Veteran General Electric Sales Manager Brings Expertise to the Classroom

New Faculty Spotlight

Charles Edwards soared through the ranks at General Electric’s plastics division to oversee sales in 11 western states as area business manager in the 1980s. Then he made a bold decision to walk away from the corporate world to become the owner of two franchise donut shops, fulfilling his dream as an entrepreneur.  

Serendipity struck again in 2024 at a Claremont bakery. Edwards, who had become interested in teaching, explained to a friend his struggles with accessing community college teaching opportunities. Chaffey College Professor of Business Administration Thierry Brusselle overheard the exchange.

“He was looking for somebody, and I was looking for an opportunity in the community college system,” Edwards said.

Edwards joins a growing group of Chaffey College professors who bring a wealth of practical knowledge to the classroom, across the college’s Academic and Career Communities. He is teaching business management in the spring semester.

Brusselle described Edwards’ professional journey as a tremendous asset to Chaffey students.

“Professor Edwards brings not only deep and vast knowledge, but also practical experience that will empower our students to understand the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of success in business,” he said.

A native of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Edwards came to the continental U.S. in 1969 after graduating high school and pursued a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. He was one of just 13 Black students out of a class of 500.

He was recruited in his senior year as a technical design engineer for GE’s plastics division, propelled by the leadership of future CEO Jack Welch. Welch, who established a culture of aggressive business growth and leadership development, would eventually be named Fortune Magazine’s “Manager of the Century.” Edwards served GE during a time when the plastics division revolutionized manufacturing, providing a lower-cost alternative to metal in everything from the auto industry to home appliances and computers.

“There was a real strong trend toward engineering high-performance plastics at the time, and there still is,” he said.

As he moved up in the organization, he encountered entrepreneurs at plastics processing plants. This planted the seed of what would become his dream of running his own business.

In the late 1980s, Edwards left GE to pursue a Master of Business Administration at UCLA. He purchased a franchise Donut Inn location, eventually expanding to two locations.

“I was good at marketing and sales. I understood business in that I knew what it would take to drive volume, so I was very successful in growing the business,” he said.

He ran both stores until BakeMark USA recruited him, and he eventually took the role there as director of national account sales. That’s when he began to try his hand at being an adjunct professor, teaching professional selling and principles of marketing at Mt. San Antonio College.

In 2014, he retired to focus on his health. But soon he found himself missing the classroom.

He ran into Brusselle, who convinced him to return to teaching. Edwards started with a professional selling course at the California Institution for Men through Rising Scholars.

Edwards hopes to continue to give back to the next generation of business managers and entrepreneurs.

“It’s a chance for me to parlay the experiences that I’ve had, and I enjoy that,” he said.

If you are a new professor or know a new professor who would make a good feature story, please reach out to Communications Manager Melissa Pinion at melissa.pinion@chaffey.edu.