definitely won’t miss that.”
In 2014, Dr. Rajah received the college’s Philanthropist of the Year award for donating more than $100,000 to fund MiraCosta College student scholarships. The award is given to a faculty or staff member who has provided or inspired significant financial support to MiraCosta College.
Dr. Rajah will be honored at MiraCosta College’s Spring Celebration of Excellence on April 17 at 3 p.m. in the college cafeteria.