Meet Our Certified Trainers/Coaches &
Model Practitioners

Volunteer Orange provides a network of certified coaches/trainers, model practitioners and partners that support service-learning through any and all aspects of creating and implementing a successful service-learning project.

Youth Service California in partnership with the California Department of Education, CalServe unit, assists in developing the capacity of each region in California to provide high quality technical assistance and training in service-learning.

Certified Trainers/Coaches

Youth Service California identifies, trains, and promotes qualified people willing and able to facilitate high quality service-learning professional development events for teachers, administrators, community-based educators, and others. These individuals are referred to as Certified Trainers/Coaches.

Justin Koppelman - Justin Koppelman is the Program Coordinator for Student Civic Engagement in the Department of Student & Campus Life at Chapman University (Orange, CA). Through this role, he collaborates with faculty, staff, and students to facilitate educational experiences for students focused on civic engagement, leadership, service, and sustainability. Justin has been certified by Youth Service California as a Service-Learning Coach. More

Bridget McTague - Bridget McTague is an elementary teacher at Hermosa Drive Elementary School in Fullerton, CA. Bridget is the Service-Learning coordinator at her school and has been certified by Youth Service California as a Service-Learning Coach. More

Julie Chavez Rodriguez - Julie Chavez Rodriguez has worked with the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation for the past eight years spearheading their educational and service programs, namely the Educating the Heart School Program and the Chavez After School Service Clubs and has been certified by Youth Service California as a Service-Learning Coach. More

Bette Weinberg - Bette Weinberg is the Community Programs Director for Volunteer Center Orange County. Bette serves as the Regional Service-Learning Lead for Orange County for the California Department of Education and has been certified by Youth Service California as a Service-Learning Coach. More

Model Practitioners

Youth Service California also supports and showcases Model Practitioners – typically local educators – who demonstrate and illustrate what high-quality service-learning looks like.

Jeffrey Qualey - Jeff is a 4th grade teacher at Andersen Elementary in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District. Jeff is a great resource for successful Service-Learning classroom projects. He has incorporated Service-Learning projects
in History, Science/Environment and Language Arts. Jeff has created valuable partnerships with local high schools to provide them with Service-Learning opportunities with his elementary students.

Tom Linnert - Tom is the Director of Volunteer Development for THINK Together, an after school program that provides high quality academically-oriented programs for young people. He has facilitated Service-Learning workshops at local and state Service-Learning Conferences. Tom can be a great resource for successful after school Service-Learning projects as well as youth leadership. He has successfully enabled his staff to incorporate Service-Learning into after school programming

Hermosa Drive Elementary School in Fullerton is an all Service-Learning school with a staff that has developed high quality Service-Learning projects that are relevant to their grade level and state standards. School phone 714-447-7720

Janny Meyer 5th and 6th grade
janny_meyer@fsd.k12.ca.us 

Pamela Zinnel 6th grade 
pamela_zinnel@fsd.k12.ca.us

Jane Graves 2nd and 3rd
jane_graves@fsd.k12.ca.us

Lauren Slaughter Kindergarten
lauren_slaughter@fsd.k12.ca.us

Rossana Fonseca Primary Special Day Classroom Teacher rossana_fonseca@fsd.k12.ca.us

Alison Garcia 1st Grade
alison_garcia@fsd.k12.ca.us