Course Listing - by Instructor
| Name | Biography |
|---|---|
| Claudia Barbo | |
| Genevieve Bardwell | |
| David Beaumier | |
| Zachary Beckhusen | |
| Fran Bernstein | Fran is originally from New York and Florida and has recently moved to Bellingham. She's been a Licensed Interior Designer since 1989 and works closely with the licensing board of North America to develop national exams. She has worked in the commercial and residential sectors, and has a lot of experiences to share and is passionate about design. "A space must be a balanced combination of functional, safe, appropriate and beautiful", she says, "or it just doesn't work." She enjoys showing others the way to develop and organize their spaces to fulfill the potential and downplay the limitations. Fran is happy when her students and clients 'get it'. That 'ah'ha!' moment is so satisfying! Fran has a Bachelor's of Fine Arts degree in Interior Design, graduating summa cum laude in New York. She is a professional member of the American Society of Interior Designers, maintains her license through the Council for Interior Design Qualification, and is a certified Aging In Place specialist. Fran is also on the Advisory Board for Sherwin-Williams Paints and was a founding member of The Design Studio in Florida. She has taught art to children for many years at both public and private schools. She now has her own interior design firm. Fran has two grown children and a daughter-in-law, all of whom live on the west coast. She has volunteered for Habitat For Humanity, and spent two years with Norman Rockwell's grandson–and many others–designing and building a community-built playground. Fran is a regular blood donor, she loves to hike and explore, and has recently rekindled her love of cooking and baking. Given a few hours on a rainy day, she loves few things more than reorganizing a closet or moving things around so they are the most useful and beautiful to look at. Fran enjoys getting things done, getting her hands dirty, and nurturing new friendships. |
| Barbara Bloom | Barbara Bloom has been writing seriously since her twenties and loves to share her excitement about writing with others and encourage them in their own writing journeys. She earned a Master’s in English and Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and taught English and Creative Writing at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California for many years before retiring in Bellingham in 2016. She has published two books of poetry—On the Water Meridian and Pulling Down the Heavens, with a third book in the works. |
| Matthew Boudousquie | |
| Courtney Bourasaw | |
| Kevin Boyd | Kevin Boyd, M.B.A., M.S., a former Bell Labs engineer and Vice President of a market leading cardiology software company, is a multi-award-winning eBay Education Specialist, published eBay author and the technical editor for The Complete Idiot’s Guide to eBay. Kevin has appeared on TV, various radio shows and interviewed by Bloomberg News and several newspapers for his insights to online entrepreneurship. The primary objectives for his writing, teaching and consulting, is to educate online sellers at all levels and equip them with the skills necessary for online entrepreneurial success. Kevin has earned four degrees majoring in Business (M.B.A.) and Technology (M.S. Information Systems) Earlier in life, Kevin was a professional musician (bass guitar), living in Nashville and has performed at Carnegie Hall. |
| Susan Browne | Susan Browne bio |
| Jennifer Bryan-Goforth | Jennifer Bryan-Goforth bio |
| Chris Byrd | |
| Nancy Lou Canyon | Nancy Canyon loves to encourage people to begin a personal creative adventure. She has been teaching writing practice since 1998, and has been teaching art since the 90's, when she worked as an illustration instructor at NW College of Art. She is an idea person and loves to inspire her students to try new things. She has been teaching at Whatcom Community College, Community & Continuing Education, since 2008. She works as a writing coach for The Narrative Project. Nancy Canyon holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Pacific Lutheran University. She also earned a fiction certificate from University of Washington in 1999. She keeps an art/writing studio in Historic Fairhaven where she works and holds classes. Her novel, Celia's Heaven, is currently launching at Village Books. She also has a book of poetry, Saltwater, and an eBook of fiction short-shorts. She is working on a memoir: Struck Nancy loves to garden and together with her husband they raise tomatoes, potatoes, kale, lettuce, peas, beets, and onions. They also love to hike and paddleboard when the weather is good. They have three children and two grandsons. They also have two pets: a dog Olive and a cat Sid. Both are nearing their 14th birthdays. |
| Dana Carr | Dana has been singing and dancing with friends to feel good for as long as she can remember! She has enthusiastically participated in and led countless group dance fitness classes and silent disco events over the years and believes in the power of simple, authentic dance to create health and joyfulness in her life and in the world. She loves sharing The Groove DANCEfloor Experience with adults, kids, families and seniors in as many settings as possible -- if you can move, you can Groove! Dana earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Western Washington University in 2004 and is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Azerbaijan '06-'08). Since becoming a certified Nia White Belt Teacher in 2016 and a licensed Groove Facilitator in 2019, she has led hundreds of dance experiences both in-person and online. Dana loves hiking with her friends, crafting with her daughter and walking with her dog. She enjoys live theater, musical concerts, traveling, poetry, arts/crafts, hearty food and heady conversation. |
| Lexus Criswell | |
| Karina Davidson | Karina Davidson bio |
| Annalee Dunn | Annalee Dunn bio |
| Molly Dwyer | |
| Spencer Ellsworth | Spencer Ellsworth lives in Bellingham, WA, with his spouse and three children. He is the author of a space opera trilogy, a YA fantasy, and many short stories across various venues including the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Lightspeed Magazine and Tor.com. He teaches at Northwest Indian College, plays too many instruments in way too many bands, and would really like a war mammoth if you know where to get one. |
| Nick Engelfried | Nick is passionate about sharing a sense of wonder for the natural world with lifelong learners of all ages. He believes in using the outdoors as a classroom to learn about the incredible diversity of Northwest plant and animal life. Nick received an M.S. in environmental studies from the University of Montana, as well as an M.Ed in Environmental Education and Certificate in Northwest Natural History from Western Washington University. During his free time Nick enjoys hiking and exploring the many parks and natural areas around Bellingham. |
| Bruno Feldeisen | |
| Robert Fong | |
| Kanami Fujita | Born and raised in Kobe, Japan, Kanami finds sharing her language and culture with others rewarding. Kanami enjoys long distance running during her leisure-time and participates in various races in the region. |
| Alison Gallant | |
| Tommy Gibson | |
| Windy Gossett | Windy has lived in Ireland twice. Once as a college student getting her Masters degree at Trinity College in Dublin and again with her husband and two children in Cork. She travels back to Ireland almost every summer and is excited to share her knowledge and love of all things Irish. Windy grew up in Los Angeles and moved to Seattle in the early 90's to attend the University of Washington where she got her BA in Sociology. A few years later she moved to Dublin, Ireland to get her Masters degree at Trinity College. She returned to the Seattle area where she was a teacher and a para until she started a family. She returned to Ireland in 2018 with her family while her husband attended to University College Cork to get his Masters degree. Windy has lived in Bellingham for the last 5 years with her husband, two daughters (19 & 16) and their two golden retrievers. She loves trying new foods, spending time with her family and going out to eat. When she's not binging shows with her daughters, she is working on writing a novel or planning her next traveling experience. |
| Cliff Hanks | Since 1992, Cliff Hanks has taught business professionals and career changers to effectively use Microsoft Excel, Power BI, Teams, OneNote, SharePoint, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, and Windows. Cliff helps people and organizations get more done in less time and with less effort. He teaches you how to use the tools in your software programs effectively and by automating repetitive processes. His students appreciate his patient and friendly approach. Cliff graduated Summa Cum Laude from Brigham Young University with a Degree in Training and Development. In his downtime, Cliff enjoys spending time with his children and grandchildren. |
| Trish Harding | Recognized as a Northwest Painter of regional icons she is best known for her land and seascapes as well as her urban industrial landscapes due to her work inspired by the deconstruction of the Georgia Pacific Paper Mill near her studio. Her love of plein air painting offers an in the moment quality to her brush strokes and application of paint which helps her to push the boundaries of Northwest liquid light and color and to express the sense of interconnection of the region’s natural flora and fauna, earth, water and sky. She has facilitated the Annual Downtown Bellingham Plein Air Paint Out and Exhibition (PAPO) event for 12years. She also does considerable figurative work in her studio, Studio UFO. Her paintings in oil, acrylic and pastel offer a unique, confident personal style. Her most recent studio work utilizes personal meanings and perspective to push the boundaries of her previous work farther into the realm of symbolism. Using icons such as the nest, circle, & sphere she is driven to express new and even surreal feelings that are layered throughout her work. In 2017 Trish was selected as the Skagit Valley International Tulip Festival Poster Artist. Her image was used on all the festival’s product and the official poster. At the signings she was honored to meet people who came to see the spectacular fields of color from all over the world. Trish is owner of Studio UFO in Bellingham, which has proven to be the hot spot in town for leading edge art and art education. Trish not only teaches at Studio UFO she also has been teaching at Whatcom Community College for over 20years, and Creative Arts Community for 13 years, and countless workshops around the Pacific Northwest. She is an art trip leader to various places in the world including Paris, France, San Miguel & Mexico City Mexico, Yellowstone Park & Cody, Wyoming, Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, Palm Springs, and Victoria BC, Canada. |
| Holly Hudson | |
| Melissa Johnson | Melissa has been successfully teaching all across the humanities and social sciences since 2007. She finds tremendous joy and fulfillment working with students, exposing them to ideas and topics for the first time or helping them become experts in their field. Her enthusiasm and knowledge are contagious and inspiring. She approaches every classroom, course, and student with openness and a keen interest in meeting people where they are, building community, and working together to engage the whole person in the process of learning and applying skills. She is most at home when teaching. Melissa began her journey into higher ed as a student at Central Washington University, where she earned both a B.A. History and an M.A. English Literature. Her time at CWU opened the door to teaching and sparked a lifelong passion for education. While working at CWU, Melissa was able to make connections with English, Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, a Great Books program, Communications, Film, Continuing Education, the Center for Student Empowerment, and more. Her work with these departments/programs and professional organizations like The Society for Cinema Studies and The National Women’s Studies Association in part led to further graduate work at Southern Connecticut State University where she earned an M.A. Women’s and Gender Studies and University of Southampton where she is a doctoral candidate in Film. She is an accomplished, creative, and successful educator, academic, filmmaker, and writer. But mostly, she is passionate about teaching and learning. Melissa lives in Bellingham where she loves the rain, the trees, and the easy access to water and mountains. She likes to be in nature, amongst the trees, whenever possible and does her best to eat, breath, and sleep movies. When not watching movies she enjoys experimenting with mixology and baking, reading interesting books of all sorts, engaging with weird history, playing board games, revisiting Conan clips, and spending as much time as possible with her delightful offspring. |
| Shub-Chintan Kaur | |
| Jordan Koplowitz | |
| Sarah Lane | Sarah Lane is an artist, following the call to honor and illuminate life through art. Whether she is painting landscapes, rendering anatomical-botanicals in mixed media or creating portraits, Sarah is moving through painting and prayer simultaneously, offering gratitude for what is before her. Sarah's educational background is pretty diverse! She began studying art at the Cleveland Institute of Art's Lacoste School of the Arts (where her father taught) when she was in high school. Because she always loved service, and at 17-years-old, wasn't sure if she would be able to serve others well through art, she chose to go to the United States Military Academy at West Point and graduated with a BS in English Literature. While serving as an Army Engineer, she earned a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Oklahoma. Finally, she earned a Master of Arts degree in English Literature from National University. Through all of this, she continued to pursue art and her own art education on the side. She's attended the University of Alaska Anchorage, Art Institutes online and many workshops. The greatest gift that education has given her? A continuous yearning and opportunities to grow and share. When she's not making art, she's outside with her family and best buddy, Oakley the Springer Spaniel; gardening and making things with natural materials; and doing her best to serve others. She has a particular passion for herbs and mushrooms and aspires to travel and sketch and get to know this beautiful and its many rich cultures through textiles and art. |
| Virginia Lang | Ginny Lang is a veteran management consultant who has worked for decades in the corporate sector and the nonprofit community as an advisor on all aspects of community affairs. As the founding director of Lang Consulting, she consults, teaches, speaks, and coaches on topics ranging from public speaking and interview skills to fund development, board effectiveness and volunteer management. She specializes in helping to create win/win relationships between business leaders and mission-driven community organizations. |
| Annette Lanker | |
| Emma Le Dû | |
| Miranda LeonJones | |
| Charles Lindsey | Lin's career has spanned more than 40 years as both an atmospheric scientist and product management consultant and mentor. He's been consistently praised for the passion and knowledge he is able to share with colleagues and students. He's an active sailor and serves as the weather advisor for a local charter sail and power boating company. Lin received his B.A in Political Economy from The Colorado College, his M.S, in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia, and his MBA from the University of Washington Foster School of Business. He has been an invited speaker for professional organizations and has published a number of papers and reports throughout his career. He has served as a judge for UW business school competitions and is an invited speaker and mentor on careers in product management for upcoming business school graduates. Lin and his wife Susan moved to Bellingham in 2020 following long careers in the Seattle area, northern California and southeastern Washington. They have three adult children and greatly enjoy spending time together as a family. In 2023 they spent 10 days sailing in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) and the kids are hounding them to take them back again! |
| Vanessa Maisonpierre | Vanessa has been educating about holistic skincare for five years. Whether with her clients in a treatment room, at wellness retreats, or online, she loves to share her knowledge about a holistic approach to anti-aging. Did you know that up to 80% of aging is directly influenced by our diet, environment & lifestyle? Vanessa is focused on helping people support their body through the natural, age-related changes, while slowing (and preventing!) the 80% that’s within their control. Vanessa graduated with a BA from Western Washington University & promptly enrolled in the Aveda Institute to study esthetics, following a lifetime love of skincare. After receiving her license in esthetics, Vanessa enrolled in the NutraPhoria School of Holistic Nutrition, where she became a certified holistic health coach & nutrition practitioner. When she’s not indulging in self care, Vanessa loves to get outdoors on a walk, hike, or run. She also loves reading, trying out new recipes, and cozy nights in with a cup of tea. |
| Erica Mallin | Currently residing in Bellingham, Washington, Erica spends her days planning travel, volunteering, crafting, and enjoying time in nature. Growing up in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles gave her an appreciation for living in natural environments that led to her moving first to Portland, Oregon, and eventually, to Seattle and then Bellingham. As an educator in diverse communities for 30 years, Erica had the opportunity to grow in her understanding of how cross-cultural experiences could help build positive connections among participants. She traveled with her students, watching them grow through exposure to the values and traditions of other cultures. Taking her travel interests one step further, she enrolled in an associate degree program in travel marketing at a local community college, with the intent to start some type of travel service that focused on connecting more deeply with local cultures once she retired. Planning independent travel to Italy over the past two decades has given Erica a deep personal knowledge of the country and led her to creating Roads Less Traveled Italy. Fluent in Italian, she has longtime relationships with locals and is constantly learning about new hidden gems to share with travelers. She is now also teaching courses through local continuing education programs on how to travel off the beaten path to Italy. As a retired school counselor, Erica prides herself on superlative customer service, as well as a thorough desire to assist travelers in turning their ideas into reality. |
| Bailey McCully | Bailey McCully has taught and performed across North America and internationally. Bailey works with dancers of all ages, from young dancers in Bellingham schools to adults. Her background and work in education has made pedagogical excellence both a passion and defining quality. While technique is always a component, Bailey focuses on teaching students about how they can move rather than how they should move in an uplifting environment. She loves to explore personal style and creativity with her students, using the music as the constant source of guidance and inspiration. Bailey studied theater and english at Western Washington University, graduating with degrees in both in 2017. During and after her years at Western she traveled to Africa, Europe, and across North America to study vernacular dances. She continues to have the wonderful privilege of teaching and learning in communities and festivals around the world. Bailey spends much of her day dancing teaching young dancers. When she is not in the classroom, she enjoys getting outside in any weather. She loves hitting the trail for a run, hike, or the occasional rainy watercolor in the mountains. |
| Dalia Monterroso | |
| Kristi Moseley | |
| David Neubeck | |
| Debra Olberg | Debra Olberg finds teaching to be a wonderful experience and a great tool to test one's own knowledge. It challenges the individual to improve upon what is already known and to search into new areas. Being able to share what she knows with a room full of people who want to be there makes Debra smile. Her strengths as an instructor include enthusiasm, organizational skills, practical experience, a down-to-earth attitude, and a willingness to share with others. Debra has spent 23 years in the retail nursery/landscape industry as a certified horticulture technician. She is currently owner of Secret Garden Designs, a landscape design and consulting business specializing in one-on-one consultations with homeowners to solve their garden problems.
Debra's leisure interests include teaching, "puttering around in the yard making messes and hoping the garden fairy will clean them up (never happens though)," and playing with her two live-wire dogs, Violet and Sky. She also enjoys visiting her parents (very special people), reading horticulture books, going to movies, and watching TV programs on interior, exterior, and garden design. |
| Scott Opsahl | |
| Sammy Orrey | |
| Marisa Papetti | |
| Joseph Pratschler | |
| Michal Retter | For almost two decades Michal has been teaching yoga at Whatcom Community College as an adjunct faculty offering classes for academic credits and non- academic classes. She specializes in introducing the practice to beginners as well as in nurturing continuation for the seasoned student. She is proficient in cueing poses, guided visualization and relaxation, and she is perceptive to individual progress. She seeks to create an environment of inner composure, listening to your own body's subtle wisdom. Michal is a current member, certified and registered teacher with the Yoga Alliance since 2006. Her certifications include Yin Yoga and Yoga for Healing Cancer. She had the honors of teaching trainees in two 200hr Yoga Teacher Trainings in Bellingham. Michal is dedicated to parenting! She is enthusiastic about heart-opening experiences! She loves strolling through the gentle waves on sandy beaches, feasting with her family and neighbors, gardening, hiking, discovering beautiful nature spots, traveling… |
| Cynthia Rogers | The ukulele is one of the easiest instruments to learn, especially with Cynthia's support and cheerful attitude. You can chose to strum, sing, do both, or watch to learn. Cynthia's classes have a fun, encouraging vibe so it's easy to try out new skills. Cynthia values everyone's background and talents. Her passion is to share the flexibility, fun and camaraderie of ukulele culture. Music-making is a wonderful way to feel playful, make new friends, and bring more joy back into your life. Some 'formal' and some 'casual', Cynthia has lead a wide variety of music groups for adults. She plays multiple instruments, such as guitar, piano, ukulele, clarinet, and flute. Cynthia studied music performance at Tufts University in Boston and music history at University of Washington Seattle, receiving two Bachelor of Arts degrees. As a longtime resident of Whatcom County, Cynthia is a former business owner, teacher, and education administrator. Currently she is an Instructor with Roots of Empathy in the Bellingham School District and a freelanced Communications Consultant. Cynthia enjoys time with friends and family, sailing, hiking, swimming, ASL, games, and meeting new people. Happy uke to you! |
| Al Sanders | Alan believes that learning something new should be a fun experience. Humor is one of the hallmarks of his teaching style. He also excels at breaking down complex ideas into bite size chucks for anyone to grasp. Alan has been making photographs since the 70's and teaching photography since the 80's. He has taught at the University of Alaska, Anchorage and Western Washington University. Having previously owned a commercial photography business specializing in advertising and public relations, he now concentrates on fine art photography. His photographs have been in many group as well as one person shows. He has work in the permanent collections of several museums as well as many private collections. Alan currently works in a photo lab, where he works with digital images all day. When not making photographs Alan enjoys spending time with family and friends, particularly his grandson.leisure time is also spent hiking, traveling and lingering over a good cup of coffee. |
| Grace Schutte | |
| Ali Segersten | |
| Alina Seredian | |
| Tim Shenkin | |
| D. Monique Stefens | Monique offers interactive, experiential programs to foster insight, laughter and learning. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology and her Master's degree in Adult & Higher Education, both at WWU. She is a certified coach through Conscious Leadership Group, a trained facilitator through Excellence Northwest, a relationship coach, and a keynote speaker. To see her videos and access free worksheets visit MoniqueStefens.com You will often find Monique collaborating with others, whether she is working, cooking, dancing or hiking. She fosters dogs, has two grown children, and loves the Pacific Northwest. |
| Michele Sweeney | |
| Sheri Ten Eyck | Sheri TenEyck bio |
| Magdalena Theisen | |
| Adam Van Ness | An investment management and personal finance professional for over 14 years, Adam brings his money philosophy and “keep it simple” ethos to personal finance. On April Fools Day, 2016, at the age of 41 Adam left the traditional working world and retired, or as he puts it: “I went on an indefinite sabbatical”. He enjoys talking about and teaching money skills, general finance, and investment concepts. Adam holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Boston College, and International Masters of Business Administration from The Darla Moore School of Business. Additionally, during his career in investment management Adam held FINRA series 7, 66 and 24 certifications as well as the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designation (CAIA). Adam keeps busy helping his wife raise their son and daughter, working on his own self-imposed construction projects, cooking, hiking, running, and getting out on the water whenever he can. |
| Robin VanHyning | Robin VanHyning loves to encourage people to develop careers in long-term care settings. She works to inspire people to become leaders of caregiving teams who provide compassionate care for clients and each other. She has been teaching long-term care workers since the '80s. She is a Community Instructor for the DSHS and teaches caregiver and administrator certifications and trainings. Robin VanHyning holds an MSN in Nursing Education with a focus on Distance Learning from Grand Canyon University. She is licensed as a Registered Nurse and Nursing Home Administrator. Robin is credentialed as an Adult Family Home Administrator and an Assisted Living Administrator and owned and operated an Adult Family Home (AFH) for 8 years. Robin's mother currently resides in an AFH where Robin is the consulting RN and Nurse Delegator. Robin loves to travel with her husband in their RV. She lives on Lopez Island and enjoys the laid back life that island living brings. She is a "serial entrepreneur" and currently runs two online training companies. Robin enjoys knitting, sewing, reading, community service projects, and riding her electric bike around the island! She has one grown daughter and son-in-law, and a cat named "Ziggy" who adopted her by moving in one day. |
| Rika Wong | |
| Chuckanut Writers Instructors | |
| Christy Wyble |