Who's Who

The Voice Actor College team extends far beyond direct employees of the company. Alongside our outstanding coaches and support staff, we work with a number of representatives who travel the world helping people break into the voice acting industry. That personal interaction, whether at a Comic Con or through one-to-one audio critiques, is invaluable. On this page, as well as our team, you’ll also find some of our previous speakers, coaches, teachers, and program guides. The Voice Actor College offers an interactive, practical pathway to breaking into, growing, and developing a career in the voiceover industry. Everyone involved is thoroughly vetted and brings substantial industry experience, casting knowledge, and proven educational expertise.

Alan Shires
Lead Coach

Alan Shires is an award-winning voice actor with over 20 years of industry experience and serves as the Lead Coach at The Voice Actor College. Having worked across multiple areas of the industry — including commercials, documentaries, video games, audiobooks, and anime — Alan brings a broad and practical understanding of the voiceover world. He also leads the team in representing The Voice Actor College at trade shows across the United States.

Morgan Tarpley Smith
Support & Trade Show Representative

Morgan Tarpley Smith is a storyteller on both page and screen. She is a bestselling author and award-winning journalist, and has performed in a wide range of roles across stage, voiceover, film, and television. Morgan works on the support side of The Voice Actor College and also serves as a representative at trade shows throughout the south-central United States. She is represented by Landrum Arts LA.

Storm Watters
Student Support & Coach

Storm is one of the most versatile North American female voices, with over a decade of voiceover experience spanning commercials, video games, corporate narration, explainer videos, and more. Supporting The Voice Actor College’s induction process and coaching students through their formative modules, Storm is not only a globally recognised voice actor, but also a pillar of support for students around the world.

Meet the Reps

Mizell Allen

With a background in radio and extensive technical experience, Mizell brings a wealth of knowledge to the team. Having represented The Voice Actor College at multiple trade shows across the United States, Mizell is deeply passionate about ensuring voice actors worldwide are supported with the right resources and information.

Sondley Hemrick

Sondley Hemrick is a successful entrepreneur with investments across multiple industries. A significant following comes from his streaming platforms and community engagement initiatives. Having represented The Voice Actor College at several trade shows throughout the North-Central districts of the United States, Sondley brings a unique blend of creativity, business insight, and inspiration to the college.

Michael Palmieri

Michael Palmieri found rapid success in the voiceover industry after graduating in 2024, quickly establishing full-time narration work that provided consistent and sustainable income. Alongside this, Michael’s passion for pop culture and for introducing and educating new talent led him to represent The Voice Actor College across the East Coast.

Aaron Seed

Aaron Seed is a versatile performer with experience across stage, television, and voiceover. Having worked with companies such as Funimation (now Crunchyroll), Aaron has a strong understanding of the professional demands of the voiceover industry. Covering the West Coast, Aaron’s presence in California allows him to represent The Voice Actor College in some of the industry’s most active cities.

Recent Speakers and coaches

Shawn Gann

Shawn Gann is not only a voice actor with 150 credits to his name, but he is also a Crunchyroll ADR and Casting Director. Working on some of the biggest shows in Anime Shawn generously has invested multiple times into The Voice Actor College community sharing all he knows about the industry.

Joel McDonald

Joel McDonald is not only a prolific voice actor with over 150 credits to his name, but he is also an industry leading director in video games as well as an accomplished author. Between voice acting, directing and writing Joel rarely has time to teach but made an exception for The Voice Actor College.

NAVA (National Association of Voice Actors)

NAVA has generously provided The Voice Actor College members with discounted memberships to support the community following a live webinar collaboration. The college continues to support NAVA’s mission, and NAVA continues to open doors for college students across the industry.

Backstage

Backstage and its sister companies provide The Voice Actor College members with free access to their platforms, allowing students to begin auditioning for work and building their portfolios. Backstage has spoken for the college on several occasions.

Katie Young

With a background at Disney, Katie now leads one of the world’s premier video game production companies, Liquid Violet. Katie taught for The Voice Actor College in its early days and maintains a close relationship with the college, having recently cast a college member in a hit video game.

Sirena Irwin

Sirena is a highly successful casting director who has worked with DreamWorks, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network, among others. She taught for The Voice Actor College in its early days and continues to maintain a strong relationship with the college.

Julie Wilson

Julie is a leading audiobook and narration coach, representing Penguin Random House, production company Ahab, and her own training academy, The Voiceover Coach. Julie has spoken and taught for The Voice Actor College on multiple occasions.

Chuck Duran

Chuck is one of the most respected demo producers in the world and is widely recommended by top agents and casting professionals. He continually offers guidance and support to students and has collaborated with The Voice Actor College on numerous initiatives.

Sandy Lobban

Sandy is one of the most successful producers at Ubisoft, a world-renowned video game developer and distributor. Sandy spoke for The Voice Actor College in 2025 and maintains a close working relationship with the college.

Alexis Tipton

Alexis is one of the most versatile and successful voice actors in the anime space. Referred to The Voice Actor College through multiple recommendations, Alexis — who does not typically teach — generously agreed to speak for the college.

Bob Bergen

Bob is one of the most sought-after coaches and successful voice actors in the industry. Recommended by world-class audio engineer and musician Chuck Duran, Bob has collaborated with students of The Voice Actor College through a recent live webinar.

Marc Graue

Marc Graue Mark is not only one of the most successful voice actors in the industry, but also the owner of a highly successful production company. Mark spoke for The Voice Actor College in 2025 and continues to support its members through demo production.

Gene Rowley

Gene Rowley Gene is one of two owners of Jump Master Press. Alongside running a highly successful publishing business, Gene has taught for The Voice Actor College and has also cast college voice actors in audio projects.

Mami Okada

Mami is a Senior Director at Bang Zoom! and helps run one of the world’s largest ADR production companies. Since 2024, Mami has spoken and taught for The Voice Actor College and has also exhibited alongside the college at trade shows.

Jason Lord

Jason is a director and casting professional for Crunchyroll in Dallas. He also runs multiple anime, video game, and animation productions from his own studio, Topaz Studios. Jason has spoken for and taught at The Voice Actor College on multiple occasions.

Module Guides

Kara Edwards

Kara is an industry expert with over three decades of experience, having worked extensively both on camera and behind the microphone. To date, she has over 150 credits to her name and is best known for her work on Fairy Tail, Attack on Titan, My Hero Academia, Dragon Ball, and Hello Kitty.

Matt Holmes

Matt is an industry professional with two decades of experience, splitting his time evenly between voice acting and on-screen performance. He regularly records for Crunchyroll out of Dallas, Texas, and was recently one of the lead actors in the hit series Vindication.

Josh Martin

Josh is an industry expert with over three decades of experience. Having worked in front of the camera, behind the mic, and on stage, he brings an exceptional depth of knowledge to his coaching. With more than 150 credits to his name, Josh is best known for voicing Majin Buu in the hit series Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super.

Haven Powers

Haven is an industry professional with over two decades of experience. Alongside a wide range of on-screen projects, she has also established a successful career in audiobooks. To date, Haven has narrated a large number of titles across many genres, reaching audiences all over the world.