Instructors
R. Almasin
Mr. Almasin was raised in Hawaii and graduated from the University of Hawaii at Hilo in 1997 with a degree in Political Science. He taught middle school in Hawaii for four years before moving to California where he has taught at Prospect High School in San Jose. He is also the varsity boy's soccer head coach at Prospect and an assistant men's soccer coach at De Anza College. Mr. Almasin is currently teaching with the Santa Clara County Office of Education and is entering his fifth year with college for kids.
M. Baca
Mr. Baca has been the lead sports instructor for College for Kids in years past. He specializes in preparing students with the skills needed for competitive play. He is a middle school Physical Education teacher and has coached basketball, track, and wrestling. He was active in many sports while in college, including playing on the tennis team at San Jose State University. Mr. Baca’s volleyball and tennis classes are always among the most popular courses. This year, he will be incorporating several other team sports into the class to allow for a broader range of skill to be learned.
J. Bratton
Ms. Bratton received her Bachelor’s of Arts in English Literature from UCLA and her teaching credential at UCSD. She has her Pupil Personnel Services Credential and Master’s in Counseling from SJSU. She has taught for ten years in California public schools and has also coached competitive speech and debate. In addition, she attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco as a design student and has taught art electives in middle school. This is Ms. Bratton’s fourth year teaching at Summer College for Kids. She enjoys teaching in the program because “the students are the best!"
L. Carassco
Ms. Carrasco was born and raised in San Jose. She graduated from Hawaii Pacific University in 2005 with a BA in Theater. She won third place in Pop Vocalist for Olympiad of the Arts at West Valley College in 2001. She taught elementary, middle, and high school students drama and English at SCH Soon Chung Huyang University in South Korea for a year and a half. Currently, she is attending Mission College and works in the Career and Transfer Center, as well as the Disabled Student’s program. Ms. Carrasco has traveled to Mexico, China, Thailand, Korea (Jeju), Hawaii and Egypt.
H. Chin
Mr. Chin is an independent filmmaker with a degree in computer animation. He has worked for Sun Microsystems creating corporate training videos and flash multimedia presentations. He has taught (and continues to teach) filmmaking at Mount Pleasant High School and is a part-time instructor at West Valley College.
A. Chebeleu
Ms. Chebeleu has over ten years of experience teaching others to create scrapbooks, mixed-media art, jewelry, home décor, books, greeting cards, and more. She is the proprietor or an art studio where she has worked with children ranging from ages 5 to 15 teaching art and craft techniques.
D. Duncan
Ms. Duncan has a degree in Fashion Design from The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles. She also studied fashion design as an exchange student at ESMOD in Paris, France. Ms. Duncan has worked in the fashion industry and established her own clothing company where she creates original designs for private clients. Currently, she teaches fashion design at Camp Fashionista in Willow Glen and various other classes at the Community School of Music and Art in Mountain View.
M. Edgehouse
Mr. Edgehouse earned his B.S. in Biology from John Carroll University. Upon completion of his bachelor’s degree, he attended the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine until he realized his true passion was education. In 2008, Mr. Edgehouse completed a doctoral program in biology at Utah State University. He currently is an Assistant Professor of Biology at Cabrillo College where he teaches Human Anatomy, Head and Neck Anatomy, Human Physiology, General Biology and Field Ecology. Mr. Edgehouse has been recognized as an outstanding faculty member at Cabrillo, being awarded the AGS outstanding faculty award for the past six semesters.
J. Kabat
Mr. Kabat has a B.A. from CSU, Sacramento in Psychology. He has taught math and science at the middle school level in the Bay area for the past seven years. He recently began a tutoring business. Mr. Kabat is an avid sports enthusiast who enjoys working with kids.
K. Leong
Ms. Leong is an award-winning career journalist with work published in National Geographic, Sunset Magazine, Los Angeles Times, South Bay Accent, Bay Area Parent, and many others. She has a B.A. degree in Journalism from San Jose State University. Ms. Leong has been teaching children creative writing and business skills for the past five years.
T. Martin
Mr. Martin comes to the College for Kids program as a 7th and 8th grade school teacher and a Los Angeles County Ocean Lifeguard. He has a B.A. in Communication from CSU Monterey Bay and a M.A. in Humanities from CSU Dominguez Hills. Mr. Martin has worked in school administration, the classroom, and community youth programs. He is a lifetime swimmer and loves all aquatic sports. His enjoyment in education and being able to join that with his experience and comfort in the water makes for a perfect matchup.
M. Okuda
Mr. Okuda has over 33 years of teaching experience both at the high school and community college level. He possesses both a B.A. and M.A. in Biology. Mr. Okuda has received numerous teaching awards over his career, including Santa Clara County Teacher of the Year for the East Side Union High School District. He is currently an educational consultant offering workshop presentations on science content, delivery, and implementation.
H. Tran
Ms. Tran is currently teaching Forensic Science and Biotechnology at her former high school in San Jose. She received her Bachelor of Science degree at UCLA and teaching credential at Santa Clara University. Ms. Tran is a dynamic instructor and believes in hands-on learning and engaging students in real life science.