CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Yuba College announces and welcomes new faculty member, Billy Gear.

Gear will be teaching in the Philosophy Department.

During the spring semester he will teach the philosophy course World Religions.

“We are delighted to have an instructor on our campus who has so much to offer to our students,” said Yuba College Dean Artemio Pimentel.

Gear earned a bachelor of arts from Sonoma State University and a master of arts in philosophy from San Jose State University.

He has taught in the Santa Rosa Junior College Philosophy Department for six years and lived in Lake County for 12 years.

Gear is an active docent in the local state parks and involved with Lake County Children's Museum of Art and Science (CMAS) doing among other things teaching Lego Robotics to youth around the county.

Gear is excited to teach at the college level in Lake County.

“I think philosophy starts with curiosity, involving everything from physics to metaphysics, and art to ethics,” he said. “It gives us tools to explore abstract ideas as well as to deal with everyday issues in an effort to improve ourselves, our families and our community.”

He added, “This semester we will be applying this curiosity and exploration as we learn about some major religions of the world. We will take an objective look at their similarities and differences, and also attempt to gain some subjective appreciation of individual experience. I am excited about the opportunity to teach and share ideas here in Lake County.”