Advancing traffic safety education

Alex Hansen

President

Alex Hansen graduated from CWU with a teaching degree, majoring in History/Social Studies and with endorsements in ELA and TSE. He has taught all of those subjects and more in grades 6-12. He has taught traffic safety education for 38 years in both public schools and in commercial driver training schools, and is now serving his second extended term as our WTSEA board President.

Alex worked as a Regional Traffic Safety Coordinator for the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) until the position's funding was cut in 2002. Since 2008, he has been an adjunct professor at Central Washington University, teaching the courses required in Washington to become certified to teach TSE in public and private schools. He has presented at several TSE conferences.

Alex has served on the Board of Directors of WTSEA almost without break since 1988. He has served on many advisory boards for TSE, most recently on the Washington Driver Education Advisory Committee (WDEAC), assisting DOL and OSPI to implement the recent Young Driver Bill, which extends the driver education requirement to age 22. He is also the legislative liaison for WTSEA, responsible for informing the members about proposed legislation and rules pertaining to TSE, and testifying for WTSEA at public hearings. He has received WTSEA's Cliff Boyce Teacher of the Year award and ADTSEA's Teacher Excellence award. He retired in 2024 but is still active as a volunteer wrestling coach and TSE consultant.

Gerald Apple

Coordinating Secretary and Conference C-Chairman

Gerald Apple started teaching in 1970 at Hoquiam High School. He holds a master's degree in teaching English and history and a Traffic Safety Education (TSE) endorsement from Western Washington University. Gerald played college football and has coached many sports at the high school level. He has taught traffic safety education for the past fifty-five years in both public schools and commercial driver training schools.

For well over 40 years, Gerald has been active in leading Washington State and the nation in traffic safety education, serving on the Board of Directors of both TSE associations. He has been president of WTSEA two times and has been the coordinating secretary for as long as anyone can recall. In 1997, he was the national president of the American Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association (ADTSEA). When he retired from full-time teaching with the Shelton School District in 2015, he became the TSE coordinator for Educational Service District #113 in Tumwater, helping to administer TSE programs across 35 school districts statewide. In that capacity, he was also the trainer of trainers, preparing teachers to become certified. 

Gerald loves teaching, but he also loves leading students to mentor themselves in safety-related habits, from elementary school pedestrian and bicycle safety to advising the Shelton Safety Club and the state SADD program for high school students.

Though retired, he is not done contributing. He currently teaches senior driving courses at 20 different senior centers throughout western Washington and serves on eight different boards. He is married to a truly wonderful woman, Helen, who is also a retired teacher. They have one daughter. His hobbies include weightlifting, walking his dog (Buttercup), and announcing sporting events for Mason Web TV.

Skeet Gaul

Treasurer and Conference Co-Chairman

Skeet retired from public school instruction in 2007, after 36 years. He currently works for the Arlington School District traffic safety education program as a certified classroom and behind-the-wheel instructor.

Skeet holds a bachelor's degree in history from the University of California - Northridge, a master's degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in educational technology, and a Lifetime Teaching Certificate from California Lutheran College. He received his Washington State certification in traffic safety education from Central Washington University in 1998. He has served on the WTSEA Board in various capacities for 20 years, most recently as treasurer and conference co-chairman.

He is married to his best friend, Teri. She is a retired business operations manager and master gardener. Together, they have five children, eight grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. They enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren as well as traveling and exploring new places together. ​Skeet enjoys many passions, including teaching, golfing, serving, listening to music, reading, and appreciating life, people, and friends. He prides himself on being a lifelong learner and is always open to new ideas. 

Mike Heinlen

Membership Secretary

Mike has been involved with traffic safety education for over 30 years. He has spent time on most aspects of traffic safety, including teaching classes, owning driving schools, coordinating the TSE program for the Federal Way School District, administering DOL skills tests, and training trainers.

This is Mike's second time serving on the WTSEA board. He currently works for Freedom Driving Schools, conducting skills tests, improving the curriculum, training skills testers, and a few other things. He is also in his 33rd year as a foreign language teacher, currently at a middle school in the Steilacoom Historical School District. 

Mike Shephard

Executive Member At-Large

Mike Shephard taught special education at Lake Stevens High School for over 40 years. For many of those years, he coached tennis and wrestling. In addition, after taking the TSE endorsement courses from CWU, he taught traffic safety education for over 35 years. As coordinator of the TSE program, he managed the instructional team, helped develop the curriculum, and implemented policies that significantly grew the program.

Mike has been a member of WTSEA for over 35 years. During that time, he served as an area representative, president-elect, president, and is a longstanding executive member-at-large. He has also been a member of ADTSEA, serving as a regional representative for the Pacific Northwest states. Though retired from teaching and coaching, Mike has continued to serve on the WTSEA Board because of the networking and camaraderie among like-minded TSE teachers. 

Dave Slipp

Clock Hour Coordinator

Dave retired from the US Army in 1995. In 1999, he graduated from St. Martin's University with a degree in K-8 education and endorsements in instructional technology and traffic safety. He taught traffic safety for Alexis Driving School from 1999 to 2011. Then he moved to South Dakota, where he taught traffic safety at Black Hills High School and Tumwater High School for 19 years, retiring in 2019. Dave says, "It was the best job I ever had, I had way too much fun!"

Dave remains active in shaping the Washington State Traffic Safety Program to become one of the nation's best.​ He is a highly engaged member of our board and coordinates clock hours for our members' continued education.

Whenever Dave gets the chance, he reminds people that there is probably no other subject in high school as important as driver education. We rely on safe driving for almost everything we do, whether it's recreation or work. Traffic safety education is the one subject that can literally mean the difference between life and death.

He married his wife, Patty, from Mazatlán, Mexico, in 2005. She became a United States citizen in December 2010. Every year, they try to spend a month or two in Mazatlán. Together, they enjoy gardening and garage sales. Dave also completes many woodworking and automotive projects. His garage is larger than his house!

Debbie Cottonware

Ex-Officio Member At-Large

When Debbie Cottonware trained to be a traffic safety education teacher at CWU in 1988, her OSPI TSE coordinator, Clyde McBrayer, told the class that if they wanted a job recommendation from him, they needed to be involved in WTSEA. She took him seriously, and for the next 14 years, she did just that.

Debbie has served on the WTSEA Board of Directors in several capacities, including  ESD #113 representative, treasurer, president, and legislative liaison. Along the way, she was mentored by Gary Bloomfield, Gerry Apple, Alex Hansen, Syd Muzzy, Terry Kline, John Harvey, Frank Kennel, Chuck Fillipini, and Montana's David Huff.

Debbie went on to obtain her master's in education at CWU. Her growing involvement and experience naturally prepared Debbie to become a university-level traffic safety trainer of trainers in three states. She trained teachers for CWU, Montana State University-Northern (for 12 summers), and Idaho State University. In 2002, she was recognized with the WTSEA's Clifford Boyce Teacher of the Year Award. In 2003, she represented the state of Washington as the ADTSEA Teacher of the Year Award recipient. Although Debbie now resides in Cody, WY, she has remained active in the traffic safety world and is serving the WTSEA Board of Directors as the ex officio member and advisor. 

Scott Calahan

Central Washington Representative

Scott teaches a variety of courses for the Industrial & Engineering Technology department, as well as coordinates the traffic safety and technology education programs at Central Washington University.

Before coming to CWU, he taught traffic safety in five different school districts. Scott feels truly blessed to be involved with the traffic safety community. Traffic safety educators are some of the most dedicated professionals he has had the privilege of knowing. 

He is married to Reena, and they have three awesome daughters. He enjoys attending his girls' sporting events, hunting, fishing, being up in the mountains, tackling home improvement projects, and spending time with his family. 

David Brennan

ESD #101 Representative

David Brennan was born and raised in Aberdeen, WA. After graduating from high school, he entered the United States Coast Guard and served active and reserve duty for 23 years on both the east and west coasts of the US. He attended Grays Harbor College and Eastern Washington State College, graduating in 1976 with a bachelor's degree in parks administration and recreation. A few years later, he obtained his teaching certificate and a traffic safety education endorsement. He became a lifetime certificate holder in 1982 for teaching and traffic safety education (golden certificates).

He taught grades 3-12 on and off for 35 years, beginning in Nevada and transferring to Washington. He also taught traffic safety for most of those years in 20 different school districts. In 2017, he retired from teaching full-time, but continues to teach traffic safety in Davenport and Touchet year-round.

David's hobbies include tinkering with his ham radio, running a car-detailing business, boating with grandkids, drag racing, RVing, restoring old cars (currently a 1997 Pontiac Firebird), and volunteering. He is a member of Gideons International and his church, where he wears many hats. He's been married to his wife for 50 years. They live in a tiny home on a farm with several pets, including some wild rabbits, in eastern Washington. 

David is looking forward to WTSEA starting up again and carrying the torch further for quality traffic safety education.

Todd Reed

ESD #105 Representative

Vacant

ESD #112 Representative

Dan Raymond

ESD #113 Representative

Dan Raymond teaches at South Bend Junior & Senior High School, where he serves as traffic safety education program coordinator and instructor. An educator since 1991, he began his career in Spanish and expanded into ESL, Alt Ed, credit recovery, and traffic safety after training under Alex Hansen in 2010.

Dan is passionate about restoring traffic safety education to the regular curriculum through CTE, ensuring that all students have access to safe driving instruction. He brings decades of teaching experience, leadership, and commitment to diverse learners. Outside the classroom, he enjoys traveling, attending baseball games anywhere (but especially at Dodger Stadium), concerts, and hockey.

Vacant

ESD #114 Representative

Bud Rasio

ESD #121 Representative

Julie Hill

ESD #123 Representative

Bill Haley

ESD #171 Representative

Bill Haley holds a bachelor's degree in business administration, a master's degree in technology education, and a CTE director certificate. He was born and raised in Southern California and moved to Washington state in the fall of 1992 to teach in the Brewster School District. In 2000, he received my TSE endorsement. Since then, he has run the TSE programs while teaching in Brewster and Pateros.

Bill had the opportunity to teach on the Olympic Peninsula, create a CTE program, and teach business classes at the Quileute Tribal School in La Push. This was an incredible experience for him, as the area is beautiful and the Quileute people hold a special place in his heart. To make it affordable to stay in the La Push area, he converted a 1998 Bluebird school bus into a tiny home that I lived in during the school year. He also started a traffic safety education program to serve the local area of La Push.

Currently, Bill is back living full-time in Pateros, teaching CTE and traffic safety. He served on the WTSEA Board for several years as the ESD 171 representative, then as treasurer while teaching in La Push, and now again as the ESD 171 representative.

James Brooke

ESD #189 Representative

James Brooke has been a special education teacher

He earned his bachelor's degree in 1988 from Eastern Washington University, a traffic safety education endorsement in 1994, and his master's in school administration in 1996. He started teaching at Arlington High School in 1992, became a driver education teacher in 1994, and became the traffic safety education program coordinator in 1998. He is proud of the successful traffic safety program at Arlington High School.

James is excited to apply his experience to serving on the WTSEA Board of Directors. He is always encouraging others to get more involved, especially the younger folks.

James and his wife of 25 years, Celia, have three children between them and 12 grandchildren. He enjoys playing Santa Claus for multiple locations (Cabela's, Nordstrom's, and private parties). His family has a place in Desert Aire for sun and fun, where they enjoy boating, surfing, wakeboarding, and tubing.