Instructor Biographies
Carrie Babb will begin her second year of teaching elementary art in the fall. She is currently teaching art to kindergarten through fifth grade students in the Blue Valley School District.
Brad Henry is an elementary teacher who has worked for JCCC’s summer youth program for six years. He is currently working on his master’s degree in education administration.
Beth Bird teaches fifth grade at Williamsburg Elementary School. She is a passionate, caring, creative teacher who encourages and challenges her students to work towards their full potential.
Keil Hileman is a seasoned middle school teacher currently teaching in the De Soto School District. He was named Kansas Teacher of the Year in 2004. He teaches a classroom museum course at MidAmerica Nazarene University and an artifactsupported history course at UMKC.
Carrie Blasi has taught in the Blue Valley School District for six years and currently teaches fullday kindergarten. This is Carrie’s sixth summer teaching K1 classes.
Catherine Owen currently teaches seventh grade Communication Arts in Blue Springs, Mo. Lisa Pate is an eighth grade algebra teacher for the Olathe School District. She has 14 years of teaching experience.
Karen Ikner has taught fifth grade in the Blue Valley School District for nine years. She also teaches ELL (English Language Learners).
Erin Pike has been teaching for four years. She currently teaches fourth grade in the Blue Valley School District.
Chelsea Cassell teaches Spanish and French at Monticello Trails Middle School in the De Soto School District.
Linda Ives enjoys teaching college vocabulary and essay writing for college entrance tests. She has worked for the summer youth programs for nine years and teaches in the QUEST gifted program in Olathe schools.
Wendy Ping has been teaching art in the Kansas City area for 16 years. The last 11 have been in the De Soto School District. This summer will be her ninth year teaching art in the TALENTS! program.
Rhonda Chiles teaches second grade in the Shawnee Mission schools. She has taught for 19 years. She is also a freelance writer for the Education Center.
Viola Jackson has 10 years of teaching experience. She currently teaches kindergartenfifth grade Spanish in the Blue Valley School District.
Patty Raouf teaches family and consumer sciences at Hickman Mills High School. She has experience teaching every grade level.
Becky Dallman has worked for the Shawnee Mission School District as a Parent Educator in its Parents as Teachers program for seven years and has taught fulltime kindergarten at Merriam Park for four years.
Suzanne Jensen is a library media specialist in the Shawnee Mission School District. She has 25 years of teaching experience.
David Ritzman has an exceptional background with Fortune 100 companies and credentials in the areas of corporate recruiting, quality assurance and organizational design. He has passion for helping kids understand and value the benefits of academics.
Susan Latas has retired from the Shawnee Mission School District after 29 years of teaching. She has taught Mock Trial Experience for the JCCC Talents program for 17 years and has developed a terrific group of speakers.
Wendy Robinson has 20 years of experience in education. She is currently the QUEST teacher at Prairie Trail Junior High in Olathe.
Theo Carswell teaches in the Shawnee Mission School District. She has taught in the Camden County Georgia School District, North Carolina and Okinawa, Japan.
Toni Dringman teaches eighthgrade social studies for the Olathe School District. Joann Dunham has been a gifted facilitator for the De Soto School District for seven years. Her interest in architecture comes from several family members who are engineers and architects. Trisha Farnsworth teaches reading in the De Soto School District. She has been teaching 14 years and is happy to return for her seventh year at JCCC youth programs.
Sara Jo Martin has been an elementary educator for 23 years, teaching second, third and fourth grade in the Lee’s Summit School District. In addition, she has worked as an instructional technology specialist and has taught technology classes at UMKC. Shawn McWhirt is a gifted facilitator in the De Soto School District. Shawn has taught for the past 11 years.
Dr. Eric Flescher is a storm chaser. He has traveled the world chasing eclipses even into Mt. St. Helens volcano. Using the Internet and computers for education is also part of his background.
Linda Meyer is a gifted education teacher in the Blue Valley School District. She has 34 years of teaching experience in Iowa, Kansas, Korea and Argentina.
Ashleigh GarciaWheeler teaches art at Mill Creek Middle School for sixth through eighth grades in the De Soto School District.
Jan Miller has been in gifted education for 27 years and was selected twice for inclusion in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. She was honored in 1994 as “distinguished teacher” by the White House Commission of Presidential Scholars.
Rita Garcia teaches in the Blue Valley School District. She has been named Blue River master teacher. Vince Garcia is a physical education teacher at a charter high school in Kansas City. He has coached football and wrestling.
Tammy Motti teaches allday kindergarten and mentors new kindergarten teachers. She is currently teaching kindergarten at Merriam Park Elementary. She has taught in the Shawnee Mission School District for 12 years.
Lisa Healey has taught art for seven years, and gifted education for 10 years in the Shawnee Mission School District. She enthusiastically returns to the JCCC TALENTS! program for her fourth year.
Wendy Mueller has been a career counselor for more than 10 years, with experience working with all ages and backgrounds. She brings joy, humor and hope to her workshops and likes to empower her students with tools to manage career transition.
Connie Healy has 31 years of teaching experience and she still loves it! She was 2003 Kansas Teacher of the Year and the 2003 Blue Valley Master Teacher of the year. She has also been the science fair sponsor for High Grove Elementary.
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Victor Olvera is an adjunct professor in the music department at JCCC. His compositions have been performed by the State of Mexico Symphony. Sistema 5 was performed by the UMKC woodwind quintet at the 1998 Seamus Conference.
Ann Nelson, NBCT, has taught for 29 years. She is currently the enrichment specialist at Blue Valley School District.
Rosalie Schard has been teaching for 31 years. She currently teaches first grade in the Shawnee Mission School District. Morgan Schneebeli has taught reading in the Shawnee Mission School District for five years. She is excited to be involved in the JCCC youth program for her third straight year. Jacqueline Shao is a teacher and principal at the Chinese School of Greater Kansas City. She has taught Chinese since 2000 and is experienced in Chinese culture activities. She is also an active volunteer in gifted and cultural programs. Ashley Stoffregen has been teaching sixth grade math in the Blue Springs School District for eight years. She enjoys teaching students and helping them learn. Melissa Stucky has worked at the elementary and junior high levels in both gifted education and as a library media specialist. She has taught TALENTS! classes for more than 10 years. Andrew Trites has taught in the Blue Valley and Olathe school districts. He served as a paraprofessional for the JCCC Summer Youth Program for the past four years. Bethany Vokac is a kindergarten teacher in the Blue Valley School District. She enjoys scientific inquiry with young children. Shannon WeatherallJohnson has taught kindergarten and summer school in Olathe for six years. Kathy Wiley has taught young children, ages five to nine for more than 17 years. She currently teaches kindergarten in the Blue Valley School District.