Claire Laughlin is an independent consultant and trainer. She brings experience in management and a dedication to effective communication to her training. Claire earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and worked in a high tech firm as a marketing manager for several years. Then, after completing her Master’s Degree in Communication Studies, she started teaching, training and consulting in the field of communication.

Claire has developed and taught courses at over 50 organizations and at six different colleges and universities. Claire was a founding member of the Public Dialogue Consortium, an international group of consultants working together to improve the quality of public discourse, and a five-year member of an interdisciplinary team that studied and made recommendations for improving teacher training and development.

Currently, Claire consults with a wide variety of organizations in Santa Cruz County, coordinates the Santa Cruz County Health Careers Partnership, and is working as a trainer with the Community Chronic Care Network to implement a county-wide diabetes registry program. She is also an adjunct faculty member in the Master’s of Science, Organizational Development program for University of San Francisco, and a board executive for KIDPOWER, TEENPOWER, FULLPOWER International.

Rae Ann Ianniello is the Director of Business Development for Henderson Communication Consulting & Associates (HCCA) in Fremont, California. With over 20 years of business background, Rae Ann has experience as a Human Resources Manager, Program Manager, Consultant, and College Professor. She has provided professional and consulting services for numerous organizations including BART, Berg Electronics, Bio Rad, Comac, City of Fremont, City of Newark, Clorox, Lam Research, NUMMI, Orcon Corporation, and Ross Stores.

Rae Ann received a Masters degree in Communication from California State University, Hayward, as well as a Certificate in Human Resource Management. She holds lifetime teaching credentials in both Language Arts and Office Technology. A dynamic, hands-on instructor, Rae Ann has developed and presented workshops in the areas of Communication, Business Writing, Business Strategy, Human Resources, and Organizational Development.

Jennifer Turner-Davis, PCC, CPC-OTR/L, is lead coach and owner of Turner Davis Coaching. She is a professional Certified Coach and graduate of the Institute for Professional Empowerment Coaching (IPEC), a program fully accredited by the International Coach Federation. Jennifer is an authorized Best Year Yet!® program leader and has additional training in conflict resolution/mediation and wellness. She utilizes her coaching and communication skills to help business teams, partnerships and individuals successfully bridge the gap between ideas and results.

Prior to her coaching career, Jennifer held positions in management and patient care in the fields of physical and behavioral rehabilitation. An Occupational Therapist with over 15 years experience, she provides a comprehensive and holistic approach to personal and professional development. Raised in Santa Cruz, Jennifer has a strong connection to the people and history of the area. When not coaching, she enjoys swimming, playing sports, hiking and traveling with her family.

Shawn Spano, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Communication Studies Department at San José State University. He teaches courses and conducts research in dialogue facilitation, interpersonal communication and communication education. Shawn is also a past associate with the Center for Faculty Development at SJSU, where he facilitated focus groups and planning meetings with departments and programs across campus, and provided training workshops and teaching consultations for faculty. He is currently the co-principle investigator on Ford Foundation grant given to SJSU to develop a Difficult Dialogues Initiative on campus.

In addition to his faculty position, Shawn is a Communication Consultant and founding member of the Public Dialogue Consortium, www.publicdialogue.org, a non-profit group devoted to improving the quality of communication in public organizations and local communities. He has 13 years of experience working with city government and public organizations, including multi-year projects with two different municipalities. Shawn is a specialist in designing and facilitating meetings, training workshops, public forums, and off-site retreats with leaders, executive staff, elected officials, middle managers, commissions and boards, and local residents.

His client list includes, among others, the City of San José, Town of Los Gatos, City of Cupertino, City of Pismo Beach, International Coaching Federation, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network, Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters, Silicon Valley Commonwealth Club, and the Community Coalition for End of Life Care. Shawn was selected “SJSU Outstanding Professor” in 2000, and has published numerous articles and chapters, including the book, Public Dialogue and Participatory Democracy: The Cupertino Community Project (Hampton Press, 2001.

Hilda Sendyk is an independent training consultant, public speaking coach, and technical writer. She has trained all levels of employees for major global and local corporations, government agencies, and universities on both the West and East coasts.

She was one of the first Microsoft certified trainers, was active in the early personal computer industry as an Operations Manager, and has a Master’s Degree in the Biological Sciences. She has a mastery of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and desktop publishing applications and the manner in which these applications are most effectively utilized. Hilda has also created and delivered Train-the-Trainer programs for training companies and corporations.

Hilda is an antiques collector, has taught dancing, and is currently writing a book on early California.

Karen Calcagno CPCC, is President and CEO of Raintree Enterprises, Inc., a closely held corporation with three divisions: Classic Auto Restoration & Auto Dealership, Commercial Real Estate Development and Advantage Coaching—coaching for business owners.

Karen has been an interactive workshop presenter for ten years. She is the head of SCORE for Santa Cruz County. Karen and her husband Joe, have been a serial entrepreneur team, starting, growing, then spinning off several businesses for the past 40 years.

With over 3,000 employees in her career, Karen as servant leader has honed her specialty in manpower and systems development. She now coaches other business owners in cultivating a workplace that calls the whole person to creatively participate while producing a profit.

Bonita Sebastian is an independent consultant and trainer. She has years of experience in professional development training and management. Bonita earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Management and English and has been working in the Adult Education field for more than 40 years.

Bonita developed and implemented 3 Training / Professional Development programs at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is the author of 13 published books on Microsoft Office and is a certified facilitator for the Franklin Covey 7 Habits of Highly Effective People program. She has developed over 120 courses for adult learning, has strong communication and project management skills, and is an innovative and creative thinker.

Currently, Bonita works independently with both small and large businesses, corporations, and universities. In her more casual moments, she enjoys travel, reading, film, cooking, and visiting with her many friends. She is First Vice President of the UCSC Women’s Club and is involved with the Santa Cruz Chocolate Festival.