Our team coaches share over 50 years of coaching experience. Among them, they have sent numerous gymnasts to State, Regional, and National level competitions, with many of those gymnasts holding titles at each level. The level of expertise is unsurpassed. The coaches have led teams to numerous state team titles, individual tiles and All Around titles.
In the last ten years, they have helped many gymnasts get college scholarships to successfully be part of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). They are each passionate and committed to the sport of gymnastics. Our academy coaches represent fun, enthusiasm, and an excellent knowledge of the fundamentals of gymnastics. They are all certified through USA Gymnastics and are committed to providing a positive experience for every student. Our academy coaches were almost all gymnasts and share a passion for physical fitness and awareness.
Suzanne is Co-Owner and Program Director at Flight School. As a former competitive gymnast, she knows the challenges and rewards accompanying a sport like gymnastics. She strives to create an environment that is fun and promotes self-esteem and confidence. She wants every student to find their place and progress as far as their dreams will take them. Suzanne was introduced to gymnastics when her mom enrolled her at five. Her passion for the sport has continued through the years. She takes great pride in Flight School’s success and in watching our team members earn State, Regional, and National championships. She is honored to help mentor young women throughout their gymnastics careers and has contributed to many NCAA college careers and scholarships. She has been married for 27 years and has two adult children.
Chris Kelley is both part owner and co-head coach at Flight School. He brings over 30 years of high-level experience in both the JO and Elite program. Chris served as both Washington State and California Tops directors and a clinician for various regions. Chris has a very positive coaching style and is highly respected in the gymnastics community. He has coached numerous state, regional, and western national All Around Champions as well as Level 10 National Team Members. Chris has also contributed to many athletes receiving full-ride scholarships in the NCAA program.
Team Coaches
Katrina is a quiet achiever that has 11 years of experience coaching gymnastics. For six of those years, she’s been a key team player at Flight School Gymnastics. In her career, she’s helped athletes gain titles such as tops, state, regional and western nationals as well as NCAA. As a level 10, she excelled on the uneven bars and stood out as a beautiful dancer on the floor exercise. In 2016 she earned a Salsa world championship title. Currently, Katrina is a high-in-demand gymnastics choreographer in California where she loves bringing out each athlete’s personality.
Olivia, or “Coach Liv”, is a former U.S. National Team member and standout UCLA gymnast, where she was an 11-time All-American, two-time NCAA Regional All-Around Champion, 2011 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, and two-time UCLA Gymnast of the Year. She competed at the 2008 Olympic Trials and represented Team USA internationally. Coach Liv brings over 8 years of coaching experience, elite-level expertise, contagious energy, and a deep passion for helping young athletes grow. She was named EAGL Assistant Coach of the Year in 2023. We’re so excited to have her at Flight School!
Regulo is a decorated former international gymnast from Venezuela. He has earned multiple World Cup titles, five Central American & Caribbean Games gold medals, and two Pan American rings championships, making him one of the most accomplished ring competitors in Latin American history! He competed in numerous world championships, including Tokyo 2011, and has a high-difficulty element on rings officially named after him. Regulo brings his elite-level experience and technical precision to Flight School. He connects with athletes of all levels and challenges them to reach their full potential!
Parker brings 7 years of coaching experiences with recreation, compulsory, optional and XCEL gymnasts. As a former optional level gymnast to a D1 Collegiate Cheerleader, she brings a well-rounded approach to coaching gymnasts of all ages and levels! Parker is currently working towards her Masters in Social Work from UCLA. She loves working with children and instilling confidence, resilience, and work ethic into every athlete.
Kennedy brings a wealth of experience and excellence to our coaching staff. She competed as an elite gymnast from 2009 to 2013 and continued her career at the University of Florida, where she was a standout member of the Florida Gators from 2014 to 2018. During her collegiate career, she earned 11 All-American honors, claimed three SEC individual titles, and was a key contributor to the Gators’ 2015 NCAA Championship team.
We are proud to have a coach of Kennedy’s caliber guiding and inspiring our athletes.
We are proud to have a coach of Kennedy’s caliber guiding and inspiring our athletes.
Front Office
Brooke has over 25 years of coaching experience with recreational and competitive gymnastics. She also has over 15 years of administrative experience as a program director and supervisor. Brooke has been involved with the sport since age 5, both as a competitive gymnast and a coach. Working with kids and coaching gymnastics has essentially been her life as opposed to just her job. Brooke loves working with children and is an integral part of our Flight School family!
Katie became involved with tumbling, tap, and jazz when she was 6 years old and was active in tumbling and dance classes for 10 years. During high school, she started in the customer service industry and has been doing so ever since. She graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a major in Psychology. She has now found a home here at Flight School in our front office. Katie enjoys working with children and loves helping with them whenever she can!
Academy Staff
Gwen has over 3 years of experience as a gymnastics instructor. She was a competitive gymnast for 9 years and then became a collegiate-level cheerleader. Gwen is a part of Flight Schools’ senior staff with fellow coaches Abby and Nirmeen. She has always loved applying herself to new hobbies, but gymnastics was the first sport she fell in love with. Gwen loves working with the kiddos at Flight School, and it makes her day when she sees the kids growing, making new friends, and gaining new skills!
Abby has over 5 years of experience coaching gymnastics and is a part of Flight Schools’ senior staff along with coaches Gwen and Nirmeen. She is CPR and AED certified and has a background in personal training. She enjoys working with kids because it brightens her day! She loves hi-fives, celebrating even the littlest accomplishments, and encouraging kids to be the best little humans they can be.
Brittany was a cheerleader for four years and took that passion for working out and exercising with her to the gym becoming a certified personal trainer. She has a love for yoga and dancing when she is not lifting weights at the gym or coaching the fantastic academy gymnasts here at Flight School. She has been a gymnastics coach for the last four years and gets excited to help each of her students’ progress. Seeing them with a smile on their face brings a smile to hers. She is currently a student at El Camino College and is soon going to transfer to continue her education in a four year to pursue a double major in nutrition and business.
Liz has done gymnastics from the age of five until 10 years old. She began coaching youth sports during her freshman year of high school, and has been coaching ever since. She loves working with children and helping them find their highest potential. Liz is thrilled to join Flight School’s coaching team, and even more thrilled to help kids thrive in gymnastics!
Mia has been part of Flight School since she was 9 years old in our Excel program and is a homegrown coach. She also excelled at Ariel Arts and during her time there she did 3 showcases per year, choreographing her own routines! She is currently focusing on her education but couldn’t stay away from Flight School long, as she is a beloved member of our recreational coaches. Mia enjoys working at Flight School because it is an exciting job and gets to work with so many awesome kids.
Camila has dedicated most of her life to gymnastics, competing nationally, and internationally, until level 9. Camila loves to see the girls get their dream skills and do everything she can to encourage them! She currently is going into her second year as captain of her competitive cheer program through her high school.
Kaila is a competing level 10 gymnast here at Flight School and has gained a lot of knowledge from her coaches. She is an assistant coach and has taken that knowledge from her coaches and her personal experiences and uses that to benefit the kids that she works with. She is excited to help strengthen the future of the team here at Flight School and see all the young gymnasts apply themselves to be the best they can be.
Mady began taking gymnastics classes here at Flight School when she was just 5 years old; she is now a competitive cheerleader and National Champion! Mady has a very strong passion for working with kids, and loves to see them working towards their goals, getting new skills, and having fun. She is super excited to be working at the gym that made her fall in love with gymnastics, and loves being apart of the Flight School family!
Meet Presley, our passionate assistant academy and team coach! Presley started her career in gymnastics at the age of 5, and is currently a member of our competitive level 9 team. Presley creates a nurturing environment for gymnasts to thrive, and we are excited for her to pass down her love and knowledge for gymnastics to the younger generation, inspiring young athletes to love the sport as much as she does.
For as long as she can remember, Shannon has always loved being around kids and taking care of them. Her love for gymnastics and kids makes her job that much more enjoyable! Shannon has always been interested in and fascinated by gymnastics but never got the chance to become involved with it as a child. Shannon enjoys all sports and had been playing volleyball for seven years. She will be graduating from UCSB in June.
Olivia Schafer has nine years of experience in gymnastics. She finished her gymnastics career in 2019 as a competitive gymnast here at Flight School. Her technical knowledge, leadership skills and genuine love for working with kids, makes her an invaluable member of our staff and mentor to her students. We are proud to have her on our team.