Avant Assessment

David Bong brings nearly 30 years of experience in international business, management, and sales and marketing to his role as CEO of Avant Assessment. He is responsible for defining and implementing the company’s strategic vision, and leads the management team in identifying new markets, developing and managing key relationships and partnerships, and driving product development that capitalizes on existing and emerging opportunities in the U.S. and abroad. Since launching Avant in 2001, Bong has guided the growth of the company to its current standing as a globally-respected innovator of Web-based language assessment tools.

Prior to heading Avant Assessment, Bong co-founded Step.com Communications, a Silicon Valley-based provider of stock market prices and company data on U.S. listed companies for Japanese securities firms and investors. Bong’s activities included business development, raising venture capital and angel funding, as well as managing legal and personnel affairs.

For more than 10 years, Bong also held U.S. and international management responsibilities with Kroll Associates, a premier corporate investigative, security and crisis consulting firm. During his tenure, he was the director of the firm’s offices in Silicon Valley and Tokyo and served in the New York, Hong Kong and San Francisco offices, opening new markets, and managing complex investigations in areas of fraud, organized crime and business intelligence.

Bong is fluent in Japanese and was the sole foreign member of the Japanese Ministry of International Trade & Industry Committee to Establish Japanese Corporate Crisis Management Standards.

He holds a bachelor of arts degree in the College of Social Studies and Japanese History from Wesleyan University and has studied at the Naganuma School of the Japanese Language in Tokyo.

Since 2004, John Haakanson has served as president of Avant Assessment providing executive oversight and management across key areas including: financial/budgeting, contract administration/legal, planning/operations and human resources.

Haakanson’s operational acumen has been vital to establishing Avant as a highly competitive language proficiency assessment company. During his tenure, Avant became the first company to utilize online language testing for No Child Left Behind (NCLB)-mandated assessments of English language proficiency (Minnesota 2004-2005, Oregon 2005-present).

Haakanson was instrumental in helping the company win a six-year contract with Oregon Department of Education to develop and deliver the only online test of English language proficiency used to satisfy state NCLB requirements. His leadership also helped Avant secure a five-year contract with U.S. Department of Defense schools to conduct online foreign language testing worldwide.

Prior to joining Avant Assessment, Haakanson served as vice president of operations, finance and administration at Jody Coyote, Inc, where he oversaw preparation and analysis of corporate financials, performed short- and long-term strategic planning and managed information systems, legal and personnel matters.

Haakanson earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oregon.

Kyle Ennis brings to Avant Assessment 20 years of education experience, including classroom instruction, building level technology management and student management and administration. As vice president of education and technology, Ennis is responsible for bridging these two critical competencies and leading innovation that connects education and technology in the real world of the classrooms of today and the future.

Ennis coordinates teacher training and professional development activities that instruct world language supervisors and teachers how to use Avant’s language assessment tools and apply assessment results to their individual classrooms. He works directly with school administrators to identify assessment needs and then develops customized training sessions and workshops to help each program achieve their language instruction goals. Additionally, he oversees technology development initiatives, assisting sales and Assessment Development Teams with technology integration and support, applying his classroom experience to develop and direct meaningful technology solutions for Avant’s cutting-edge assessment technologies.

Ennis’ background includes serving as an EFL instructor in Japan for two years and a Japanese language instructor and technology coordinator at a U.S. high school for more than 12 years. He served as President of NCSTJ (The National Council of Secondary Teachers of Japanese) from 1996-1997. He is a member of ACTFL and has been recognized in Who’s Who Among American Teachers in 1995, 1997 and 1998.

Ennis holds a bachelor of arts degree in English-Language Arts/Japanese from Utah State University and a master of science degree in educational leadership and administration from Portland State University.

Brad Fenstermacher joined Avant Assessment in 2007 to lead the company’s IT operations. As Avant’s Chief Technology Officer, Fenstermacher is responsible for establishing the company’s technical vision and leading all aspects of Avant’s technology development.

Fenstermacher began his career with Equarius, Inc., a technology consultancy based in Bellevue, Wash. As a senior consultant, business analyst, project manager and developer, he worked with both public and private sector clients to help set their technology strategy, enhance internal controls, and develop efficient, scalable, web-based applications.

In addition to his passion for technology, Fenstermacher devotes a great deal of time to programs supporting early childhood development and post-secondary education. He is a member of United Way of Lane County’s Success By 6® Leadership Team and the Lane Community College Foundation Board of Trustees.

Fenstermacher holds a bachelor of arts in business administration from the University of Washington and a master of business administration from the University of Oregon.

Since joining Avant Assessment in 2003, Brett Laquercia has played an integral role in the company’s success through his responsibilities in business development and brand visibility. He has spearheaded the company’s growth in the educational arena, helping establish the STAMP test as a nationally recognized language assessment tool adopted by more than 80 customers in 37 states. Laquercia works directly with the CEO on developing strategic partnerships with organizations whose online instructional tools complement Avant’s products.

As Avant Assessment’s head of communications, Laquercia is responsible for developing awareness and market visibility for the Avant brand and its products. Significantly, he recently led efforts to rebrand Avant Assessment (formerly Language Learning Solutions), including providing oversight on creative and brand launch initiatives.

Laquercia has been a featured speaker on Web-based language assessment, addressing the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages; Limited English Proficient State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards (LEP SCASS) Conference, and the NYC Languages other than English Symposium.

Previously, he served as vice president of business development for the security services group of Kroll Associates at the company’s world headquarters in New York. Kroll is the premier corporate investigative, security and crisis consulting firm in the world, and has since been acquired by Marsh. At Kroll, Laquercia developed a substantial Fortune 500 client base to turn around an online political risk analysis service, and cross-sold services for Kroll’s consulting operations throughout the U.S., Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Laquercia is proficient in Italian and Spanish. He holds a bachelor of arts degree from Hunter College and a master of business administration degree from Columbia University.

As a hobby, Laquercia sings and plays bass-guitar, and can be seen on stage at local venues in his hometown.

Paul Tucker is the senior linguist and vice president for assessment and research at Avant Assessment where he is responsible for all aspects of the test development process, including test design and specifications, item production, field testing, psychometric analysis and calibration of item banks, and operational test assembly.

Tucker has more than 20 years of experience in theoretical and applied linguistics as an educator, field researcher, and test developer. He has a broad background in the design and development of innovative Web-based foreign language assessment tools, including the practical applications of automated speech recognition technology, and research in theoretical linguistics and second language acquisition. He also has extensive experience as a manager of large-scale language assessment projects, including the supervision of a staff of test developers, item writers, and assessment specialists.

Tucker is an active member of the Interagency Language Roundtable's (ILR) Testing Committee. The committee coordinates and shares information and research with federal agencies and governmental departments related to language proficiency testing and performance testing in federal agencies, the training of effective language testers and the use of technology in testing.

Tucker holds a bachelor of arts degree in biblical studies from Fresno Pacific University and a master of arts degree in linguistics from California State University, Fresno. Tucker is currently completing his doctoral program in linguistics at the University of Oregon. He is fluent in French and proficient in Hebrew.