Meteorologist Dirk Verdoorn reports the weather on the weekday morning broadcasts of KCRA-TV news. Verdoorn teaches Geography 306 at ARC this semester. (Photo courtesy of Dirk Verdoorn)

Between mornings forecasting the weather on KCRA-TV news and afternoons teaching a weather and climate course at American River College, meteorologist Dirk Verdoorn plans to have busy Mondays and Wednesdays.

“I was interested in teaching. I’ve been interested for a long time,” said Verdoorn. “I was invited to ARC to give a presentation once and while I was here I expressed an interest in teaching a course.”

Verdoorn is teaching Geography 306, a course that covers weather and climate. He said it connects well with his on-air personality.

“This is what I do,” said Verdoorn. “I love that part of my job, going on TV and talking about what these things mean.”

He said he is making flyers to publicize the class.

Verdoorn has been a meteorologist with KCRA-TV news since 1998.

KCRA Chief Meteorologist Mark Finan said he enjoys working with Verdoorn.

“Dirk is great to work with. He is very dedicated to the science of meteorology and to getting things right,” said Finan. “He does any shift we ask him to and he never complains about anything. He enjoys his job, his profession.”

Verdoorn was born in Stockton and attended community college there.

Verdoorn later went to the University of Utah and was set on either going to graduate school or working for the National Weather Service until budget cuts made him reconsider.

“I thought ‘is there anything else I can do with my degree?’ I had a course where I met a local TV meteorologist,” said Verdoorn. “Me and a friend went there, got a feel for it, and I ended up going a few times a week and helping out.”

Covering the weather for the morning news, Verdoorn said he wakes up at 2:30 a.m. for the 4:30 a.m. broadcast. He said that teaching an afternoon course fits into his schedule.

“I’ll be able to go to ARC, teach from 1:30 p.m. to 2:50 p.m., go home and see my kids when they get home from school,” he said.

ARC professor Hugh Howard, the chairperson of the Earth Science department, said that he is looking forward to working with Verdoorn.

“The atmosphere is an incredibly complex earth system, and we are pleased to have Dirk Verdoorn take the helm of our Weather and Climate course,” said Howard. “His nearly two decades of service as KCRA-TV’s meteorologist, together with his outstanding service to the community, make him a highly desirable addition to ARC’s Earth Science Department.”