With his extensive IT background and as an iPhone development hobbyist, Jeremy is a huge asset at Ascend. In addition to handling our IT issues, he also assists students with class issues and customer service. Jeremy coded this entire website by hand–GOOD JOB!!!

Fresh off the boat from England, Dale studied Business Administration and Marketing at the University of Manchester. He has experience as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator and a background in customer service.
Dale is always eager to help our clients find the class that is right for them.

Ron has been teaching and developing for the web for over 20 years. His constant quest for knowledge makes him an ideal instructor to answer questions on a multitude of applications.

Ron is an is an Adobe Certified Expert, Adobe Certified Instructor and Developer in Flash and Dreamweaver and an Adobe Communtiy Professional. He has a passion for new knowledge and improving workflows. Ron has been teaching for Ascend since 1999. He is a co-manager of the Chicago chapter of the Adobe User Group. Ron was instrumental in the development of this website also.

Rich is an Adobe Certified Expert, Adobe Certified Instructor and Developer in Dreamweaver, Flash and Fireworks. He has been teaching Flash since its inception, and Dreamweaver since 1999. His attentive, hands-on approach taken with his students is second to none. He also is an avid freelancer both in web design and sculpture. Rich has been teaching for Ascend since 2000. He is a co-manager of the Chicago chapter of the Adobe User Group.

Rob is our resident video expert who scored a perfect 100% on the Premiere Pro exam!

He has taught Adobe Premiere and television production at the college level for over 10 years. He has 25 years experience in television studio management. Rob is also an independent shooter/editor who travels the country shooting programs for television.

He has video taped everything from motor sports, to a Billy Idol Concert and Supreme court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Teaching InDesign and Illustrator is truly her passion. Helping students to understand how these complex programs work, and to find better, faster, more efficient ways to complete their projects is her ultimate goal in every class. She loves to see the "lightbulb" turn on in someone's head during a class, when a student finally "gets it!"

Laurie is an Adobe Certified Expert and Adobe Certified Instructor in both InDesign and Illustrator. She has been a speaker at the Vector Conference, the HOW Conference, InDesign Conferences, as well as a guest speaker at the Adobe Users Group. She is consistently involved in many projects that allow her to bring a wealth of real-world knowledge and experience to the classroom. Laurie has been teaching for Ascend since 1998.

Michelle comes to us from a robust background in the video industry. In addition to her experience with multiple creative apps, she has a stong background in customer service.

Michelle is happy to assist clients in choosing and registering for classes at Ascend Training.

Jim is an Adobe Certified Expert and Adobe Certified Instructor in InDesign and Illustrator. He is the author of A Designer's Guide to Adobe InDesign and XML and Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 Classroom in a Book.

Jim also runs the Chicago chapter of the Adobe InDesign User Group. He has been teaching for Ascend since 2005

Katie is the author of Photography for The 21st Century, a pioneering book offering insight to photography and the digital darkroom.

Katie Miller has her IMA from Antioch University McGregor and an MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is an active member of the Society for Photographic Education and involved in the Professional Photographers of America group.

Zach has an insatiable appetite for all new technologies. He has a passion for motivating his students and improving the quality of their experience. He is one of the authors of AdvancED AIR Applications, and is an Adobe Certified Expert, Adobe Certified Instructor and Developer in Flex, ColdFusion, AIR, Flash and Dreamweaver. Zach has been teaching for Ascend since 2008.

Elaine is an Adobe Certified Instructor along with an Adobe Certified Developer in Dreamweaver and Fireworks. In addition to being a developing, Elaine has been teaching for over 10 years.

She has a wide range of exposure to web development, and brings her vast expertise to the classroom.

Gretchen has worked for Ascend for 11 years ensuring students receive personal attention, and assistance. An avid user of Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, she is aptly able to steer students to the right classes to fit their needs.

Louis brings 28 years of professional television broadcasting experience to his work. His career in the television industry has included television production work as broadcast engineer, editor, camera man, graphic designer, and animator. He is also an Emmy Nominee and IBA (Illinois Broadcasters Association) award winning recipient. His passion and excitement for merging art, design, and current technologies goes back to the early 1980s where his work was featured at SIGGRAPH, and various fine art galleries and publications throughout the Unites States and Europe. Louis currently works in developing digital multimedia productions and is also a Adobe Certified Expert, Adobe Certified Instructor in After Effects and Premiere Pro and Certified Technical Trainer (CTT+).

Patty has been teaching Photography for over 10 years, and Adobe Photoshop for over 6 years. She has spent time as an Artist in Residence, Akiyoshidai Arts Village in Yamaguchi, Japan. She has her BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Illinois, and completed her graduate degree at the Institute of Design at IIT.

Michael has been instrumental in the formation of the Chicago Macromedia User Group,(which is a SIG of the Association for Multimedia Communications) and serves as the Chair of this group. He also runs the local Chicago Area Adobe User Group which meets at Ascend Training. Michael has been teaching for Ascend since 1998.

Emma has been involved with Ascend Training since she was 9 years old, and we are fortunate to have her involved with customer service and training coordination.

Gene is the author of Professional iPhone and iPad Application Development. He has a vast history in the technology field, starting out programming for digital watches in the 1970's, writing for NeXT Computer, and has been developing for the iPhone since it's inception.

Ashley is a video editor with a wealth of experience in Final Cut Pro, Avid and After Effects.With a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Illinois and an M.F.A. in Film from Boston University, she brings a wealth of knowledge to Ascend.