About BrassHornet

Committed to Quality | Our Experience | How We Design Courses | Our Valued Partners | Companies Our Instructors Have Helped

BrassHornet provides quality corporate education and mentoring in the use of computer and Internet technologies. We are small and nimble, and we consider that to be an advantage. We aren't big enough to impose a cookie-cutter, take-it-or-leave-it approach on our customers. Instead we will work with you to put together an education package, large or small, to take your employees from where they are to where you need them to be.

BrassHornet's founder, primary instructor, and course designer, Eric Ivancich, has, since 1981, been designing and teaching courses on computer programming and other technology topics to a wide variety of audiences, from elementary school age students, to college undergraduates, to computer and managerial professionals. Since 1994 he has been focusing his efforts on companies (from large to small), governmental agencies, and non-profit organizations (see a list below).

Unique Theoretical Experience

Eric is in the process of completing his dissertation on the issue of knowledge integration in neural models designed to mimic aspects of the human brain. His study of the brain and of the learning process is fully integrated with BrassHornet's teaching and course design.

Read more about Eric and others affiliated with BrassHornet.

While there is no single key to providing quality training, one of the most important is course design. Here is our philosophy in brief.

Fractionation

A topic of any inherent complexity has to be broken into coherent units for presentation and learning. Each unit should be large enough to have some depth, be small enough so as not to overwhelm the student, and be internally coherent.

Integration

Integration involves two steps. First, as a unit is presented it needs to be linked to appropriate existing knowledge structures. Those connections need to be encouraged by the presentation itself. Second, after a unit is presented, the student needs to consolidate those links. Hands-on exercises give the student the opportunity to explore the concept, more firmly stitch it into their existing knowledge structures, and thereby own the unit.

Organization

In addition to finding appropriately sized units and integrating exercises, these units of learning must be well-organized. Complex topics, such as programming languages, are like spider webs, where each element is linked to a number of others. From this complexity a single thread needs to be pulled, leading the student through the elements in sequence and allowing him/her to re-construct the whole internally.

Our Partners

BrassHornet works closely with the following companies, our valued partners:

• The Linux Box, promoting and enabling the use of Linux through quality consulting, training, and software development.

The following companies, governmental agencies, and non-profit organizations have all used one or more instructors now associated with BrassHornet:

• Novell [operating systems, information solutions]
• EDS (Electronic Data Systems) [business process management, information solutions]
• ProQuest [information archiving and retrieval]
• HostPro (a division of Micron Electronics, now merged with Interland) [web hosting]
• Compuware [enterprise and e-commerce development and staffing]
• General Motors
• Ford Motor Company
• DaimlerChrysler (and the former Chrysler)
• TRW
• Bosch [automotive, engineering]
• Yazaki North America [automotive parts supplier]
• Smiths Industries Aerospace
• First National Bank of America Lansing, Michigan
• Ross Roy Communications (now InterOne Marketing Group, part of the BBDO Network)
• Handleman Company [music distribution]
• Ameritech [telecommunications]
• Consumers Energy [electric utility]
• ANR Pipeline [energy transport]
• Guinness / United Distillers / Schieffelin & Sommerset (now part of Diageo) [spirits, beer]
• Seagram [spirits, entertainment]
• Domino's Pizza
• Meijer [retail sales]
• U.S. Internal Revenue Service
• U.S. Army Tank Command
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Michigan Department of Transportation
• University of Michigan Medical Center
• Blue Cross / Blue Shield of Michigan
• American Automobile Association (AAA Michigan)