Until now, only bandmates of new Dean of Humanities Scott Kushigemachi knew he was a rockstar.

His bandmates happen to be his 9-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son. The three of them spend weekends making impromptu melodies.

Kushigemachi said laughter fills their living room as they pretend to play the drums and strum their air guitars.

But when Monday rolls around, Kushigemachi reverts to his button-down shirts and khakis and goes back to his office where his son’s latest Transformers drawing hangs on the wall and his daughter’s dolls sit on his desk.

As the new dean of one of the largest divisions at El Camino College, the responsibility he bears is significant.

The humanities division includes four departments: Journalism, World Languages and Cultures (formerly Foreign Languages), English as a Second Language (ESL) and English.

Kushigemachi is responsible for overseeing multiple concerns of the Humanities Building such as a broken door, an instructor being locked out of their classroom and the number of classes offered by the division.

“That’s a part of everyday life and the daily routine, but there’s broader, bigger scale things that a dean is responsible for,” Kushigemachi said.

Born and raised in Torrance, Kushigemachi has roots in his community, both inside and outside of El Camino.

“It was very clear, very early that he’s a community member and he’s very dedicated to serving students in this community,” Academic Affairs Vice President Carlos Lopez said.

Kushigemachi’s dedication to students and staff is a large reason why he was chosen to lead the humanities division as dean.

Before his administrative roles, Kushigemachi began as a tutor at a writing center in Cypress College after studying English at Biola University.

“The fact is he’s very creative as well, in terms of trying to find solutions or issues staff members or classified professionals are facing,” Lopez said.

He went to California State University Long Beach for his master’s, studying English with an emphasis on 20th Century American Literature.

Kushigemachi fell in love with teaching when he was hired as a part-time English professor in 2007 and became a full-time professor three years later.

Filling the shoes of former Dean of Humanities Debra Breckheimer is no easy task, but she believes Kushigemachi will do a good job as her successor.

“I think we definitely have different strengths and he’s very easy going, a quick study,” Breckheimer said. “He learns very quickly and I couldn’t have asked for a better associate dean, I really couldn’t have.”

There is no doubt in her mind that Kushigemachi is ready for the position.

“He’s going to grow with the division and its various iterations in the future,” Breckheimer said.

Kushigemachi said he “was fortunate” to work alongside Breckheimer during her time as dean.

“[She] worked closely with me, so I might not know all the details, but I was aware of much of what she did,” Kushigemachi said. “Since I started taking over as dean, I kind of knew what to expect at least on a day-to-day level.”

In the two months of being dean, Kushigemachi said “there is still room for growth” while learning and adapting to his new position.

For his plans with the humanities division, Kushigemachi talked about getting a closer look into the needs of each department.

“I want to take a year to really examine where things are and get a lot of feedback and have conversations with people and understand where we can improve things as a division before articulating any huge changes,” Kushigemachi said. “I want to make sure I understand what the needs are and be responsive to that.”