FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. COC-07-016-SC
August 24, 2006
New Director to Take Helm of Training Institute Businesses in the Santa Clarita Valley that turn to College of the Canyons to train their employees, will be working with a new director, starting September 5. The college's Employee Training Institute announced it has hired Kristin Houser, a marketing and business professional with 25 years of experience in pharmaceuticals, biotech, education and small business, to oversee the program that assists businesses and industry partners in planning and delivering training to stay competitive. "Kristin Houser brings a wealth of talent and experience to College of the Canyons," said Dena Maloney, dean of economic development. "With her background in biotechnology, marketing, and education, she will be a great resource to employers in the Santa Clarita Valley, and a great addition to our economic development team." Most recently, Houser has served as General Manager of Miltenyi Biotec, Inc., a provider of sophisticated tools to the global medical research community. She also led the global efforts to launch novel cell therapy products for Baxter Cellular Therapies as Vice President of Global Marketing. Houser's resume also includes experience in the small business sector, after having developed and run a successful medical marketing consulting business, focused primarily on market analysis and strategy development for new products and markets for specialty companies. She also taught marketing and management courses for five years at the University of Redlands School of Business. Houser received her master of business administration degree from the University of California, Berkeley, her master's degree in clinical psychology from the University of Florida and a bachelor's degree in English and psychology from Indiana University. Established in 1989, the Employee Training Institute provides customized training to companies within the Santa Clarita Community College District. The institute's role at College of the Canyons was further defined in 1991 as "the primary agency for retraining the segment of the workforce displaced through the changing technology and economic conditions" whose "short-term training programs will be responsible for the majority of the technical upgrade training done in our Valley." Staying true to this defined role, ETI has provided training to more than 1500 firms and 10,000 participants since the early 1990's. For more information about ETI and its new director please visit www.canyonsecondev.org or call (661) 362-3245. | 
