Faye Brenner
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Faye began her career in education as a teacher of English, Theater Arts, and Speech. After many years in formal education she made the transition to informal education, first as the program director of a residential summer camp and then as its Executive Director. She returned to the classroom as a teacher and coordinator in the International Baccalaureate program in the largest IB school in the United States. She completed her career in formal education as the Advanced Academic Specialist for Fairfax County Public Schools, coordinating the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs in the 25 high schools before retiring to become a tour director and guide. She attended the International Tour Management Institute and has led student and adult tours for the last seven years. She is the author of Transforming Student Travel: A Resource Guide for Educators and offers professional development workshops based on the book.
Deirdre Rivas
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Deirdre Rivas graduated from the University of Miami in 1994 with a degree in Entertainment Marketing. After a brief stint in the restaurant management business, and then a short but happy career as an office manager and summer camp director for a Montessori school, she found her calling as a tour guide and environmental science tour leader in south Florida with Safari Adventure’s Build-a-Fieldtrip.
Her love of travel and educating students outside the classroom led her further north until she settled in Washington D.C. and worked full time as a tour director; feeding her passion and inspiring students of all ages. Change would come again with a recent transfer to Boston due to her husband’s career, and she now works from behind the scenes, training and overseeing tour directors and guides to be the best they can be as the North American Regional Tour Director Supervisor for Explorica. Her dream is still the same: that every student will have a life changing experience while traveling, facilitated by an amazing TD!!
Deirdre has been a licensed Washington D.C. and New York City guide for over 10 years, and was a member of the Guild of Professional Tour Guides of Washington D.C. When not at work she loves to plan travel adventures for her family and explore all the history and stories New England has to offer.
Von Harden
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Von’s passion for travel developed very early in his childhood, as he frequently ventured across the country with his dad to major sports events. His first experience as a group travel planner was a failed attempt during his senior year in high school, but two years later he hit pay dirt planning his first trip to Washington, D.C.. He began with CE Educational Travel (CE Tours) in 1997, leading trips for college groups out of Tallahassee, FL to collegiate football games and events while studying management and marketing at the School of Business and Industry at Florida A&M University. Von has worn many hats with CE and has served in managerial roles for business development, marketing, sales, and operations (domestic and international). He is a solutions focused professional who offers a wealth of diverse experiences, knowledge, and leadership in the travel industry.
Von credits his ingenuity, ability to relate to people, and knack for conflict resolution to his gritty upbringing in Detroit, MI. He currently resides in the Dallas/Fort Worth area where he spends his free time with his two AMAZING daughters.
Hillary Campbell Johnson
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
A native of New England, Hillary's tour directing career began in 1984 when, she was hired fresh from ATMI in New York to lead tours of Europe for Page & Moy Holidays and Performing Arts Abroad. She returned to the USA and worked for Tauck Tours, Gerber Tours and Saga, eventually finding her home at Globus and Cosmos where she has been a tour director since 1986.
Hillary has a BA in languages from Boston University and is a Certified International Tour Manager. She lived in France for four years, spent summers in Spain and was based in Great Britain for two years while leading tours of Italy. She then studied German in Berlin while leading groups through Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Eastern Europe.
Hillary is a Guiding Tour Director for Globus and Cosmos, her "second family", where she leads tours of the US, Canada and Cuba. She also writes technical itineraries for the company and has trained over thirty Globus and Cosmos tour directors. She occasionally does free-lance work for Road Scholar Cuba, Go West, Kaleidoscope Adventures and Academic Travel.
Daniel Slater
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Daniel (CITM, CTG, CTM) is President of the International Guide Academy and senior instructor is a graduate of both IGA certification programs, and has been in the travel industry for over 25 years. He has worked as a motorcoach operator, motorcoach company owner, and tour company owner. His travels have taken him to 40+ USA states, Mexico, Canada, Europe, South America, Asia, and numerous Caribbean islands. He has completed 10 tours in China in the last 48 months. Daniel is a professional Tour Guide in Colorado and enjoys his Tour Director assignments. At the request of the Jamaican Tourism industry, he worked in Jamaica preparing lesson plans for training local Jamaican Tour Guides. He appeared on the Jamaican edition of the Early Morning Show and has been interviewed on local Colorado television. Daniel earned his CITM and CTG from the International Guide Academy, and then further earned his CTM from the International Association of Tour Managers (London) and the University of Breda, The Netherlands. He is a published author and industry consultant.
Art Chesmore
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Art Chesmore is a full-time tour director and tour guide, sole proprietor and independent contractor. Tour guiding began in the early 1990’s when Art would accompany Las Vegas residents on day trips to outlying Nevada casinos, and to Los Angeles television studios.
Today, Art specializes in designing and leading custom private multi-day experiences to Southwest and Western USA National Parks and Native American Lands; and single day guided tours from Las Vegas. Art notes that Las Vegas is a major gateway city, and is the hub to the West and Southwest; located centrally to San Francisco and Albuquerque; Salt Lake City and Tucson.
Art is the founder, Past President, Director and Member of the Las Vegas Tourist Guides Guild. He developed the Guilds’ first Certified Professional Tourist Guide Training and Testing Program and is an active trainer in the CPTG program. Art served as a Past Director of the National Federation of Tourist Guides Associations and instructed international travel and tourism, and tour directing at the College of Southern Nevada.
In an earlier life, as an employee of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Natural Resources, Art held positions in state parks, inland and marine fisheries research, and public administration.
Mary Ellen Pauli
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Mary Ellen graduated from The Collegiate School in Richmond, VA; earned a Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA, and earned a Master of Business Administration from Columbia University Graduate School of Business in New York. She worked in marketing, finance, and sales positions with Bankers Trust, Texas Commerce Bank, and The Washington Post before joining Lakeland Tours in 1995.
Mary Ellen created her current position of Director, Course Leaders for WorldStrides and have developed a strong and highly rated team of Course Leaders during the past twenty years. Her team manages Course Leaders for the K12 Division which includes east coast history programs as well as science programs in CA and FL. She is passionate about WorldStrides’ mission and I strive to provide a life-changing educational experience for the students who travel with our company.
Mary Ellen is a member of the Science Museum of Virginia Board of Trustees and a member of the Board of the Bolling Haxall House Foundation. She is the proud mother of two children– a son, Tyler and a daughter, Sarah Elizabeth.
Paul Sirner
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Paul Sirner has worked for the Globus family of brands (Globus, Cosmos, Archers, Monograms & Avalon) for 28 years. He began as a Tour Director, then was a Tour Coordinator and has been the Manager of the Tour Operations Department for the last 17 years. Paul oversees Inventory, Rooming Lists, Daily Operations and Quality Control for North & South America, Africa and South East Asia. The Tour Operations department in Littleton, Colorado employs over 150 Tour Directors and Local Representatives. Paul has overseen the operation of tours for over a million guests.
Ken Thompson
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Ken Thompson is a veteran of thirteen years as a Tour Director, during which time he has led tours over most of the United States as well as Canada, Iceland, Mexico, Panama, the UK, and much of continental Europe. He is a full time Tour Director for Globus/Cosmos and also enjoys working with student groups in the Spring season. In a former life he spent several years teaching high school World Geography and is officially retired from Southwest Airlines after having spent over two decades in Ground Operations management.
Married to college sweetheart for 43 years, Ken and Karin have two sons and two granddaughters. Besides his family, Ken's greatest pride is his 1968 Mustang convertible, which he rarely gets to drive because he is on the road much of the year.
Mitch Bach
(Advisory team members are not involved with management or the daily operations of IATDG)
Mitch is an author, speaker and tour director based in Manhattan. He’s led groups around the world for 16 years, and trained new guides for a decade. He now runs TourGuideResources.com, where you’ll find the four city guidebooks he’s written, along with other professional development materials for tour directors and guides. He’s also the co-founder of TripSchool, offering intensive destination training courses for guides in Canada and the US.
