Tiffin University students and faculty members take varied paths to find their way to the Dragon family. Dr. Diego Hernandez’s journey brought him to Tiffin from his home in Bucaramanga, Colombia.
In his 12th year at Tiffin, Hernandez is currently Assistant Dean for the undergraduate and graduate online learning programs within the School of Education and Extended Learning and an Associate Professor of Management. He teaches accounting, management and financial courses in online undergraduate, graduate and other degree completion programs.
In 1999, he was sent to the United States by Columbia’s Industrial University of Santander (where he worked at the time) to enroll in Oklahoma State University’s master’s degree program in telecommunications, as well as to improve his English. Hernandez knew no English when he arrived at the Stillwater, Oklahoma campus.
Shortly after arriving in Oklahoma, the school in Colombia and Oklahoma State University ended their relationship, so Hernandez lost his financial support. Oklahoma State University allowed him to work at the school and continue his studies. “I worked four hours in the morning with the telecommunications center and four hours in the afternoon with the Oklahoma State University Police Department,” said Hernandez.
After returning to Colombia, he decided he wanted to return to the United States. He received a visa to work at a YMCA camp in Jackson, Michigan in 2001. “I was teaching outdoor classes to sixth and seventh graders,” he remarked.
He met his wife while working at the camp. Due to some confusion with this work visa shortly after they married, Hernandez was required to return to Colombia in 2003. His daughter was born in Toledo while he was waiting in Colombia for two years to reapply to return to the states in 2004.
When he returned to Toledo in 2005, he taught high school Spanish and later math until 2010. He also taught math part-time at the University Toledo. He became a U.S. citizen in 2008.
Hernandez started at TU as a tutor in the Ivy Bridge Program. He eventually managed the tutoring department in 2011. From there, he became chair of the online business programs for the TU School of Business.
Hernandez said he enjoyed working with students in the Ivy Bridge Program. “I saw people with jobs and families who needed help.”
He moved to the Tiffin campus in 2013 and brought the online program with him. In the past two years, enrollment rates for the online undergraduate and MBA programs have increased. Hernandez said he did some statistical probing that has helped with programs. “I found the information and did some analysis that helped,” he offered.
Hernandez enjoys teaching online so that he can reach students who may otherwise not be able to attend college or who do not have time to come to campus for all of their classes. He also expressed an interest in returning to the seated classroom. “In the classroom, you can see the faces of the students, and you can see if they are getting it.”
Hernandez earned his PhD from Northcentral University in management of engineering and technology in 2021. His MBA is from the University of Toledo, and he also holds a master’s degree in higher management from the Industrial University of Santander in Colombia, South America.