Support For Online Classes

Academy Resource Center

Support for Online Classes

Meet Our Team

The following individuals are available to assist with various aspects of online support.

Online Academic Support

Ryan Kasmier
Director, Student Academic Support, Online Student Academic Support
Ryan received his B.S. in Political Science and Organizational Communication and did his M.A. work at the University of San Francisco in Organization and Leadership. He has been working in various higher education environments for over 5 years. In that time he has worked in several different areas including housing, academic advising, and multicultural student services. Ryan has served a two-year appointment to a national committee that works to bring greater awareness and examination of Native American issues to higher education. In his spare time, he can be found working in various Bay Area performance venues.

Sharlene Asuncion
Online Academic Coach
Sharlene became an educator to inspire students to achieve. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. Sharlene has participated in Teach for America, a National Teacher Corps Program. Her background includes classroom experience, educational non-profits, and Corporate America. Sharlene's favorite quote is “Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers.” – Tennyson.

Aaron Field
Online Academic Coach
Aaron is a born and bred San Francisco native happily stuck in the cool, gray, city of love. His love of writing led him to pursue a degree in English with the University of California, Davis. After graduating with a BA, he worked as a manager at a used bookstore and then turned to non-profit work with the American Heart Association. Currently Aaron is the Online Education Coordinator working directly with Online Academic Support, assisting support advisors and students. He has been married since December 2001 to his high school sweetheart and they have four feline companions with no more on the way.

Shayla Griffin
Online Academic Coach
Shayla Griffin received her BA in English from CSU San Bernardino and has been a bay area resident for 6 years. While at the Academy, Shayla has filled the roles of Administrative Assistant in the Graduate School and ARC. Now, as an Online Academic Support Advisor, Shayla enjoys serving the student population in an exciting new way. She loves good music, food, literature, and almost everything that came out of the 80s.

Kimberly Grogran
Online Academic Coach
Kimberly holds a B.A. and M.A. in English, and she is currently pursuing a second Master’s degree specifically in Online Education. Kimberly has an extensive background in graphic and web design programs and is Expert certified in MOUS (Microsoft Office User Specialist). Her teaching career has included being a Computer Application Instructor, a Computer Assisted Language Learning instructor to migrant women, and teaching English to international students. During Kimberly's free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, son and two dogs. You can often find them at Baker Beach.

Uttara Patel
Online Academic Coach
Uttara was born and raised in Bombay, India and came to the United States in 1996 to pursue a BA in Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. She recently received an MA in Ed & HD in Community Counseling from George Washington University in Washington, DC. Uttara's interests include travel, foreign languages, martial arts, dogs and food.

Andrea Rocha
Online Academic Coach
Andrea is currently an Instructor and Online Academic Support Advisor. She comes to the Academy by way of the East Coast having gotten her undergraduate degree in Communications from Bowling Green State University and her Master's degree in Education from the University of South Carolina. Andrea has worked in higher education for over six years and loves being in such a dynamic and inspiring profession. In addition to this experience Andrea has spent close to two years studying, traveling and teaching English throughout Central America and Mexico. In her spare time Andrea loves meeting up with friends, enjoying the City and looking for exciting places to travel.

Howard "Lee" Swain
Online Academic Coach
Lee grew up on a farm in Maryland and received his degree in animal science and biology education at the University of Delaware. Although his love of animals continues, he decided he would rather work with students and went to NYU to get an MA in Higher Education Administration. Since then, he has worked in various capacities with college students for the last 5 years. Lee is also a practicing massage therapist, and in his free time enjoys exploring the city with friends looking for great restaurants and new experiences.

Online English as a Second Language Support

Chantelle Ferguson
Online ESL Department Director
Chantelle has taught English and academic writing at universities in the United States and Colombia and currently directs ESL support for online international students here at the Academy. When she is not working with students, she enjoys traveling, practicing martial arts, reading, and spending leisurely afternoons in coffee shops with her husband.

Cheryl Barton
Online ESL Faculty
Cheryl has been an instructor at the Academy of Art since 2001. In addition to ESL support, she teaches art history and aesthetics.
Cheryl holds certificates in TEFL and degrees in fine art, art history, and classics, and has researched extensively on learning methodologies and styles as related to culture. She has worked for several prestigious museums as an educator, including SFMOMA and the Oakland Museum of California. She has travelled widely for decades and has taught in Hungary, Greece, Zimbabwe, Korea, and Mexico.

Anne Connors
Online Writing Lab Coordinator/Online ESL Faculty
A Northern California native, Anne holds a BA in English from CSU Chico and an MA in TESOL from San Francisco State. She also has a degree in linguistics from the University of Geneva. She has taught English in Taiwan, Italy, and Switzerland, but is happy to be back in the Bay Area. In her spare time she enjoys exploring the city and its gorgeous natural surroundings, reading, and cooking.

Donna Dager
Online ESL Faculty/ARC Website Coordinator
Donna participates as an online support instructor in online classes and as an ESL Support instructor in on campus classes. She has an M.A. in Communications Arts from Vermont College and a B.S. in Education from S.U.N.Y. at Cortland, NY. She specializes in computer and video technologies and has been working with ESL students at the Academy in these areas for many years. Previously she worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in teacher training in Montego Bay, Jamaica, then moved to California from her hometown in upstate New York. She likes to read mystery novels, sing, and swim with giant sea turtles.

Anne Dvorak
Online ESL Faculty
Originally from Minnesota, Anne received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Looking for new adventures, she then moved to San Francisco where she got her MA in English and taught English as a Second Language at San Francisco State University. She is now an online ESL support instructor at the Academy of Art, and when not teaching, she enjoys rock climbing, reading long novels, and relaxing with her cat.

Alegría Garcia
Online ESL Faculty
Alegría began her teaching career as a playwriting instructor for the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center in San Antonio, Texas. Shortly after that she became a faculty member at Northwest Vista Community College, teaching a variety of classes in the English and Humanities departments. She has an MA in English/Communication Arts from Our Lady of the Lake University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. Additionally, Alegría has also been an adjunct faculty member and mentor for the communications department at University of Phoenix Online.

Amy Hamar
Online ESL Faculty
Amy has a Master's Degree in TESOL from San Francisco State University, a BA from The University of North Dakota in International Studies and Religion, and certificates in Teaching Composition and Post-Secondary Reading from SFSU. Amy has traveled extensively through Australia, China, France, Switzerland, Jordan, and Palestine. She enjoys camping, hiking, reading, and relaxing with her husband and step-daughter and she loves learning languages such as Arabic, Serbo-Croatian, and French. Amy's passion in life is to help create a more sustainable world through human relationships and education. Researching compassionate listening and dialogue groups, and how and if they can be used to teach in conflict situations, is how her "extra" time is spent.

Carlo Pellegrini
Online ESL Faculty
Carlo has been interested in foreign languages since he began studying French in high school. After earning a B.A. in Italian from the University of Washington, he went on to learn Japanese in Japan and Spanish in Guatemala. In addition to having taught ESL for over 8 years, he has developed websites for professional sports teams, academic institutions, and independent artists, among others. Currently he is developing new online support materials at AAU and supporting online ESL students. Carlo likes going to museums, listening to music, drinking coffee, and taking photographs.

Walter Thoma
Online ESL Faculty
Walter has an M.A. in Applied Linguistics (ESL) focused on Computer-Assisted Language Learning from the University of Massachusetts and B.A.'s in Fine Arts and Sociology. He has been at the AAU for 11 years and has been supporting online ESL students while living in Paris and now Brussels for the past 3 years. Besides traveling, Walter enjoys running, skiing, photography, painting, finding unique cafés, cooking and eating international cuisine.

Kate Winsor
Online ESL Faculty
Kate holds a BA in Liberal Studies and an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language, both from San Francisco State University. She has been working at the Academy of Art since 1997 as an ESL instructor, website coordinator, tutor, and online media developer. Kate has also taught English abroad in Argentina, Venezuela and Switzerland. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she recently relocated to San Diego with her family where she works online for the Academy and does freelance web design. She has two children who keep her very busy, but in her spare time she also enjoys photography, tap dancing, travel, and cooking.