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Welcome!
I am the founder and lead instructor with Vcademy, a virtual school for you to learn in a supportive and friendly environment. My background is in teaching as a certified teacher in the United States. I have a TESOL certificate and doctorate in education. I began this school to help others learn skills in speaking, English, Business English, and other important subjects. I am thrilled you've taken the time to come visit me here. I wear many hats which you will discover here. For example, I have been a Managing Director for the last 10 years, helping to turnaround the company and grow its presence in our community through careful relationships, product selection, strategic finance, service, market expansion, market intelligence, analytics, communications, training, and guest experience. In addition, I spent the last 4 years (2020 - 2024) opening a cultural center, acting as Executive Director and Board Chair; in this position, I oversaw all operations, growth, communications, and finance. Finally, I am a program director and certified teacher in Albuquerque where I teach Musical Theater, Drama, Stagecraft, Mathematics and hold endorsements in the Performing Arts, Business Education, English Language Arts, and Math. I oversee the theater arts program where I helped restart it after a 10-year gap where the school did not have one. I help select the most effective products for the program while coaching students in all areas of theater (including acting, singing, dance, analysis of text, directing, and communications). To learn about me as a musician: click here. My educational background includes:
*Bachelor of Arts: English / Minors: Theater & Psychology
*Bachelor of Music: Applied Voice
*Master of Music: Applied Voice
*Master of Business Administration: Finance
*Doctor of Education: Higher Education Teaching & Learning
Recently, my musical theater students won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in the AMDA sponsored Broadway Bound Live!, a reality TV show, where I was a vocal coach and music director for the final musical “I’m a Catch, so Why am I Single?“ My students received scholarships to AMDA as a result; 1st and 2nd place winners won 4-year full ride scholarships each worth $240,000. Third place won a $160,000 scholarship. In addition to being a teacher, I am a restaurateur, college admissions coach, business consultant, recruiter (Oberlin College), and nonprofit leader (Founder of the NM Black Cat Cultural Enterprise).
In the past, I was a Commissioner of Music for the State of New Mexico (2014-2019), have 20 years of teaching voice, and was the Assistant Director of the UNLV Writing Center, where I taught workshops in Writing, Business English, Business Writing, and documentation. My doctorate is in social-emotional learning and teacher-student relationships. I can speak conversational English and French, as well as have basic understanding (elementary with 1 year of study) of German and Italian because I have spent several months in both Germany and Italy. I am also learning European Portuguese (as of February 2024).
Prior to teaching, I worked in gaming technology as a project manager and senior account services manager, as well as a business intelligence product manager, market intelligence manager, casino administrator, director of marketing, and singer.
My teaching is well-informed (as I use data in my decisions), can be experiential, fun, and extremely involving. My students work very hard and see their successes obtainable, which increases their engagement. They provide me with input, and they have a say in their activities.
Since I use social and emotional learning techniques, coupled with techniques found in the performing arts (rehearsal and in-depth analysis), and techniques from AVID (Advance Via Individual Determination), my students achieve success.
The components of social emotional learning can be found in the CASEL 5. I place strongest emphasis on relationship skills and then self-management, social awareness, and self-awareness.
I am committed to student success and have regular one-on-ones with all of my 140 students to coach them, guide them to technical success, and work with them on an emotional and social basis. My students typically score above average on standardized exams.
I also am proud to say that I achieve 100% engagement on a regular basis with my students in completing / learning new skills, as well as a high attendance rate of 95% almost daily in all of my classes.
My students learn to believe in themselves in a nurturing environment, understand and apply difficult concepts without fear of failure, master social and emotional skills, as well as advocate for their future success. All of my students take part in group-oriented learning, special projects, leadership, and the Socratic method.
Student success, belonging, and growth are at the center of my teaching. I believe students can succeed if they are capable and have the right tools, mentors, and given the chance. I was a terrible student who had a dim future until a few teachers gave me a chance. As part of my teaching philosophy, I adopted the following in 2022:
Teaching should help students of all backgrounds become life-long learners and mentors to future generations, living by tenets of truth, gratitude, fairness, community, and honesty to sustain the future. The goal is to help improve lives in the community through knowledge, skills, ethical behavior, access to appropriate resources, relationships, and social emotional behaviors. Teaching is a way to transfer life lessons and life needs to improve social and community welfare.
My students mean a great deal to me, so they get a say and they get pushed to excel. They learn when they come to my class. They keep coming and being a part.
My Background:
My parents immigrated to the United States in the1960s and 1970s. I was born in Fresno, CA, grew up in Yokosuka, Japan, and am ethnically Italian, Irish, North African, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Filipino.
My educational background includes degrees in English, Music, Business, and Education. As a math and theater teacher, I am committed to student learning at a world-class level, as well as at a level they can understand and use moving forward.
Today, because teachers gave me a chance, not only am I a teacher, I am also a successful restaurateur and singer who became a teacher during the pandemic, so I teach out of pure love of teaching - it is my passion. (You can read more about my background here starting on page 12 of an Annual Report).
Useful links for students:
