WDC Staff

WDC staff shares expertise in management, training, education

The Workforce Development Center staff includes seasoned business professionals and managers, trainers, educators, psychologists, and counselors—all of them focused on developing and implementing training programs and courses to enhance the expertise, productivity, profitability, and community contribution of indviduals and entities in business and industry, government agencies, and non-profit organizations.

Dennis N. Ulrich, Ph.D.

Executive Director
Formerly dean of community continuing education at Cuyahoga Community College, Ulrich previously held the position of executive director of the Center for Executive Education at Kent State University. At Kent State, he was also responsible for management of the Executive Masters in Business Administration program, including its international business programs. Before his return to academia, Ulrich had extensive private sector experience, including officer level positions with two major Cleveland-based corporations. He also worked as a front line manager in claims, operations, organizational development, and adult learning, training, and education, as well as in software development. Ulrich was one of three founding members of the Ohio Award for Excellence (OAE), a statewide quality program modeled after the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. He earned a master’s degree and a doctorate in philosophy from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.
 

Sharon Timon

Executive Assistant
Timon is the executive assistant to the executive director of the Workforce Development Center. She has over 15 years experience at Cincinnati State and has Associate of Applied Business degrees in Executive Secretarial Technology and Office Management Technology.
 

Brian O'Keeffe

Operations Manager
O’Keeffe is a former associate director for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte where he was responsible for the oversight of facilities providing academic instruction, recreational use, varsity athletics, and campus-wide major events. Additionally, Brian has over 15 years of private-sector management expertise directing business operations and service improvement initiatives for companies such as Bank of America, VIACOM, Pella, and Royal Caribbean International. In his current role, Brian provides operational oversight and management of the administrative processes and staff of the Workforce Development Center.  He collaborates closely with the Executive Director, Business Managers, instructors, faculty, and other constituents to ensure the effective delivery of credit and non-credit instruction within a culture of educational and operational excellence. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Virginia Commonwealth University.
 

Marianne McCabe

Client Management Specialist

McCabe was employed at General Electric Company for 14 years as a sub-assembler, and selected Cincinnati State for business retraining. She has now worked at Cincinnati State for more than 13 years, starting in the Health Division. In her current role as client management specialist (CMS) she communicates with diverse individuals, and provides a comprehensive program of services to staff, clients, and students as the frontline service provider. In addition, as a CMS, she processes student enrollment for all WDC courses and training, including verifications, residency, course registrations, student and corporate payments, and grades.
 

Business Managers

Brian Canteel

Business Manager, HAZMAT, Rescue, and Safety
Canteel is a former department manager for safety and training at the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) facility in Fernald, Ohio, where he was responsible for the development and implementation of safety training for new radiological clean-up programs. He has more than 20 years of experience working in industry (manufacturing and construction) and the emergency services sector. He is a certified OSHA outreach instructor in both general industry and construction and a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE). Canteel holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S Army Reserve, and is a 15-year veteran of the Greater Cincinnati Hazardous Material Unit. He earned his MBA from Oklahoma City University.
 

Larry Cherveny

Business Manager, Industrial Training and Green Technology Business Manager
Cherveny is a former section head manager for product research, process development, and manufacturing technical services for Procter & Gamble (P&G), where he was responsible for the conceptual development, product formulation, process development, and commissioning of manufacturing processes for new or improved beverage products. Cherveny has over 20 years of experience working in industry. He has almost ten years of experience in workforce development and a proven record of improving company productivity by planning, developing, and delivering industrial maintenance training solutions to suit specific client needs. He holds a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati.
 

Jane Dunigan

Business Manager, Professional, Managerial, Leadership, and Law Enforcement
Dunigan previously held various professional managerial positions in the healthcare sector for more than 20 years. As guidance, recruitment and facility director for The Christ Hospital School of Nursing in Cincinnati, Dunigan oversaw student recruitment, admission, and retention; student counseling services; and management of the facility that housed the school, dormitory, and several hospital departments. A former police officer, she holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in education from Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio. She is an Ohio licensed professional counselor (LPC), an Ohio licensed independent chemical dependency counselor (LICDC), and a certified criminal justice specialist (CCJS).
 

Dryden Jones

Business Manager, Healthcare Business Solutions
Formerly director of marketing for the Xavier Consulting Group of Xavier University, for over 10 years Dryden Jones was responsible for providing a wide range of consulting and training services to industry and health care organizations. Jones has extensive private sector experience with a Cincinnati-based manufacturer and distributor of medical and rehabilitation products. Over a 15-year period, he managed facilities in Minnesota and Ontario that provided products and services to hospitals, clinics, and physician group practices. Since 1993, he has served as adjunct faculty in the Business Technologies Division at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. Jones earned an MBA degree from Xavier University and a bachelor of arts degree from Rollins College in Florida.
 

Jim Kleemeier

Project Manager
In his role as Project Manager, Mr. Kleemeier is responsible for managing several projects including the DOL Bioscience Grant, Institute for Social Media, Workforce 21 Academy, as well as Sustainability Certification. Mr. Kleemeier is an accomplished executive with over 25 years of progressive experience and varied responsibilities with three Fortune 500 companies (General Electric, Emerson Electric and Formica). As founding President, he developed and managed a well executed strategic business plan which delivered a profitable manufacturing company that was eventually sold to a private equity firm. His experience includes managing multiple, complex projects simultaneously through leading and directing cross functional teams while delivering projects on schedule, within budget while under the constraints of a defined scope. Mr. Kleemeier earned a Bachelor of Science degree (Logistics) from the University of Cincinnati, Masters of Business Administration (Finance/Industrial Management) from Xavier University, as well as a PMP Certification (PM Institute).
 

Delrae McNeill

Program Manager, Health Information Technology

Mr. McNeill has over 9 years’ experience as both a Program Chair and instructor in Medical and IT programs and was responsible for delivery of technology based instruction of IT and Nursing Informatics subject matter to health care providers including topics on EHR, PHI, CIS Systems and HIPAA guidelines.  Delrae also has experience as the Regional Director for Information Technology for an education system comprised of 18 colleges across the Midwest.  Formerly a Field Systems Engineer for the Hewlett Packard Company for 15 years, he provided network and system support to enterprise accounts including GE, Procter & Gamble, and Fidelity Investments. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronics Technology from Indiana State University and is currently pursuing a Master of Business Informatics degree from Northern Kentucky University.
 

Erin Sarvis

Health Business project and QA coordinator
An instructor/coordinator for the paramedic program at Cincinnati State since 2001, Sarvis is program coordinator and former clinical coordinator for the Cincinnati State/Colerain Township Fire Department paramedic class. A paramedic since 1982, she earned her National Registry certification in 1987 and currently works for the Western Joint Ambulance District (Westjad). Sarvis has an associate of science degree in Paramedic Technology from Cincinnati State. She is a State of Ohio certified EMS Instructor and an American Heart Association instructor for ACLS, PALS, and BLS.
 

For more information, email us or phone (513) 569-1643.