Ernie Friend

Cheryl A. Schmidt is a full-time faculty member in the network engineering technology department at Florida

Community College at Jacksonville (FCCJ). She has a master’s degree in computer and information resource

management. Schmidt started her career in computers while in the Navy. She has been working on computers

and networks ever since. For the past ten years, she has taught courses such as computer repair, CCNA, CCNP,

VoIP, QoS, and wireless. FCCJ is one of the few Cisco Academy Advanced Training Centers for CCNP, wireless,

and security. Schmidt lives with her husband and children in Jacksonville, Florida.

 

Ernie Friend is the director of academic systems at Florida Community College at Jacksonville (FCCJ). FCCJ

is one of the largest community colleges in the United States, with more than 60,000 students. Friend manages

the Network Engineering Technology Department at FCCJ. He previously managed the college’s network and

computer infrastructure. Friend has a bachelor’s degree in electronics management. He spent more than ten years

in the Navy, managing several computer-based aviation repair facilities. He has managed computer and networking

departments for more than 14 years at the college. He continues to explore and teach the latest networking

technologies.