Our Staff
Sydney
Leanne Thomas
With over 15 years specialist experience in business and training, Leanne is passionate about Learning and having FUN!
Educated in Psychology, Education, Training, Hospitality and Business; Leanne is able to design and deliver training to diverse market segments.
One question Leanne often gets asked is: "How can you capture and sustain the attention of a roomful of participants with differing backgrounds, knowledge, and skills?" Her answer is, "We all have one thing in common -THE HUMAN BRAIN. This means we need to present information in ways the brain likes to deal with it."
Leanne specialises in delivering concepts in creative ways that enables the learner to engage in their development. An experienced facilitator, coach and counsellor, she is passionate about bringing out the best in people. Her training style focuses on fun, interactive classes which draw on the varied experiences of each student group. Engaging discussion orientated classes, combined with specially designed teaching activities support students in learning both the underlying theory and practical application.
Chi Man Lau
Chi has worked as an independent contractor for many years specialising in RTO compliance, assessment validation, designing high quality customised training programs within the Transport and Logistics, Business Services and Training and Education Training Packages and delivering training and conducting assessment.
Chi holds a Bachelor of Education (Adult Education) Human Resource Development major, UTS; Certificate IV TAE and Certificate IV in Transport & Distribution (Road Transport). Chi has also worked for 10 years as a Principal Instructor for Safety Strategies Pty Ltd, a specialist provider of personal safety programs to the government and private sectors.
A passionate trainer with a genuine interest in helping candidates, Chi is a great example to trainee trainers of what skills a well-rounded vocational trainer should possess.
Deanne Whiteley
Just prior to joining CBD College, Deanne had spent the last two years working with a major RTO developing and facilitating classroom based training and assessment for TAE40110. She has also been a long distance student tutor/trainer and assessor for TAE40110. She has also managed and assessed the TAE upgrade process and been involved in review and validation of learning and assessment material.
Prior to this Deanne spent several years with consulting companies in Victoria and spent several years before that in Boston, USA at a local community education centre offering a range of courses for adults. Deanne taught a range of short courses covering job search, career development and resume writing.
Deanne's primary role with CBD College is assessor of both the classroom-based student TAE submissions and also RPL submissions. Her specialty is TAA to TAE upgrades. She is also an occasional TAE trainer.
Deanne holds a Bachelor of Business (double major - Human Resources Management and Catering and Hotel Management) as well as a TAE40110 Cert IV in Training and Assessment.
Joanne Power
Joanne is one of our highly skilled team of TAE trainers and assessors. Based in Sydney, she is responsible for liaising with students regarding their assessments, training on a regular basis and is actively involved in continuous improvement strategies across the courses in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.
Joanne comes from a workplace training background. She spent 12 years at Adecco Group where she worked her way up to be National Training Manager and was responsible for national training needs analysis, delivery and facilitation across the network of branches including sales, service delivery and product knowledge. Her previous positions have also included Training Co-ordinator at Clarins and senior HR positions in a number of large companies.
Jo holds the TAE40110 Cert IV in Training and Assessment.
Joanna Gee
Joanna graduated with a Degree in Education from the University of Newcastle (1994) and a Masters in Education from the University of Sydney (2005). She spent the first few years of her teaching career as a foundation teacher in a new independent school north of Newcastle, followed by a stint overseas teaching for four years in London, before returning to Australia and teaching at St Catherine's School, Waverley and at Wahroonga Public School. Joanna also spent several years teaching undergraduate students in their final years of a Bachelor of Education degree at Macquarie University.
Joanna's strong interest in educational research and trends and in particular, her views on student centred learning and learning by doing, have helped to shape the unique TAE course that CBD College offers. As well as her degrees, Joanna holds her Cert IV TAE. She is an assessor, and occasional trainer for CBD College in Sydney.
Jo holds the TAE40110 Cert IV in Training and Assessment.
In 2001 she was the recipient of a NSW Minister for Education and Training and Australian College of Education Quality Teaching Award.
Steve Barrett
Steve has spent his whole working career in occupational health and safety, starting at WorkCover New South Wales. He worked there for seven years before leaving for similar roles in private enterprise.
There is not much with regards to safety that Steve has not seen or been involved in, in his long career. Highlights include acting in the position of National OH&S Manager of a major Australian company, conducting countless training/auditing/site inspections, delivering general and site specific OH&S inductions in the field.
Steve finds great stimulation in training others and he enjoys the passing on of his years of knowledge of safety procedures and OHS legislation to future safety officers.
Steve holds a Bachelors Degree in Occupational Health and Safety. Steve also holds a Cert IV TAE.
Perth
Kylie Morellini
Kylie is an experienced adult educator with 7 years of training experience obtained through employment within large corporate and smaller business operations.
Kylie's past experience is drawn from training at Aspire Performance Training, Cash Converters, Esset Australia, Bakers Delight, Workstar and ABSC Training. Kylie has facilitated work-based training programs and nationally recognised training with the likes of Qantas and Wesfarmers. She also has extensive one-on-one coaching and mentoring experience in the workplace in such skills as communication, time management and leadership.
Kylie holds a Cert IV TAE, Cert IV Frontline Management and a Cert IV Beauty Therapy and Cert II in Makeup Services and is currently undertaking a dual qualification in a Diploma of Business and Management.
Kim Savage
Kim has been working as a first aid trainer with the Australian Red Cross in the Northern Territory for the past four years. She has extensive experience training indigenous people in Apply First Aid, First Aid for Parents and Caregivers, Anaphylaxis, CPR and Occupational First Aid. Prior to that time, she worked as an ambulance paramedic, providing emergency medical care to people for over 15 years. Her combined skills and experience in training and paramedic work make her uniquely qualified to impart first aid lessons from real life circumstances she has actually encountered. She is passionate about the field of health and education.
As well as a wealth of first aid qualifications, Kim holds a Cert IV in Training and Assessment.
Nicole Grame
Nicole Grame is a first aid trainer who relays her knowledge in an enthusiastic and informative manner. Prior to becoming a trainer, Nicole worked in the emergency department as an Advanced Level Practising Enrolled Nurse. She has over 20 years’ experience in nursing, learning how best to provide emergency support and care for patients, including wound assessment and treatment.
Melbourne
Brian Uren
Brian has had vast experience in training and mentoring over the past 30 years though a variety of senior management roles. He has held positions as Sales Director and General Manager of a number of different marketing companies, both privately and publically listed, as well as long periods as CEO/ Director of Sales/Marketing and Internet Marketing businesses respectively.
We are lucky to have Brian assessing live training sessions on Day 7 of our TAE training courses in Melbourne as well as assessing completed student assessments. In time we will look at Brian being involved in training Frontline Management and possibly TAE training.
Scott Pestana
Scott has been involved in Occupational Health and Safety for many years - either as an Auditor or a OHS Consultant assisting all types of businesses with their OHS responsibilities.
Scott has worked for one of the biggest telecommunications company in Australia. His passion for Training and Assessment and OHS is second to none. His enjoyable courses are run with relevance, industry experience and professionalism.
Ian Freeman
Ian Freeman holds an Advanced Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety, an Advanced Diploma of Management, a Diploma of Hospitality Management and a Cert IV TAE. Ian originally came from the hospitality industry where he spent many years as a safety officer and Kitchen Manager. Since then, Ian has had extensive experience training Diploma and Cert IV OHS as well as Diploma and Cert IV Hospitality management. This strong training background has seen him develop skills in mentoring students, designing and delivering off site training workshops and developing training and assessment material for Certificate III to Advanced Diploma level classes.
In his most recent position as OHS Manager and Trainer at the Australian National Institute of Business and Technology, Ian was responsible for completing safety audits, risk assessments and producing health, safety and wellbeing programs for internal and external stakeholders. He was also responsible for resource development on a significant scale.
Ian comes on board with CBD College as our permanent OHS trainer in our new training room in the Paramount Centre, Melbourne.
Kerry Couchman
First Aid trainers with the qualifications, vocational experience and natural aptitude with students are hard to find, but Kerry possesses all of these things. She has been with CBD College in Melbourne for two years and has been an integral part of the First Aid and TAE teams.
Kerry is a nurse of 17 years experience and has more recently worked for many years as a first aid trainer and area manager for St John Ambulance. She has also owned and operated her own restaurant.
Kerry has a passion for training and for helping others. Her professional interests include occupational health and safety and investigating alternative assessment methods for students with special needs.
