Teachers
Mike Allen
Mike8716@aol.comMike Allen has worked over 20 years as a professional commercial artist. Most recently as a character designer on Nickelodeon's hit show “The Fairly OddParents.” Originally from New York, Mike has worked as an art director for some of NYC's largest advertising agencies on many major brands, as well as running his own graphic design studio for many Fortune 500 clients. He is a traditionally trained illustrator, attended Parsons school of design, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Towson University in Maryland.
Wade Bradford
profwade@hotmail.comCollege Professor at College of the Canyons, local playwright, and homeschooling father! Wade Bradford will bring his talents to our kids to help bring the excitement of Create Writing into their education!
www.wadebradford.com
Frank Browne
frankbr@ca.rr.com
Frank Browne, our guitar teacher, resides in Castaic and tours regularly throughout the U.S. He has performed on stage with many national acts including Zoot Suit Revue, the acclaimed swing, big band, latin, and jump blues show group; and the jazz ensemble Big Brothers Big Band, where he performed for President Clinton. He is featured on ZSR s album “Bold, Borrowed and New” as well as three CD’s with Gary Urwin’s Studio Orchestra. Their latest recording, Kindred Spirits, can be heard on jazz radio stations across the country. Frank has performed at such notable venues as The Derby, The Coconut Club, The Supper Club NY, House of Blues, and the MGM Grand. Fluent in all musical genres, he also maintains a large studio of private students. Frank originally hails from New York and is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Music.
Kelly Bygum
kmbygum@ca.rr.comA graduate of the USC Marshall School of Business and homeschool Mom for 7 years, Kelly is also a licensed cosmetologist for over 30 years and have worked with many well-known artists such as Vidal Sassoon, Allen Bush, and Paul Mitchell. As instructor and platform artist for the ABBA Academy she brought her love of teaching and artistry to the move industry. An actress and dancer in the entertainment industry, Kelly moved to more sedate activities with the birth of her children! She says "The most difficult job I have had to date is being a mother to my 4 children. Still looking for that instruction book!"
Dr. Roger DeSesa
InspiredDoctor@aol.comHomeschooling Father and local chiropractor, Dr. DeSesa is very excited to bring the world of human biology and physiology - health and wellness - to our kids!
www.scvhealthcare.com
Wednesday Hobson
fortuna_cat@mail.comWednesday Hobson has had 18 years of dance instruction. She has an extensive background in classical ballet, primarily with Russian and French influence. Her dance teachers have included Frank Boreman, principal dancer for the Australian National Ballet, and Patrick Frantz of the Paris Opera Ballet. Wednesday is also fluent in English Country Dancing, Irish styles, Jazz dance, Modern movement, and theatrical dance performance. She has starred as Clara in The Nutcracker. Wednesday has taught both movement, ballet, and character dancing classes to ages 2 - 17 years old. She loves watching children learn how to dance. She admits to being silly with her students and letting them pick the songs from her dance music collection.
Lisa Huckemeyer
ca2il2ca@sbcglobal.netLisa Huckemeyer comes to us as a graduate from the University of WI – Madison, earning degrees in both business and child and family studies. After working in the business arena for 10 years, she is now a mother and considers herself the primary educator of her two boys, ages 8 and 14. Lisa has worked with Huckleberry since it’s inception. Lisa’s philosophy on education is that if it’s not creative and fun, we’re not learning! Lisa also owns her own children’s business and is an active member in our local community.
Sharon Koppenhaver
dkoppenhaver@socal.rr.comSharon Koppenhaver joined the Huckleberry staff in January of 2008 as a Physical Education Teacher. She graduated with a BS in Physical Education specializing in Exercise and Fitness from James Madison University in Virginia. Sharon has been a Personal Fitness Trainer in Delaware and Minnesota. She taught PE in Massachusetts for 2 years and in California for 1 year. Sharon has an extensive background in many team sports as well as total body wellness. She lives in Stevenson Ranch with her husband Dave and their two children Paige (15 years old) and Davis (12 years old).
Lisa Melcombe
lamkin321@dslextreme.comAfter a decade working in television animation for Disney and Warner Bros., Lisa Melcombe earned her California State teaching credential and has taught in the Santa Clarita Valley since 2002. She has a degree in Art from Cal State University, Northridge and an appreciation for creative and performing arts. Ms. Melcombe has a special passion for literature and storytelling, and loves to introduce children (including her two young daughters) to beautifully written and classically illustrated books.
Jody Nalian
jaknalian@sbcglobal.netHomeschooling mother for 16 years and much loved teacher, Jody brings her passion for learning into all of her classes!
Sarah Peterson
lo_lap@msn.com
Graduated from Concordia College with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Religion. Sarah has been a Home Educator for the past seven years and has been a well loved teacher of Elements and the Periodic Table, Forensics and Biology, Cooking, and Math Games to the homeschooling community. Sarah's teaching philosophy is to approach each class with interesting hands on activities and games that keep the kids wanting to learn more!
Kelly Petrula
kelly_mariep@yahoo.comKelly Petrula has a B.A. in Child and Adolescent Development and extensive experience working with children of all ages. She first began her career as a camp counselor for the Simi Valley Family YMCA. She then went on to San Diego State and worked in their on site child care center as a teacher for children ages 9months to 5 years. During that time, Kelly developed developmentally appropriate curriculum and taught parenting classes as well. After returning to the San Fernando Valley, Kelly enrolled in CSUN where she finished her degree. While in college, she worked at Daland Swim School as a swim instructor for children ages 8 months through adults, specializing in children with special needs. Kelly also taught at the CSUN lab school, in a High Scope, Whole Child program for children ages 2 years to 6 years. After getting married and becoming a mom, Kelly worked as a tutor for children, continued to teach swimming independently, and completed 20 units in a M.A. in ED program in Cross Cultural Teaching. Currently on hiatus, she has a sophomore in public school, and home schools her two girls, ages 8 and 11. Passionate about encouraging a love of learning in all children, Kelly is excited to be teaching at the Huck. In her free time, Kelly enjoys reading, swimming, anything outdoors, and good food!
Tracy Quick
quickmcd@ca.rr.comTracy Quick has always loved helping people, especially kids. As a child she dreamed of one day becoming a teacher, getting married, and having a large family. Today she’s “living the dream”, as her husband always jokes. Tracy is a New York native, with her B.S. in Education from Boston University. She taught grades K-12 in Massachusetts public schools, until pregnant with her third child. After moving to Santa Clarita, and experiencing the public schools here, she and her husband decided to homeschool their children. She currently homeschools her four youngest children, who LOVE attending Huckleberry. She likes being busy, loves learning and sharing new things, enjoys the freedom and flexibility that homeschooling offers, and is excited about being more involved in the wonderful Huckleberry community.
Ann Rees
huckmath@yahoo.comAnn Rees has a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and a M.S. in Electrical Engineering. She has tutored in several math levels, including basic math, algebra and beyond for several years. Rees enjoys working with children to make math fun and to help them see connections between mathematical concepts and the real world usage of math. Contact Ann directly at her email for private or semi-private math tutoring sessions!
Eric Rettke
csitprof@hotmail.com
My interest in robotics as a STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) course is to increase interest and awareness in science among today’s youth. My computer/robotics club at LA Mission College demonstrates robots for the Cesar Chavez day in San Fernando and Dia de la Muerta at the college campus. I helped start an annual summer robotics project for LA Unified in conjunction with CSUN, Project Grad middle schools, and Los Angeles Mission College. These LAUSD schools are in a high drop area, however, this program in math and robotics boasts a near 100% attendance. Participating students pass algebra the first semester with comparable scores to their college bound peers. I am currently working to create a college level robotics course at LA Mission College. When I was in middle school, before the PC revolution, programmable calculators were just being introduced. Through the mentoring of a family friend who provided me with access to his engineering calculators, I was inspired to pursue a career in technology. I work for LA Mission College as a computer and network specialist, and I teach computer science on weekends and evenings. My favorite classes are web programming, computer networking, and Linux. I have been employed at Mission College for roughly twenty years. I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems from the University of Redlands. I live locally in Stevenson Ranch with my wife Nina and my two sons Sasha and Misha. My sons are excelling in their high school Pre-Calculus and Calculus classes and are technically minded. They did it themselves, but I like to think I influenced them. I look forward to sharing my experience and knowledge with the students at Huckleberry. Eric Rettke
Cathy Riso
get2cathy@aol.com
Cathy has worked world wide as a soloist and background vocalist for internationally renowned artists (i.e. Placido Domingo, Julio Iglesias, Charles Aznevour, etc), and also performed on Broadway as Grace Farrell in "Annie", as well as many regional theater productions. She now shares her love and knowledge of drama with our students. Her academic background is diverse, with passion and studies in fields from History to Geology.
Elizabeth Rydall
Jaegerarts@aol.com
Elizabeth Rydall has a BA in Art and Theatre from Moorhead State University and has taught various subjects for over 20 years. She was a professional actor for over 15 years, appearing in commercials, television, industrial films, feature films, and live in-house trainings for large corporations such as Disney, American Express, ABC TV and Carrier. She won a "Best Actress" in Los Angeles Theatre and has taught acting to adults and children for 18 years. After having children, she started a new art business focused on teaching private and group art lessons, painting commissioned works and painting murals in homes and businesses. You can visit her teaching website at http://www.theartmom.com/, or her art website at http://www.wheretheartis.com/
www.wheretheartis.com
Penny Sande
sandepen@yahoo.comPenny Sande has a passion for making music. As an accomplished violin and viola player, her playing credits date back to the mid 70's. At the request of a local elementary school, she began teaching students to play violin and recorder. Sande has a loyal following, and soon added cello to her repertoire, and is the current director for 2 local string orchestras. Sande's peformance groups have performed at many weddings, charity & local events, including being a featured playing group at Universal City Walk during 2006 Holiday season. She is both a dedicated homeschooler, and a well loved private string teacher, with 35 current private lesson students.
Holly Van Houten
vanhoutens@frazmtn.com
Holly Van Houten holds a Masters degree in English and American Literature and is ABD (All But Dissertation) for her Ph.D. in English Literature from USC. She has taught courses in literature and writing at USC, Pepperdine University, CSUN, CSULB and other Los Angeles area colleges. She is currently the Dramaturg for the Mountain Shakespeare Festival where she also serves on the Board of Directors. She currently homeschools her two daughters and loves watching their love of literature grow year by year.
Marlowe Weisman
marlowe@toonupmedia.com
Marlowe Weisman has written and consulted for every animation genre - from irreverent sci-fi to classic character slapstick; heartwarming preschool tales to action-packed westerns to educational satire. A former Disney staff writer, he earned an Emmy nomination for his work on Warner Bros.’ Baby Looney Tunes, and recently contributed to Cartoon Network’s My Gym Partner’s A Monkey. He co-wrote the European animated feature Letters From Felix 2 and the upcoming DVD feature The Sound of Silent Night.
Prior credits include WB’s Emmy-winning historical parody Histeria, Cartoon Network's raucous Ed, Edd & Eddy, Sci-Fi Network’s cult hit Captain Simian, Universal’s New Woody Woodpecker and international preschool hit Pocket Dragon Adventures.
Marlowe’s short for WB’s Animaniacs starred original characters created beyond the cast. It featured just one word - spoken 120 times.
http://thebiz.variety.com/people/marlowe-weisman
Partners in Learning
SCV Film Fest
rhamilton@scvfilmfestival.com
Ramon Hamilton is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Santa Clarita Valley Film Festival. His involvement with the festival, particularly as a key member of its Selection Committee, has been part of the success of the festivalʼs quality of films over the last three years. Ramon has been involved in the selection of several short and feature length films that have gone on to obtain theatrical and DVD distribution. The short films MY BACKYARD WAS A MOUNTAIN and BINTA AND THE GREAT IDEA (official festival selections) were Academy Award nominees in 2006 and 2007. Since moving to the Los Angeles Area in 2004, Ramon has also directed and produced many short films, most notably RACHELʼS FORTUNE, which has been an official selection at numerous film festivals (San Francisco International Childrenʼs Film Festival, Los Angeles International Childrenʼs Film Festival, Brooklyn International Kidʼs Film Festival, among others) and won top honors as Best Film for Youth at Torontoʼs 2007 COMMFest (Community Film Festival). THE HIDING, which he produced and directed, was his first feature-length film and it highlights his promise and talent behind the camera. Currently, THE HIDING has three offers for international and domestic distribution, with the film just being completed at the end of October 2008. As a producer, Ramon seeks out quality projects with talented directors and actors attached. His most recent short film, GRANDMAʼS HOUSE, by award winning writer/director Arend Steenbergen was his first film venture with an international filmmaker and it has been a successful partnership. Currently, the film is an official selection of the Netherlands Film Festival, and has two offers for international distribution, which is rare for short films.
Ramon Hamilton Executive Director SCV Film Festival 661-600-6320
www.scvfilmfestival.com
Play-Well TEKnologies
At Play-Well TEKnologies we strive to build problem-solving skills, provide an opportunity for creative expression, foster a greater appreciation of how things work, and encourage the qualities of inquisitiveness, self reliance, and self confidence in children. We do this in the context of fun-filled engineering and architectural projects, activities that both the children and the instructors enjoy!
http://www.play-well.org/
Jay Stallings
coachjay@cycl.org
“Coach Jay” Stallings has been teaching chess to children full-time since 1996. He is a USCF Expert and is on the National Scholastic Chess Committee. His curriculum was developed after years of teaching, and is designed specifically for children. Coach Jay’s students and teams have won numerous state titles and have even earned as high as 2nd Place at SuperNationals events against the strongest players and teams in the nation. He is married and has two boys, ages 23 and 13.
www.cycl.org
Director
Stephanie Berry
stephanie.berry@ix.netcom.comFounder & Executive Director of HuckleBerry. A home schooling educator for the past 6 years, Stephanie Berry has taught group classes in reading, writing, history, geography, Latin / Greek roots and biology. She is a trained PhonoGraphix reading instructor and provides 1:1 reading instructional play with children ages 5 - 11. Prior to embarking in the educational arena, Berry was a software and business consultant for major corporations in the Silicon Valley. Her projects ranged in scope from re-organizing businesses for success to bringing in software and interpersonal communication tools to help organizations achieve profitability. She has developed both in-house and commercial grade software and holds 2 patents on Novel Gene Clustering Algorithms and Genomic Visualization tools.
http://www.huckleberrycreativelearning.org/
Elizabeth Johnson
5johnsons@sbcglobal.net
Director of Community Outreach.
As a Harvard graduate, Elizabeth Johnson is passionate about the development of success in education. Possessing a lifelong interest in psychology and philosophy, Mrs. Johnson has read and researched extensively and worked with a wide variety of teachers for over 25 years. As a psychology major, she worked in BF Skinner's lab, which lead to her subsequent degree in Exotic Animal Training and Management. Johnson trained wild and exotic animals for the entertainment industry, honing operant conditioning skills, utilizing
every aspect of the environment to achieve the desired result.
Currently, in addition to homeschooling her sons, the eldest of whom
just matriculated to UC Berkeley, Johnson is the Director of Community Outreach at the HuckleBerry Center for Creative Learning where she applies her knowledge and creativity teaching innovative classes.
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/5johnsons/index2.html