JDSCA Board of Directors

JDS Creative Academy Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors is comprised of a rich variety of professionals: Diane Strand – Founder, Chairman of the Board; Scott Strand – Co Founder & Board Member; Celeste Ducharme –  VP, Board Member; Lynn Cohen – Secretary; Johanna Lack – Board Member; and Donna San Miguel – Board Member; Carl Fielstra – Board Member; Stephen Ochs – Board Member; and Peg McLaughlin – Board Member; who have come together to create collaborative visual and performing arts programs. We are always looking for industry professionals, valued business people, and community leaders for our Board. To find out how you can help, please email: diane@jdscreativeacademy.org

The JDSCA Board collectively has over 100 years of professional industry related experience as producers, directors, writers, musical directors, and actors, as well as expertise in video production, stage production, and as educators. The board brings a wealth of experience having worked for companies such as; Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros; on television shows such as: General Hospital, Friends, Survivor, Celebrity Apprentice, Celebrity Ghost Stories, Good Day Temecula, Design on a Dime, and House Hunters; and the major release films Tyson and Last Man Standing.


Diane Strand – Founder, Chairman of the Board:

Diane is the majority owner of the multi-award winning JDS Video & Media Productions, Inc., Producer at JDS Actors Studio and Founder of the nonprofit 501c3, JDS Creative Academy.  In addition, Diane is the Creator and Executive Producer of the show Spirit of Innovation – News and Information for Riverside County, and DigiFest Temecula. Click here for full bio.

Scott Strand – Co Founder & Board Member

Scott is an industry professional in several disciplines of visual and performing arts, and an accomplished Actor, Director and Editor. He is an owner operator of his own Production Company & Acting Studio JDS Video & Media Productions, Inc/dba JDS Actors Studio. Scott is the Master Acting Coach at JDS Actors Studio and has trained several actors who have launched successful careers in Television and Film.

Stephen Ochs – First Vice President:

My family, including my Autistic son Andrew, moved to Riverside County in 1989. Since then, my wife and I strongly advocated for special services for him. In grade school, high school, and during his transition to an adult, our goal was to strive to help him find where he could be happy and the most productive member of society possible. Andrew developed a love for Audio and Video Production and JDS Creative Academy was one of those services that helped to make him happy and productive. Sadly, Andrew passed away in January of 2019. All who knew him told us they felt he enriched their lives just by knowing him.

The reason I am on the JDS Creative Academy Board of Directors is to honor Andrew and JDS. My goal is to share our experiences raising an Autistic son in order to help other young people on the Autism Spectrum, and their loving families succeed in reaching their own personal goals. I will also work hard at helping JDS Creative Academy become even more successful than it already is.

 

Carl Fielstra – Second Vice President:

Carl Fielstra is the newest member of the Board of Directors of JDS Creative Academy. He loves the commitment that JDS Creative Academy has made to provide accessible visual, digital, and performing arts education to all. Carl especially admires the impact that the organization has on visual, digital, and performing arts education for children. He appreciates how JDS Creative Academy has helped so many young adults grow and gain courage in themselves. Carl is inspired by the way that the organization keeps finding new ways to expand and open the doors to provide opportunities to children who may not have been able to afford advanced visual, digital, and performing arts education. On top of volunteering his hours on the Board, Carl is employed by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, and owns and operates his own pool design and building company.

Before joining the Board of JDS Creative Academy, Carl focused his efforts on being an exemplary father to his children. He has frequently coached his children in sports and in life. He has and continues to volunteer as a coach for various sports teams in his community. When one of his children attended JDS Creative Academy classes, Carl realized the importance of the arts in childhood development and was inspired by the personal growth he witnessed in his child. He has since been a staunch supporter of the arts and uses his position on the board to further his commitment to childhood arts education. 

 

Lynn Cohen – Secretary:

Lynn has been on the JDS Creative Academy Board of Directors for over five years and currently serves as the Board’s secretary. Lynn is the Program Coordinator for the JDSCA Video Production Training Day Program and  Chair for DigiFest Temecula. She holds a BA in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College, which has given her a focus on social equality and anti-bias learning environments. Her career allowed her to work with infants and preschool children, school-aged children, and now with disabled young adults. Her experience in working with families in settings from schools, churches, and libraries gives her the understanding needed to assist with all of the families and students within JDS Creative Academy.  She also holds a certificate in nonprofit management from UCR. Lynn is an avid reader and enjoys live music, theater, and museums.

I have always been an advocate for the arts, from literature to visual and performing arts. I have served on Boards for various theaters, as well as for choirs and orchestras. I feel it is invaluable for children to have experience in the arts beginning at a young age, and had a desire to be involved in a non-profit entity on a bigger level so the timing was perfect when Diane and Scott asked me to join this Board. I know there is not enough focus on the arts in public school and JDS Creative Academy helps to fill this void for theater arts. JDSCA gives a unique opportunity for students to study, have fun, and take the skills they acquire here and use them in every area of their lives. 

Johanna Lack – Board Member:

Johanna Lack is an award-winning television producer and writer who has worked on shows for HGTV, DIY, CBS, ABC, and Discovery Channel, which include House Hunters, Designed to Sell, Renovation Realities, and many, many more. As a freelance communications specialist, her work ranges from writing video scripts for JDS Video & Media Productions, to building online course pages for a leading online-education company, to writing articles that appear in local publications.

I joined JDSCA’s Board of Directors because I was excited to support an organization bringing visual, performing, and digital arts education to our area. Many children and adults in the Temecula Valley want a local creative outlet, so they don’t have to drive to Los Angeles or San Diego. It’s exciting to be a part of an organization that not only provides the necessary classes and events, but also inspires networking, collaboration, performances, and future careers. 

Johanna has served in various positions as a board member for Congregation B’nai Chaim, volunteers for many different local philanthropies through National Charity League, Inc., and places foreign exchange students for EF Exchange Year. Johanna is an active member of JDSCA’s Board of Directors and enjoys teaching writing to the Academy’s very creative students.

 

Donna San Miguel – Board Member:

Donna San Miguel is the Associate Dean of California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) at Temecula where she advocates for higher education in the Temecula Valley. She is responsible for the oversight of the two campuses in Temecula, community and business relationship development, as well as oversees a team dedicated to student services.

Donna relocated to the Temecula Valley from Arizona twelve years ago when her partner was stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. She obtained her Bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary studies from Arizona State University, the first in her family to attend college. She later went on to receive her Masters of Arts in Education from San Diego State University and is currently pursuing her doctorate in Leadership Studies at the University of San Diego.

She has been in higher education for over fifteen years, with twelve of those years at CSUSM. Donna enjoys working with students to help them reach their academic goals, and is always looking for a way to help students connect to the local community whether it be for an internship, volunteer work or to get their career started.

Donna currently serves an the Board of Directors for the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce (TVCC) where she is also the Education Chair for Valley Young Professionals, a division of TVCC. She is responsible for creating educational series for the future leaders of the Temecula Valley, is a new addition to the JDS Creative Academy Board of Directors, as well as the Treasurer/ Secretary for the Temecula Education Foundation.

Donna is a thoughtful advocate for students, a courageous leader for change, and catalyst for promoting excellence in the field of education. She brings with her knowledge and experience that will help advance the mission of JDS Creative Academy.

 

Celeste Ducharme –  Board Member:

Celeste Ducharme has spent the last 30 plus years building businesses and managing teams within several high-profile companies such as Nordstrom, Dennis uniform company and The Rancon Group, Ranch RV & Self Storage in French Valley. Her ability to make a difference within organizations, from people to profit, has positively changed thousands of lives. As VP of Self-Storage Development, Property Management & Marketing with Ranch RV & Self-Storage, Celeste & her staff have the privilege of providing only the best self-storage options to support customers through the varied life events that bring about the need for extra space.

 

Peg McLaughlin – Board Member:

My name is Peg McLaughlin and I am the owner of So Cal Legal Docs, Inc., a legal document preparation company in Temecula. I have been married to the love of my life, Jim McLaughlin, for almost 21 years and we have two sons, Seth, age 19 and Daniel, age 18, both of whom graduated from Temecula Valley High School.

While Seth was in middle and high school, he was very involved in drama. I did parent volunteer work with CYT (Christian Youth Theater) and I was on the drama booster board throughout his high school years. I loved being involved and supporting the students leading up to and during their productions.

When I was nominated to the Board for JDS Creative Academy, I did not hesitate to say “yes!” I believe that JDSCA is doing great things in our community and I am honored and proud to be a part of it.

 

Tom Sommers – Board Member:

Tom brings to his role as a Certified Financial Planner a wealth of business, insurance and financial experience accumulated during his career as an executive in various service industries in New York, Europe and California.  Tom is known as a thoughtful, innovative advocate for his clients, dedicated to helping them achieve financial security.

Tom holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Pomona College in Claremont, California and a Masters in International Relations and Economics at Columbia University in New York. During his business career, Tom pioneered opportunities for US companies in Eastern Europe, and as entrepreneur started successful businesses in Austria and Russia.

Tom focuses his efforts on helping business owners and professionals. He is an active member of a number of community organizations, among them the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce for whom he is a Board Member, Fallbrook Chamber of Commerce, the Fallbrook Land Conservancy and the San Diego Turtle and Tortoise Society and the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce, which recognized Tom as its “Ambassador of the Year” for 2010 and 2021

Tom lives with his wife of 30 years Olga and daughter Mary in Fallbrook, California conveniently located for his clients who are mainly in San Diego, Orange and Riverside counties.