College of Continuing Education at Sacramento State

Esther Amato is an award-winning designer and educator and together with Ernie Olson, professor emeritus, they lead the popular Fashion Academy each summer at Sacramento State. The high school academy covers the life cyle of fashion, from sketching designs to creating clothes and merchandising.

The Fashion Academy has been featured in the local news, including Good Day Sacramento and ABC 10.

Professor Seung Bach not only teaches entrepreneurship at Sacramento State, he turns theory into action and success. As director of the University’s Center for Entrepreneurship, his expertise has helped launch local startups including Silk Road Soda, Safer Lock, Activity Jungle and Sacramento Eco Fitness. Comstock’s Magazine featured our high school academy in its October 2018 issue on young entrepreneurs on the move.

Jeannie Benoist joined Sacramento State in 2007 teaching in the Project Management series at the College of Continuing Education. She took a break after the birth of her daughter and rejoined the team in 2015.

A choreographer, performer, activist and educator, Professor Bernard Brown adds his talent and creativity to the Performing Arts: Dance Academy. He teaches dance in Sacramento State’s Department of Theatre and Dance and serves as artistic director for Sacramento/Black Art of Dance, a modern dance company. He describes dance as a catalyst that “sparks dialogue and change within our communities.”

Dr. Brooke Choo started teaching at the College of Continuing Education in 2015 in the learning disabilities (LD) assessment courses. She is a learning disabilities specialist and psychologist and currently works at Irvine Valley College coordinating the Student Success Center. 

Jeff Cooke has been with the Sac State Paramedic program since its start in 2009 and has always been a student favorite. Jeff spent the first 10 years of his career in EMS as an EMT and later a Paramedic with a private ambulance company in Stockton, California. In 1994 he was hired with Sacramento City Fire Department and has been serving the community of Sacramento as a Firefighter/Paramedic since. Jeff has worked in multiple capacities for Sacramento Fire Department including Rescue and Hazmat specialties.

Growing up in China, Jun Dai didn’t own a computer but he was still able to master video games. He got access to computers and the internet through “net bars” that rented machines by the hour. And there, he discovered his passion and a profession, not as a gamer but as a defender. Cyber defense is Professor Dai’s specialty at Sacramento State.

Marcia Durst owns Durst Event Strategies, and joined Sacramento State in 2014 as an instructor in the Meeting and Event Planning Certificate Program at the College of Continuing Education. “It was a great opportunity to share my experience, to help people breaking into the field or just getting started. It was a natural fit for me.”

“The program is very well known in the events community, which is important for students to know.”

Matt Fisher joined Sacramento State in 2013 teaching in the Business Analyst Program. Matt is currently the chief of training with the 70th Air Refueling Squadron, United States Air Force Reserve.

While an active reservist for 19 years, he held civilian positions as a contract negotiator for Petroleum Properties Land Company, a competitive intelligence analyst and supervisor for VSP, the sales and product director for The Dentist Insurance Company, and was an IT implementation consultant for KAI Partners.

Education: M.A. in TESOL, Sacramento State; Bachelor of Arts in English, University of the Pacific

Languages spoken: Arabic and English

What do you enjoy most about being an ESL instructor?

Michael A. Hodge joined Sacramento State in 2014, teaching in the online supervisory program at the College of Continuing Education. Michael is the owner of Organizational Development Services and teaches at the Los Rios Community College District Government Training Academy.

Elena Honeycutt joined Sacramento State in 2015, teaching in the Human Resources Management Certificate program  at the College of Continuing Education. Elena is a senior consultant in the organization effectiveness department with Health Net, Inc.

 Before joining Health Net, Elena held human resources positions with Sutter Medical Foundation, Comcast and AT &T Wireless.  She holds a bachelor’s degree in business, human resources from Sonoma State University and a master’s degree in human resources management from Golden Gate University. 

Brad Hunt has worked with the Sac State Prehospital Education Program since 2017. In 2018, Brad took on the position of Lead Instructor in both the EMT course and Paramedic Program. Brad started his career in 2002 with a private ambulance company in Stockton, California where he worked in the 911 system as an EMT for 3 years. During paramedic school, Brad was hired with the El Dorado County Fire Department where he currently serves as a firefighter/paramedic.

Education: M.A. in TESOL from Sacramento State; M.A. Teaching and Teacher Education, University of Arizona;  B.S. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona

Languages spoken: Some spanish

What do you enjoy most about being an ESL instructor?  

After years of classroom teaching and school management, James Lane turned his attention to instructional design, test creation and e-learning course development. He entered the healthcare industry, where he has been working as an instructional designer, new hire trainer and quality manager at Dignity Health.

He joined Sacramento State in 2018 as an instructor in the Instructional Design for eLearning certificate program. He holds a a master’s degree in instructional systems technology from Indiana University.

“Leadership is providing direction and focus to an individual or group of individuals that is so inspiring or compelling that it guides them down a path of excellence. It is communicating their worth and value to the point that it inspires self-growth beyond what they expect for themselves.”

Kris Lea joined Sacramento State in 2009, teaching in the Train-the-Trainer, HR, Master Analysis and State Supervisor Basics programs at the College of Continuing Education. Kris is an executive consultant with KAI Partners, a local IT consulting firm.

Before joining KAI Partners, Kris held positions with Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Kaiser Permanente and Intel Corporation. She holds a bachelor’s degree in information systems, a master’s degree in organization development (OD), and is finishing up her doctoral degree in OD.

Jeremiah Lewis began teaching in the Sac State EMT course and Paramedic Program in 2012, and in 2016 he took on the position of Lead Lecture Instructor in the EMT course. He started his career in EMS in 1999 working as an EMT for a private ambulance company. He has also worked as a Firefighter/Paramedic for city fire departments.

Born and raised in Dortmund, Germany, an industrial mining city destroyed in World War II, Ulrich “Ulli” Luenemann developed a strong sense of wanderlust at a very young age. As a young adult, he pursued military service as his ticket to freedom and volunteered with the German Luftwaffe (air force). “I’m like Top Gun, I have a need for speed,” says Luenemann. Flying fighter jets across Europe and the United States furthered his passion for world travel.

Keith Mahoney has spent two decades in information design – encompassing web and instructional design as well as technical writing and training. He has worked for NASA, Netscape, Sun Microsystems, Cisco and other Silicon Valley start-ups and currently is a manager with Intel.

He joined Sacramento State in 2018 as an instructor and curriculum co-developer for the Instructional Design for eLearning certificate. A graduate of the program, Mahoney says the certificate led to a new professional role and “provided credibility” when he applied for a graduate program at Sacramento State.

Allison Martin, a biology instructor, researcher and alumnus of Sacramento State, will return to her roots teaching high school students, as leader of the Health Careers 101 Academy. “I hope after participating in the health academy, students are able to see that there are many opportunities in healthcare, to help people and build rewarding careers with financial security,” said Martin, who will be teaching in the Summer Academies program for the first time in 2019.

Dr. Ernie Olson, known for his creative approach to teaching and his humorous delivery style, received an outstanding teaching award from the College of Health and Human Services at Sacramento State. Throughout his tenure, he consistently earned top marks from his students and now, he’s now inspiring a new generation of students as an instructor in the Fashion Academy.

Robin Purdy has planned and implemented federal workforce legislation, developed customer-centered workforce policy, engaged businesses and other partners in developing a one-stop system for job seekers and is now, preparing the next generation of workforce leaders in California as an instructor in CCE’s Workforce Development Professional Apprenticeship Program.

Katherine Raines has taught writing courses at Sacramento State since 2012, but it wasn’t until 2017 that she taught her first online class for the Bachelor of Science in Career and Technical Studies (BSCTS) degree completion program.

Her challenge was to fold an entire semester’s worth of work – in this case, multicultural children’s literature – into a five-week online course.

Raines picks up the story from there, in her own words:

Diane Schoendienst has been part of the Sac State Paramedic Program since 2017. Her primary focus is introducing paramedic students to anatomy and physiology, and how these relate to human disease processes. She is a lead instructor during dissection labs at the Sacramento Coroner’s Office, where paramedic students further connect concepts of A&P with disease.

Whenever he travels, Abhijeet Shirsat takes along a long a list of recommendations. He likes to know if a place lives up to its reputation, like the time in Philadelphia where he stood in line for three-and-a-half hours for a Philly cheese steak sandwich. “I’m passionate about travel and food. Hospitality is my life,” said Shirsat, professor in Sacramento’s State Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism Management, who’s leading the new Hospitality and Tourism Academy.

A journalist by training, Andrew Stoner has used his communication skills in a variety of careers, as a deputy press secretary, a marketing communications director, an author and a professor. He has also written on a variety of topics, from mass media and politics to history and popular culture.

Heather Tanfani, a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP), joined Sacramento State in 2004, teaching in the Meeting and Event Planning Certificate program at the College of Continuing Education. She is currently president of events!, which she started in 1995.

Rustin Vogt, a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Sacramento State, has helped us expand our Summer Academies for High School Students. In addition to leading our Engineering and Robotics Academy, where students build their own robot, Vogt will teach the new Introduction to Welding and Fabrication Academy, where they handle tools of the trade and create a unique welding project.  

Watch: Professor Rustin Vogt on “Good Day” and other videos

Nicole Welch joined Sacramento State in 2012 teaching in the Train-the-Trainer Certificate Program. She is currently the principal consultant and executive coach with Transformation Catalysts.

Nicole has provided training, coaching and organization development strategies to public and private clients in California and has worked with the California Department of Public Health, California Employment Development Department and the California Department of Transportation. She currently teaches a management and leadership course at American River College.

Melinda Wilson Ramey joined the Department of Theatre and Dance at Sacramento State in 2005 and brings her talent to a new audience through the Summer Academies for High School Students program. She has teamed up with fellow Sacramento State professor Philip Flickinger for the Theater and Performing Arts Academy, where students explore the dramatic world of performing arts and learn about educational opportunities in the arts.