Top A/C & Refrigeration Instructors

At 32BJ Training, in New York City, Robert Stokes brings more than 20 years of hands-on experience to students in the refrigeration and air conditioning courses that he teaches. He once worked as the chief engineer of a condominium association, gaining extensive experience installing air-conditioning units, replacing compressors and doing refrigeration and air-conditioning repairs. He is certified in air conditioning and refrigeration, has a systems maintenance technician certification and an associate degree in occupational studies building maintenance technology.

Frank Ando has been teaching at Capital Region BOCES Career and Training School, in Albany, N.Y., since 1997. He is EPA refrigerant certified and has an associate of applied science degree in air conditioning engineering technology, obtained through SUNY Alfred. He also has completed Building Performance Institute Building Analyst Training and is a certified to teach in air-conditioning and other fields by the New York State Education Department. He brings more than 25 years in HVACR field to his instruction and is knowledgeable about design, troubleshooting, supervision and sales.

At Ferris State University, in Big Rapids, Michigan, Joseph Pacella is an assistant professor in the school’s HVACR program, bringing hands-on experience to his teaching. He is a member of three Air Conditioning Contractors of America committees, including the standards committee and the Manual N Revision and Manual P Revision committees. He’s done several presentations, including one entitled: “Air Conditioning Troubleshooting” for HVAC Excellence and he even co-authored a book called “Green Awareness: Energy Efficiency, Comfort Conditioning, Electrical Plumbing (Going Green).”

Greg Ballenger teaches commercial refrigeration at Greenville Technical College in Greenville, South Carolina, helping to train community students on their path to becoming refrigeration and HVAC technicians. Some of those go on to work for his company, RSI Carolina – Refrigeration Services, Inc., which he founded in 1995 in Greenville.

The headmaster of HVAC Training School in Mountlake Terrace, Washington, Ben Engelking had several refrigeration patents pending and once was the former educational vice president of the Seattle Refrigeration Service Engineers Society. He has served on the board of examiners of Seattle’s refrigeration licensing board, is a certified vo-tech instructor, and a former HVAC contractor and professional engineer. He has four certifications with North American Technician Excellence, two of which are in air-conditioning, and has been published in national trade periodicals.

Paul Bailey is an HVAC instructor in applied technology at Northeast Community College, in Norfolk, Nebraska. He is a master tech specialist with the Refrigeration Service Engineer’s Society, NATE certified in air conditioning, air distribution and other fields, and has a bachelor’s degree in technology and a master’s degree in education. He brings more than 10 years experience in HVACR service and contract work to his teaching and has 20 years of experience in education.

At Northern Michigan University, in Marquette, Michigan, Nicholas Griewahn teaches courses such as Principles of Air Delivery Systems and Advanced Commercial Refrigeration Systems. In fact, according to his instructor profile, some of his favorite courses to teach are about control systems and wiring of air conditioning and refrigeration systems. He is a certified commercial air conditioning and commercial refrigeration educator, has both a bachelor’s and master’s degree, and EPA and North American Technician Excellence certifications. He is particularly interested in conservation, particularly as related to refrigeration and alternative refrigerant solutions.