About IEA

Industry Professionals with the Best Expertise

IEA's award winning services in training and education are made possible by the commitment and expertise of more than 300 faculty members all of whom are carefully chosen for their industry experience, superior knowledge, and excellent classroom skills. Scroll down to find biographical detail on some of our current faculty members

Ruth F. Cazden, CPCU, MA

Ms. Cazden, an independent consultant with more than 30 years experience in the insurance industry, has been leading IEA programs since 1978. In addition to instructing Prelicensing classes, Ms. Cazden develops and leads technical workshops in both commercial and personal lines. She is the author of two insurance textbooks, and has been a speaker at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Anti-Fraud Seminar.Ms.Cazden has a graduate degree in Medieval Spanish Literature and is an avid violinist in her spare time.

John Chesebrough, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, ARM, AIM, AU

Mr. Chesebrough has extensive experience in the Insurance Industry in California and has been an extremely valued member of our faculty for many years. In addition to his active service as an IEA instructor in programs such as CPCU, INS, and many property casualty workshops, Mr. Chesebrough is also active with the Los Angeles Chapter of CPCU, and is involved with the Society of Insurance Trainers and Educators. He has written numerous articles and assisted for many years the Insurance Institute of America with textbook writing and editing.

John Cross, JD, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, ARM, AIC

IEA is privileged to have Mr. John Cross among its valued faculty members since 2002. Mr. Cross, a highly credentialed and talented instructor, has presented many IEA semester programs including ARM, CPCU and Prelicensing. Currently an Insurance and Risk Management Consultant, Mr. Cross also serves as adjunct faculty with CA. State Fullerton (Finance Dept.) and Practitioner Faculty with the University of Phoenix. He earned his BA from the University of Massachusetts in 1977, his JD from the University of Kansas School of Law in 1980, and his MSFS (Master of Science in Financial Services) with the American College in 2004.

Dave Edwards, CPCU

Dave Edwards earned his CPCU designation in 1996 and has held his insurance license since 1998. With only 5 years on the faculty, Mr. Edwards talents as a wonderful instructor earned him the honor of our Level 1 Outstanding Course Leader award. Mr. Edwards currently works as a Casualty Analyst in the Corporate Claims department at 21st Century Insurance Company.

Barbara J. Elliott, M.A.

Barbara Elliott joined IEA as an instructor in 1993 and currently teaches the semester California Workers' Compensation Rehabilitation course. Ms. Elliott completed her Master of Arts in Counseling at Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, in 1985, and her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Michigan State University in 1981. Ms Elliott has provided cost-effective, quality vocational rehabilitation services since 1987 and is recognized as an expert on California Workers' Compensation rehabilitation, implementation of Americans with Disabilities Act Title 1 compliance programs and Early Return to Work programs. Ms. Elliott provides expert testimony on various vocational issues, takes a strong, proactive approach to managing disabilities and believes in keeping individuals with either occupational or non-occupational injuries employed. She is active in related professional organizations, and is frequently requested by attorneys, insurance carriers and related businesses to provide informational seminars regarding disability management issues.

Barbara Goodwin, MBA, CPCU, ARM

Barbara Goodwin, MBA, CPCU, ARM has over 20 years experience providing practical and leading-edge risk management consulting services to her clients.
In addition to operating a successful consulting business, Barbara is recognized as an excellent public speaker, and an outstanding IEA faculty member. Barbara has
recently received a prestigious award for the consistent pass ratio and success of her students in IEA's ARM 56 (Risk Financing) course. Included among her most popular workshops are, Alternative Risk Financing, Assessing and Managing Business Risk, Underwriting the Financial Side of Your Risk, and Financial Statement Analysis.

Michael Hernandez, MS, CPDM.

Michael Hernandez began his professional teaching career in 1976 as an Instructor/Counselor in a private rehabilitation center for troubled youth. He became a Vocational Rehabilitation counselor in 1982, upon completion of his Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology. Mr. Hernandez is employed by the State of California Division of Workers Compensation since 1989, and has been in charge of the Division Of Workers Compensation, Information Service Center since 1998 and is currently the Workers’ Compensation Manager over the Information Service Center Unit. IEA is pleased to have Mr. Hernandez teach in their Workers' Compensation and Disability Management curriculum including CA8, CA14 and CPDM 1.

Dennis Knotts, WCCP

Dennis Knotts, WCCP, is among IEA's leading experts in workers' compensation. With more than 20 years industry experience, Mr. Knotts has worked in a variety of companies from multi-line/muti-state carriers to TPAs and Public Entities. A published author in trade journals, he has also authored Administrative Regulation 9785(b), There shall only be one primary treating physician at a time, which was the focus of several en banc decisions. Mr. Knotts has also served as an expert witness in bad faith claims handling law suits. In 2008, Mr.Knotts received the 2008 Richard B. Masters Award for outstanding contribution to the Insurance community.

Robert Marshburn, CRM, CIC, ARM

Robert Marshburn is a 30 year veteran in risk management, and a nationally recognized expert specializing in analysis, design, implementation, and presentation of risk management programs. A highly sought after IEA faculty member, Mr. Marshburn is a dynamic public speaker, and a talented professional educator, consistently rated by independent sources as one of the nation's top risk management consulting and training resources.

Jeff McHale, WCCA, WCCP, CPDM, SIP

IEA welcomed Mr. Jeff McHale to its faculty in 1999. Since he joined us, Mr McHale has earned an outstanding reputation for his presentation of our Workers' Compensation semeseter programs including CA10, CA11 and CA20. Mr McHale is currently a Claims Supervisor with Crawford and Company.

Karl. D. Susman, CIC, API, AIS

Mr. Susman, by his own admission, loves insurance. He’s been recognized as the number 1 producer for both Homeowners and Life insurance, as well has having his agency given Elite status for high profitable production. He believes strongly in education and says that getting an insurance license is just the beginning. Karl owns and operates an insurance agency in Brentwood, California with his wife Azy. He’s big in technology and all that it can do to help the independent insurance agency force grow.

Caran Skoff

A long-term and valued IEA faculty member, Caran Skoff received her BA degree and secondary teaching credential from California State University at Long Beach. After a brief career as a junior high and high school teacher, she worked for six years as a claims adjuster and vocational rehabilitation counselor for the State Compensation Insurance Fund. Since 1979 she has worked for the Pomona, Norwalk, Long Beach and Anaheim Worker's Compensation Appeals Board as a Rehabilitation Consultant. She is currently employed as a Rehabilitation Consultant and Information and Assistance Officer at the Anaheim Worker's Compensation Appeals Board in Anaheim. She received the Division of Workers Compensation Employee of the Year award for 2001.

Jerry Snow, MA, WCCP

Mr. Jerry Snow has over three decades of educational and administrative experience in both the public and private sectors. This included time as the Director for the Law Enforcement Center at Southwestern Community College and a community college instructor. For five years, Mr. Snow was a bilingual vocational counselor in the worker's compensation system and is qualified with the State of California as an Independent Vocational Evaluator (IVE). He is a professional member of the California Association of Rehabilitation and Reemployment Professionals (CARRP) and a member of the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC). Mr. Snow teaches Workers' compensation semester programs and one-day workshops for IEA.

Malaney Wood, MA

Ms. Malaney Wood has served on IEA's faculty since 1989, teaching both semester courses and one-day workshops in workers' compensation.She currently holds the position of Underwriting Manager for Majestic Insurance Company, and participates, supports and holds membership in the San Francisco Insurance Women's Association. Ms. Wood, a former language teacher, graduated with a MA from Florida State University.

Paul Woolls, J.D.

Born in Bloomington, Indiana in 1954 Paul Woolls attended Wabash College where he received an A.B. degree in 1975. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1979, where he served as Articles Editor for the Law Review. Paul was admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar in 1979 and the California Bar in 1983. Paul has taught for IEA for many years and continues to speak on a number of topics including the duty to defend, environmental coverage, avoidance of bad faith, the Cumis doctrine, additional insured endorsements, construction defect coverage and litigation, as well as employment litigation issues. Paul remains a member of the California, Los Angeles County and Philadelphia Bar Associations, as well as the Conference of Insurance Counsel, Defense Research Institute, and the Tort and Insurance Practice Sections of several of those bar associations. Mr. Woolls is the President of Woolls and Peer.