This page tells you that I own two Limited Liability Companies: KID LLC and UMBEPM LLC.
On this ABOUT US page, I briefly share the focus of the two LLCs, and I also share with you my professions, and my educational background.
Note: I am currently seeing employment (Fall 2026). I am open to employment as a Licensed School Psychologist, or as an Instructional Designer, or in Human Resources. I am seeking employment within a Texas State agency (earning retirement credits).
This website is the location for two limited liability companies: KID LLC (Kennedy’s Instructional Design.com) and UMBEPM LLC (UnderstandingMisbehavior.com or Effective Parenting Methods.com)
The website, www.umbepm.com, is designed for mental health professionals and parents who seek guidance and interventions for children–especially for children who exhibit an emotional/behavioral challenge (an emotional disturbance).
From my experience working with children diagnosed with an emotional disturbance, and working with the parent(s), I offer this theme (words of encouragement): “It takes a lifetime to learn how to love–and you are doing just that.”
The link for the the instructional design website (KID LLC) is kidllc.com
The link for the website on parenting skills is Effective Parenting Methods /
Understanding Misbehavior website is www.umbepm.com
The first company, KID LLC, has its focus toward Instructional Design. The letters representing Kennedy’s Instructional Design, LLC. I began this company in 2005, when I was offering consulting and sub-contracting support in Instructional Design. I provided most of my effort at the Idaho National Laboratory, under the supervision of Robert Richards, Ph.D. Dr. Richards, now retired, was a researcher in Human Factors and an Instructional Designer. He provided support to many of the areas within the Idaho National Laboratory (a national research laboratory in nuclear energy).
Dr. Richards’ job responsibilities were so numerous he was happy to hire me and supervise me, helping him to meet some of his tasks. I am grateful that I quickly earned Dr. Richard’s trust and the trust of program managers at the lab (INL/INEL) for my suggestions and recommendations. Dr. Richards is the most effective manager I have ever worked with. His ability to assign tasks that matched my strengths hastened my success while I was there working with him at the lab, helping him at the INL/INEL. Three times I was recommended for hire to the parent company at the lab, but, I think the good Lord had other plans for my future–three times there were reasons beyond my influence that prevented my employment. Dr. Richards guided me in my master’s thesis, recommending I intentionally include Jeroen J.G. van Merriënboer’s 4C/ID (Four-Component Instructional Design) Model in my thesis. I am grateful for Dr. Richard’s guidance. Dr. van Merriënboer writes about the importance of mental models as a necessary ingredient in any instructional design for today’s modern workforce. Dr. van Merriënboer’s insights shaped me into a very different instructional designer than if I had not studied his ideas. Below are a few of his important works:
Training complex cognitive skills: 4C/ID model for technical training
van Merriënboer, Jeroen J.G (1997)
….Blueprints for complex learning
van Merriëenboer, Jeroen, J.G. (2002)…
See citations for van Merriënboer on Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=hsDHECkAAAAJ&hl=en
Ten Steps to Complex Learning: A Systematic Approach to Four-Component Instructional Design
van Merriënboer, J. J. G., Kirschner, P. A., & Frèrejean, J. (2024).
Ten steps to complex learning: A systematic approach to four-component instructional design (4th ed.). Routledge.
Publication details: Fourth edition · 2024 · 462 pages
Book information: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003322481
Self-Regulation of Flow: Creating “Seemingly Effortless” Learning Among Higher Education Students
Hui, L., Rovers, S. F. E., van Merriënboer, J. J. G., Donkers, J., & de Bruin, A. B. H. (2025). Self-regulation of flow: Creating “seemingly effortless” learning among higher education students. International Journal of Educational Research, 131, Article 102573.
Publication details: 2025 · Volume 131 · Article 102573
Read the article: View on ScienceDirect
Citation to my master’s thesis: A case study: the usefulness of instructional systems development and instructional design models
Read my thesis here
This link is to my online resume.
The second LLC, UMBEPM LLC, has its focus toward helping mental health professionals who work with children diagnosed with an emotional disturbance–the website is also designed for parents, who seek ideas and suggestions for more Effective Parenting Methods.
www.understandingmisbehavior.com
The theme (the words of encouragement) I offer to parents: “It takes a lifetime to learn how to love–and you are doing just that.”
Between the two companies, I placed most of my efforts toward the parenting skills website–I have been working on this site since 2005. (Most of my efforts have been working as a School Psychologist.) I have learned the most from this project. I wish I could tell you everything that I have learned from this project, but the amount of knowledge I learned from this project, and continue to learn, is too much to share here. I have learned it takes a team to begin a project as complex as this one. The subject-matter expert for this project is Steven Maybell, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist. Dr. Maybell lives in Seattle, Washington. I have more information about him at the Effective Parenting Methods / Understanding Misbehavior website:
https://understandingmisbehavior.com/samples/
Dr. Maybell is the most educated, trained, practical mental health professional I have ever met. When I took some training from him for professional development, I saw some of his material, and I knew instantly, as an instructional designer, that I wanted to use his material. His material is the inspiration for the Understanding Misbehavior / Effective Parenting Methods website.
My Professional Background:
Ordained Parish Ministry, Psycho-Social Rehabilitation, Instructional Designer/Technologist, and Nationally Certified School Psychologist, and Licensed Specialist in School Psychology (Texas License).
I am an Ordained Pastor. I am an Ordained Pastor (Teaching Elder) in The Presbyterian Church (USA). My status is Member-at-Large within the Presbytery of the New Covenant (Houston, Texas area). I transferred (September 2020) my Ordination from The United Methodist Church to the Presbyterian Church (USA). I served local congregations for about 19 years as a Pastor–in the states of California and Idaho. Today, I do not serve a local congregation as the Pastor, though I maintain the rights and responsibilities of ordination in my status of a “Minister-at-Large.”
I have earned my living as a Licensed School Psychologist (Specialist in School Psychology (LSSP); I am a Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) through the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). I have most recently been employed by independent school districts in Texas as a LSSP–I worked with students, teachers, staff/administrators, and parents. I support students who qualify for special education services, under the federal law category of an Educational Disability. I focus my work with students who qualify with educational disabilities in the areas of Emotional Disturbance, Other Health Impairments, and Autism. I may also work with any number of other students who qualify for other educational disabilities, such as Specific Learning Disability, an Intellectual Disability, though, my main focus is with students with the three above categories. In other states, I had the title of a School Psychologist. In Texas, however, I am titled, a Licensed School Psychologist (previously the title was LSSP: Licensed Specialist in School Psychology.) What is a School Psychologist in Texas?
https://tasp.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36
:licensed-specialist-in-school-psychology–lssp–&catid=21:new-content&Itemid=131
In between these two careers, I worked as an Instructional Designer and as a Psycho-Social Rehabilitation Specialist (PSR). As a PSR, I worked with children of all ages, their parent(s), mental health providers (Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Mental Health Counselors, Social Workers), as well as community leaders (school teachers, store owners, common people about the town) as I educated and modeled pro-social behavior for children with behavioral and emotional challenges (children diagnosed with an emotional disturbance). I have a deep respect for parents who learn how to love and how to raise children with emotional and behavioral challenges. I say, “learn how to love…” because I believe we are all “learning how to love” as we live our life—and parents who raise a child with emotional / behavioral challenges, learn how to love every moment of their day: the parent either learns more about loving each day, or they inwardly die from exhaustion.
Educational Background:
While working in these careers, I earned four graduate programs: two master’s and two graduate certificates–about 14 years of full-time graduate school–the last I counted, well over 120 credit hours of graduate school. I began and discontinued a doctorate in the area of Educational Psychology, with an emphasis in School Psychology. I discovered I could not complete the demands of doctoral education while working as a School Psychologist. The demands of both were more than I wanted to manage. I trust I will contribute to peoples’ lives in my current work as a School Psychologist, and through my Effective Parenting Methods / Understanding Misbehavior website. And, my effort as a Christian. (as a Pastor, the “office” of which I continue to treasure as God’s calling me to God’s work through parish ministries).
Four graduate degrees/programs:
Post – Master’s School Psychology Certification
Eastern Washington University;
Cheney, Washington & Riverpoint Campus; Spokane, Washington
Washington State University
Pullman, Washington; Spokane, Washington
December 2010 (GPA 3.7 and 3.5)
(A joint program between EWU and WSU)
Master of Education: Human Resource Training and Development,
Master’s Thesis:
A case study: the usefulness of instructional systems development and instructional design models;
Idaho State University,
Pocatello, Idaho
May 2003 (GPA 3.9)
Family-Centered Practice, Graduate Certificate,
(Family Interventions)
Department of Counseling;
Idaho State University,
Pocatello, Idaho
May 1999 (GPA 4.0)
Master of Divinity,
San Francisco Theological Seminary;
San Anselmo, California
May 1990 (GPA 3.6)
Bachelor of Arts,
Speech Communication;
Texas Tech University,
Lubbock, Texas
May 1986 (Major GPA 4.0; Cumulative GPA 3.4)
Certifications, Certificates, Associations:
The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi
National and Idaho State University Member (since 2003)
http://www.phikappaphi.org/
National Association of School Psychologists (since 2009)
https://www.nasponline.org/
Texas Association of School Psychologists (since 2014)
https://www.txasp.org/
Idaho Society of Individual Psychology (ISIP, since 2006)
https://adleridaho.org/
Camtasia 2019 Certification from TechSmith Corporation
(Currently use the most current Camtasia Editor, 2026)
(June 19, 2019 to December 19, 2020)
https://verify.skilljar.com/c/fbkw956xm858