Meet Shirley Kendall, A Distinguished Educator

Shirley Kendall views Silicon Valley as her "classroom." As a Program Developer in the Professional and Workforce Development Unit (PWD), Shirley customizes curriculum in a wide variety of disciplines to serve the needs of small and large companies in the region. Her association with the Foothill-De Anza Community College District began in 1974 at Foothill College where she taught business skills classes until 1990. She subsequently held several positions in private industry but happily chose to work at De Anza. 

"Professional and Workforce Development is an outreach program to the community that offers on-site access to a full range of cost-effective training programs and services," Shirley said. "We can design training packages specifically for an organization, or provide existing courses, or deliver seminars and workshops covering a wide variety of topics."

Jeanine Hawk, vice president of Finance and College Services at De Anza, was immediately impressed with Shirley's commitment to workforce development and to customer service. "I first met Shirley in 2004 when PWD moved under the Finance and College Services umbrella," she said. "Shirley spends a lot of time with potential clients to truly understand their training needs. As a result, employers receive specific training based on their employees' needs."

Employers look to PWD staff for resources to increase productivity and improve quality. Some of their clients include City of Sunnyvale, City of Cupertino, City of Mountain View, City of Palo Alto, Town of Los Gatos, City of Santa Cruz, City of Redwood City, City of Foster City, City of Fremont, California Public Utilities Commission, Lockheed, Kaiser Permanente, El Camino Hospital, Santa Clara Valley Water District, Sunset Magazine, Support Soft, Technology Credit Union, Stanford University, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Johnson & Johnson, Intuitive Surgical, Synopsys, Google and National Semiconductor, just to name a few.

"A lot of our clients are by referral," Shirley said. "Our program has been in existence since 1981 and has an excellent reputation in the Valley as the place to go for quality training."

Whether locating an inspirational speaker for a meeting of bankers or a yoga instructor for a law firm, Shirley has a far-reaching network from which to draw subject matter experts. It is clear that she enjoys the challenge of creating relationships between parties who will enjoy great synergy and find their interaction productive and gratifying.

"Excellent interpersonal skills are de rigueur for anyone with marketing responsibilities," said Vice President of Instruction Judy Miner. "And Shirley is a shining example of the success that ensues from active listening, tact and affability. She is fearless and persistent in developing cold calls into new clients and is resourceful in then meeting their needs."

PWD also provides consulting services and designs any training package the client requests. "The type of training needed will determine the type of trainer or subject matter expert utilized to deliver the workshops," Shirley said. "I prefer to hire De Anza staff when at all possible, however sometimes the De Anza teaching assignment will interfere with the length of commitment necessary to deliver off-site training to an organization. I'm always happy to talk to De Anza staff who are interested in teaching for us."

From Computer Applications, Computer Programming, Workplace English as a Second Language, Professional Development, to Personal Development and Management courses, PWD trainers design the curriculum. Shirley has a master's in Instructional Technology and oversees the design and development of all of the training programs to make sure they adhere to the highest standards.

"Shirley knows how to collaborate with her clients so that they get their needs met," said Rick Kuhn, director of PWD. "She serves them with respect for their knowledge of their own needs and maintains the highest levels of integrity. This program would not be as effective as it is without Shirley's contribution."

Over the years, Shirley's efforts have reached thousands of employees working for hundreds of employers. Her employee training programs have been delivered to local government agencies, hospitals, universities and high tech firms. She's always upbeat and excited when she meets with her clients and instructors. They all consider her their friend and colleague, not just the manager of their training program. "Shirley is an excellent representative of Foothill-De Anza and we are lucky to have her representing us!" Jeanine said.

"Her positive attitude and high professional standards have won her the respect, loyalty, and regard of her colleagues," Judy said. "She is truly a distinguished educator!"

Shirley chose "'Tis" by Frank McCourt as her award from Judy's stash of autographed books.

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