Dr. Dan Apple is the founder and president of Pacific Crest, an educational consulting and publishing firm established in 1985. He is one of the foremost experts on Process Education™, an educational philosophy focusing on developing students’ learning skills and creating self-growers. Dr. Apple’s background is interdisciplinary with an undergraduate degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz in Mathematics, Chemistry, & Information Science, an M.S. from Syracuse University in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, and a Ph.D. from SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry specializing in Public Policy and Analysis.

Carol Nancarrow, a contract consultant for Pacific Crest, is an expert in distance learning, curriculum design, and facilitation. She is the director of the Writing Center at Sinclair Community College, has taught composition courses for more than 20 years, and has been instrumental in Learning to Learn Camps both in Ohio and Washington D.C., demonstrating a real commitment to helping students develop critical life skills. Carol  has facilitated numerous faculty development institutes and is an acknowledged expert in Process Education.

Carol Holmes, a contract consultant for Pacific Crest, leads the Faculty Development work of the company. Carol's academic work focused on the professional development of practicing professionals and she has twenty five years of experience in fostering faculty and college organizational development. Carol serves as one of the directors of the Faculty Guidebook project.

Dr. Joann Horton is the Chief Operating Officer of Pacific Crest. She brings more than thirty years experience in higher education institutions and state government in instruction, academic administration, and senior executive leadership, including the college presidency. Joann has worked throughout her career as a change agent, consistently supporting best practices and continuous improvement in performance for all levels of academic faculty and staff.