Executive Leadership Team
Chief Executive Officer
Jon Gundry
Jon Gundry is a California native but he began his career in education as a classroom teacher in the Houston Independent School District where he taught Spanish and ESL in grades 6-12. In 1990 he was the recipient of the Texas Excellence Award for Outstanding High School teachers awarded by the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin.
In 1991 he won a Fulbright scholarship and spent a year in Nicosia, Cyprus teaching English and consulting with the Ministry of Education on teacher preparation and curriculum development for the teaching of English as a second language. He began his administrative career in 1996 as a high school Assistant Principal and later was an elementary school Principal, K-12 Executive Principal, and Regional Executive Director of the Houston school district’s Central Region. He returned to California in 2008 to work at the Los Angeles County Office of Education where he served as Deputy Superintendent and Interim Superintendent/CEO. Before he retired in 2018, he was also Superintendent of the Pasadena Unified School District and the Santa Clara County Office of Education. Jon came to The SAE as a consultant in 2019 and decided to stay on full time as the Executive Director/CEO because he believes so strongly in the mission of The SAE to provide a high quality, innovative academic program and a world class arts experience for children who do not have those opportunities in their home schools.Chief Operations Officer
Kendall Martin
Mr. Martin joined The School of Arts and Enterprise in 2017 and currently serves as Chief Operations & Human Resources Officer. He brings more than 30 years of experience in human resources; Mr. Martin is responsible for the management and supervision of the human resources department.
Mr. Martin also oversees the school’s non-instructional support services including, nutrition services, accounts payable, purchasing, technology, finance, and the school’s budget. Mr. Martin holds a bachelor’s degree in business management, a master’s degree in Human Resources Management, and a master’s in Curriculum and Instruction.Chief Development + Marketing Officer
Phil Miller
Phil Miller is the current Chief Development + Marketing Officer for The School of Arts + Enterprise Foundation and Founding Artistic Director of The School of Arts + Enterprise.
Through his visionary leadership and dynamic team, The SAE is an Arts Schools Network National Exemplary School and California Department of Education Exemplary Arts Program — redefining what a public arts school can be for young creatives. He has produced and developed over 150 productions in all disciplines starring multiple Tony Award Winners & Nominees, Grammy Nominees, Emmy Award Winners, and at nearly every major venue in Southern California. Mr. Miller is a frequent presenter at national arts conferences, speaking on a range of topics from arts accessibility to audience engagement, strategic planning + fundraising to the role and impact of new media in the arts an educational field today. With his extensive professional work and over 25 years of experience in the professional and public arts educational setting, one of his strongest assets is his unique ability to align educational institutional strategies to that of the modern arts world. Mr. Miller is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographer’s Society and an alumnus of Lincoln Center’s Director’s Lab West. He serves on the national Board of Directors of Arts Schools Network, is the the Vice President of The Friends of The SAE and serves on the non-profit Board of Directors of The Fox Community Culture Fund.Chief Academic Officer/Head of School
Paul Treesuwan
Paul Treesuwan, known affectionately as Mr. Tree in his community, serves as Chief Academic Officer and Head of School at the The School of Arts and Enterprise (The SAE). Mr. Tree is a resident of The SAE’s local community in downtown Pomona and frequently enjoys walking to school.
In 2005, after three years teaching 3rd-8th grade math at St Gregory the Graet School in Whittier, Mr. Tree was given the amazing opportunity to join the SAE team where he helped in founding the school’s first 11th grade teaching team as a US History teacher. In Fall of 2006, he followed his students up to the 12th grade and had the absolute privilege of guiding our first senior class to graduation. He immensely enjoyed building the first junior and senior teaching teams, and he has dedicated his career to continually growing our school. Mr. Tree is proud to be part of the SAE community of students, teachers, admin, staff, families, and local community members who continually meet opportunities to improve our programs, to create something new that has never been done before, or to simply fix an old problem that needs a fresh perspective. As a teacher leader prior to moving to administration, Mr. Tree has been an 11th grade team lead, 12th grade team lead, Social Science department chair, Chair of Chairs (Academic Lead Teacher), WASC Chair, LEA Testing Coordinator, AP Coordinator, ELD Coordinator, 504 Coordinator, and Foster and Homeless Youth COE Liaison. As an administrator, Mr. Tree has held the positions of an Assistant Principal, Special Education Director, and Chief Academic Officer. He has consistently improved services and increased funding sources for students with the highest needs in the community, he has increased opportunities for school community engagement by leading our School Site, Council, Equity Cadre, and Community Listening Forums. Above all else, Mr. Tree’s favorite accomplishments have been the student projects have had the opportunity to lead, especially Poachella and PomComCon. Mr. Tree earned his BA from the University of California at Davis in 2000 with a double major in Political Science and Philosophy, and he holds his administrative credential through Cal Poly Pomona. Mr. Tree is also a doctoral candidate (AbD) in Urban Educational Leadership from Claremont Graduate University. His areas of research include art integration in schools, mitigating the school-to-prison pipeline, and the influence of prison gangs on local communities. He has spoken on the need for the arts in schools at numerous venues around the world including the Journal of Language and Literacy Education Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, the Boys Arts Symposium in Canberra, Australia, and the Educational Research Symposium in Oxford, England.
Administration
Associate Artistic Director
Kevin Gasio
Kevin Gasio is an arts administrator, educator, and music director based in the Inland Empire. He returns to The School of Arts + Enterprise as the Associate Artistic Director after a few years away to further his own higher education.
His educational credentials include two associate degrees from Citrus College, a bachelor’s degree in Music from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, He is a recent graduate of New York University, where he earned a Master of Music in Vocal Performance (Music Theatre) and an Advanced Certificate in Vocal Pedagogy. Mr. Gasio has previously held teaching appointments at New York University, Sam Houston State University, and Citrus College. Kevin is also an accomplished director, music director, and performer. His creative work has been seen in regional houses across Southern California and in educational institutions across the country.Artistic Director
Robert Shields
Rob Shields is an arts administrator, educator, actor, and director based in the Pasadena area. Rob has worked in Arts Education for the last eighteen years, eight of those working at The SAE.
Robert holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Cal Poly Pomona in Acting and is a graduate of the Second City Conservatory Program in Hollywood. As a formally trained actor and director, Robert continues to work professionally while working as The Artistic Director for The School of Arts and Enterprise. Rob has previously served as the Vice President of The Southern California Shakespeare Festival and was the founding Artistic Director of the theatre company, PlayUpStream.
Staff by Department
Kamal Abdul-Jabbaar-SPED
Florenta Bezim Acevedo, Spanish
Omar Bracamontes, English
Gina Canape, Multi -Subject
Tom Culver, Social Science
Aaron Garcia, Social Science
Sabrina Hanson, Science
Sean Hass, English
Sascha Hoemke, PE
Jennifer Lapham, Social Science
Yvette Lopez, English
Anthony Lu-Math, Pre Cal
Andrew Marchant, Physical Science
Susana Marquez, Multi-Subject
Daniel McKenzie, Government and Economics
Marcie Mercado, Environmental Science
Dolores Montijo, Multi-Subject
Dulce Munoz, Science
Mary Ortiz-Martinez, English
Robert Peeke, US History and Social Studies
Emmanuel Puyat, Math
Jessica Ramirez, Special Education
Natasha Reynoso, Special Education
Kimberly Robles, ELD + RTI Teacher/Coord.
Esperanza Rubalcava, Biological Science
Bronko Seretti, Special Education
Deborah Smith, Integrated Math II
Shenise Stout, Math
Phillip Todd, Lead Special Education Coordinator
Elaine Weaver, Spanish
Ashleigh Zeile, Math
Kellie Zidonis, Integrated Math III
Edmund Zambrano, Head of Creative Arts
Stephen Swintek, Photography Instructor
Candida Spahr, Head of Dance
William Miller Jr., Lead Choreographer + Dance Instructor
Julia Moran, Dance Instructor
Kevin Gasio, Head of Enterprise
Tony Granillo, Enterprise Instructor
Mary Hill, Enterprise + Theatre Instructor
Daniel Ambrosini, Head of Music
Jessica Hayes, Vocal Music Instructor
Ryan Jarvis, Recording Technology Instructor
Gabrielle Maldonado, Vocal Music Instructor
Rafael Tapia, Instrumental Music Instructor
Miguel Cardenas, Head of Theatre Arts
Mary Hill, Enterprise + Theatre Instructor
Ray Jones, Production Manager + Live Events Arts Instructor
Emmanuel Marquez, Theatre + Integrated Arts Instructor
Carol Goldwater, Head of Visual Arts
Mark Bunner, Visual Arts Instructor
Aida Lugo-Cantu, Gallery Curator + Visual Arts Instructor
Carol Ledesma, Director of Facilities
Jessica Silva, Office Manager