Ms. McQueen is the Executive Director of SmARTSunlimited and works in all areas of management including grant writing, fundraising, program development, hiring, marketing and public relations. She is a member of the American College of Musicians, National Guild of Piano Teachers, Theatre Bay Area, Early Childhood Music and Movement Association (ECMMA), National Association of Music Educators (MENC), Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), and is a member of the East Alameda Branch and contributing member of the Contra Costa Branch of the Music Teachers Association of California (MTAC). She has training in both vocal pedagogy and piano pedagogy, including the Suzuki and Kodaly music methods. She has been performing and teaching individuals of all ages for over twenty years. She has performed in a variety of venues, including opera, musical theater, choral, church, stage, dinner theater, revues, commercials, radio, TV, and film. Ms. McQueen holds an undergraduate degree in Music from the University of Massachusetts and a Master's in Music from California State University East Bay. She has trained for over twenty years in vocals, acting, and dance, with instructors from coast to coast.

Ms. McQueen is a gifted Teacher and has helped hundreds of children and aspiring teachers in the Tri-Valley gain a deeper understanding of piano, voice, acting, film, opera, and theater.

Ms. McQueen enjoys collaborating with fellow SmARTSunlimited instructors to write child centered curriculum that meets National Standards while remaining fun and innovative.

Ms. McQueen has experience directing and producing operas, workshops, small films, & large recitals. Her students have performed with the Tassajara Symphony and Opera Singer Frederica von Stade, The Heritage Estates Retirement Community, Rosewood Gardens, and she has helped produce fundraisers for Fremont Bank and Livermore Valley Opera. Some of her credits include Hansel and Gretel, Annie, The Magic Flute, Camelot, Into the Woods, and Willy Wonka.

Ms. McQueen actively teaches within the following programs: Entry Level PianoSmARTS, VocalSmARTS, OperaSmARTS, ActSmARTS, and KinderSmARTS classes.

You can email Ms. McQueen Here.

Mr. Haworth has been teaching music for brass and percussion instruments to children for over 13 years. He has taught both publicly and privately in Bakersfield, Indiana, and since 2003 in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has also recently begun composing and arranging music, and has arranged works for various marching bands and drum & bugle corps', as well as several pieces for indoor percussion ensemble. Mr. Haworth is also an original cast member of the Broadway show "Blast" (where he performed on trombone, euphonium, and percussion); he performed the show in London, Tokyo, New York (on Broadway), and on tour across the United States.

You can email Mr. Haworth Here.

Ana Vailati hails from Brazil and is an assistant teacher in our KinderSmARTS program as well as our ActSmart Children's Theater Program. Ana is gifted in visual graphics and mixed media art programs. She helps with creating curriculum for the ART rotations in our KinderSmarts classes, designs our logos, posters and banners. Ana is also talented at teaching sewing to our students and her sensorials were highly popular during Willy Wonka when students worked on making stuffed animals, hand puppets, and other crafts. Ana is completing her Certificate in Graphic Arts and Web Design at Las Positas College, and is currently taking courses in Web Design and Graphic Design, Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Excel, and Flash animations.

You can email Ms. Vailati Here.

Nick Haemker is a resident of Tracy, California. He is trained on piano, percussion and violin. He plays violin in the Las Positas College Orchestra and also continues to study pipe organ. Nick has played drums in his church youth group for the past four years and also plays drums in an alternative band. He is completing his AA degree in Music Education at Las Positas College and will be transferring to San Jose State College to complete his Bachelors in Music.

You can email Mr. Haemker Here.

SmARTSunlimited welcomes Debra Knox to our studio. Debra is an accomplished singer, songwriter, and guitar player. She has toured both with her band and as a solo performer, and recently completed her first solo CD. Her work has appeared on PBS, MTV, and various local TV, radio and cable stations. Debra's hope for the future is to continue to express herself through her music, to enrich other's lives, and to encourage others to do the same.

You can visit her website and her MySpace page to learn more.

You can email Ms. Knox Here.

Kate Moody is an award-winning composer and pianist. She has produced five CDs of original music and is the author of two books of music, one a compilation of piano solos and the other a book of teaching pieces for piano.

Moody performs solo and ensemble concerts throughout the country and also presents workshops of Music and Meditation where she teaches "Connect the Dots," a series of meditative visualizations for healing and well-being.

Besides teaching piano and composition to private students, Kate presents workshops for teachers about teaching composition and notation, a method which helps develop creative skills and makes music theory relevant. She also directs "Create Your Own Musicalâ"workshops for children.

As an undergraduate, Kate studied piano performance at Sonoma State University before going on to graduate work in composition at the New England Conservatory.

Kate's recent recorded releases include The Seeker, an album of orchestral music, and Welcome to Piania, a musical journey of evocative solo piano pieces. The Seeker is a symphony in four movements: Wake-up Call, River of Love, Angels & Eskimos, and Shining Through. The CD, recorded at Capitol Studios, also features George Doering on Fantasy for Electric Guitar & Orchestra. Kate's most recent solo piano CD, inscapes, was released in October, 2007. She wrote and performed the soundtrack for the Prenatal Yoga Instructional DVD Series from Rudra Press.

You can visit her website and her MySpace page to learn more.

You can email Ms. Moody Here.

Eunsook is a seasoned Veteran Piano Teacher & Advanced Piano Artist with over 20 years of experience in the field. She received her Masters of Arts in Piano Performance from Stanford and studied piano under Bernhard Abramowitsch & Adolph Baller. She has taught both privately and in University settings including Mills College in Oakland, Kwan dong College, Kang Won University, Han Yang University in Korea. Eunsook is a member of the Music Teachers Association of California in the East Alameda branch. During her tenure as an educator Eunsook also raised a wonderful family. Both her daughter and son are accomplished musicians, who both attended Yale University. Her daughter is presently in med school at UCSF and her son is finishing his degree in Neuro-Science.

You can email Ms. Smucny Here.

Ben Hanson is a ReelSmarts film instructor. Born and raised in East Bay and a prior student of the Athenian School in Danville, Ben specializes in converged media production and has experience in all aspects of video production and filmmaking. Ben is a patient teacher, who is well prepared for his classes. He has pior experience working with emotionally and learning impaired students. Ben's skills include:

• Photoshop all versions, instructor level
• Illustrator all versions, instructor level
• Final Cut Studio all versions, instructor level
• Creative Suite all versions, instructor level
• Mac OS all versions, technician level
• Windows all versions, technician level
• After Effects all versions, expert level
• Director versions 2-5, intermediate level
• InDesign all versions, expert level
• Quark Xpress versions 3-4, intermediate level

You can email Mr. Hansen Here.

Cindy Atwal is the Office Manager. She has been a part of SmARTSunlimited since 2000. Her daughter began piano lessons when she was 3 years old and is now 11 years old and is a Level 5 pianist. Cindy is responsible for all payables and receivables, scheduling of students, contracts, spreadsheet management, and tuition related issues. If you have any questions regarding these matters please contact Cindy at the email address below.

You can email Ms. Atwal Here.

Jim Hutchins is the husband of Ms. McQueen and has an undergraduate degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from UC Santa Barbara, and a graduate degree in Electrical Engineering from UC Berkeley. He has held a full time position at Sandia for 22 years. Jim graciously helps with all the technical aspects of SmARTSunlimited including sound, set building, computer software and hardware, and webdesign.

You can email Mr. Hutchins Here.

Erin McQueen is the 14 years old daughter of Ms McQueen, and works as a student apprentice. She has been studying music since she was 2½ and plays the piano, violin and sings. She is a Level 5 student in Piano and Voice, and a Level 6 student in Violin. Erin has extensive performing experience. She has grown up within a musical teaching environment and makes an excellent student apprentice in our KinderSmarts Classes.