Marketing Advisory Committee
Courtney Ahrenholtz
Department Chair of Marketing
Professor of Marketing
512-223-2069, [email protected]
Courtney Ahrenholtz has been an NASD licensed securities supervisor, producer and agent and has an extensive background in banking and financial services. Courtney lead the flagship branch of a Fortune 100 bank in the Austin and has been part of setup teams for new (deNovo) retail bank operations in the area. Courtney has also worked in various teaching and support roles with the Leander Independent School District.Courtney is a small business owner of and the active beekeeper for Green Fields Apiary. She is an active member in the community and has served multiple non-profit organizations.
In 2002, Courtney graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management with a minor in French from the University of Northern Colorado. She continued her studies at Texas A&M–Commerce where she earned a Master of Science degree in Business Management in 2010. Courtney strongly believes in serving the community and has served for several non-profit organizations in Central Texas. She has traveled extensively and enjoys learning about new cultures and customs.
Helena Esparza
Affiliation – Directive Consulting
512-223-1790 x22466, [email protected]
Helena Esparza holds a Master of Science in Digital Marketing and Analytics from St. Edward’s University. In addition to her teaching role at ACC, she serves as a senior paid media strategist in the B2B SaaS industry, leveraging her expertise to drive business growth and ROI for software companies. With a strong passion for staying current on industry trends, Helena is dedicated to sharing her knowledge and experience to drive growth and innovation.
Vanessa Farrow
Affiliation – Amazon
512-223-1790 x22129, [email protected]
Vanessa earned a B.S. in Textiles and Apparel: Apparel Design from The University of Texas at Austin, along with a Business Foundations certificate, in 2007. Upon graduation, she completed an internship with Sikara & Co. Jewelry in downtown Austin, where she ultimately became the company’s first employee. Over the course of 13 years, she oversaw wholesale and operations for Sikara & Co., representing the brand at numerous trade shows, collaborating with international manufacturers, and gaining first-hand knowledge of what goes into running a retail business.
In 2017, she launched her own jewelry line, 805jewels, further expanding her expertise in product design and entrepreneurship. Following the onset of COVID, she transitioned to Amazon, where she currently serves as a Learning Manager for Central Operations.
Vanessa has been teaching Distance Learning fashion courses at Austin Community College since 2016, bringing nearly a decade of real-world industry experience in design, merchandising, and business operations to the classroom.
David Fossas
Affiliation – Reciprocity Co.
[email protected]
David Fossas is a marketing executive with a track record scaling high-growth, private equity-backed companies, as well as helping Fortune 500 companies transform their market position. He has deep experience in category creation, developing mission-driven brands, and building high-performance teams. In his roles, David has led marketing, growth and revenue operations, pricing and packaging, and experience design.
David is the Founder and Principal of Reciprocity Co. where he offers fractional CMO services to early and growth stage tech and health companies.
David served as Chief Marketing Officer for Restore Hyper Wellness where he led experience design, marketing and revenue operations to drive a 3-year 118% CAGR in revenue as the business expanded from 29 locations to over 200 locations nationally. During his tenure, Restore was the fastest growing brand of health clinics in the U.S.
Prior to Restore, David led global brand and digital experience for WP Engine, helping define its corporate, product and brand strategy. During his tenure he helped grow core revenues at a 27% CAGR. David held various leadership positions at high-growth marketing agency, Real Chemistry, and directly contributed over 25% of its new business and top-line growth through new account wins and organic account expansion. David also held business development and corporate development roles at Big Fuel Communications, Intrepid Pictures, Endeavor and International Creative Management.
As a consultant, David has worked with over 35 brands, including General Motors, Verizon, HP, Inc., Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Visa, P&G, Clorox, CVS Caremark, Philips Health and Galderma.
David was named in the 2023 Future Leaders in Wellness list presented by Glossy, in the 2022 CMO Gamechangers list presented by Entrepreneur and in the 2018 40 Under 40 Marketing Leaders list presented by Digital Marketing News. He serves on the advisory board for the St. Edward’s University Master of Science in Digital Marketing and Analytics. David was also a contributing author in Contemporary Issues in Digital Marketing: New Paradigms, Perspectives, and Practices published by Libri Publishing Limited in 2018.
Amanda Greenfield
Affiliation – Walker Consultants
[email protected]
Amanda Greenfield is the National Director of Business Development for Walker Consultants, a national engineering firm. Amanda has almost two decades of experience in marketing and business development within the Architecture/Engineering/Contractor (A/E/C) industry. Collaborating with leadership, Amanda leads the development and execution of Walker’s National Forensic Restoration and Building Envelope Growth Plan, focusing on client mapping and development, key markets, proposal strategy, market plan development, and business goals. Amanda also serves on the board of the Austin Chapter of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) and is a Certified Professional Services Marketer (CPSM). She received her BA with Honors in English from the University of Texas at Austin and her MBA from Texas State University.
Carrie Hammond
Affiliation – Intuit
[email protected]
With over 25 years of experience, Carrie Hammond is a strategic global marketing visionary specializing in go-to-market strategy, 360° integrated marketing campaigns, and product marketing programs. She has a proven track record of managing multimillion-dollar global budgets to enhance market presence, brand recognition, and drive sales pipeline growth. Her expertise lies in developing scalable marketing programs that optimize end-to-end customer experiences and create strategic marketing experiences to achieve high funnel conversion rates. Carrie is passionate about designing and implementing product-based marketing programs at scale, adept at leading global cross-functional teams and enterprise-wide initiatives, and skilled in fostering robust internal and external relationships. Her bold and data-driven approach informs strategic decisions and effective execution, enabling me to navigate complex organizational structures and drive customer acquisition.
Brittany Henderickson
Affiliation – Kitchell
[email protected]
Kim King
Affiliation – Ping Group
[email protected]
Kim King is an accomplished marketing leader with deep product, solution, and portfolio marketing expertise. She has successfully led strategic go-to-market initiatives in the healthcare and technology sectors, focusing on driving business growth through an unwavering commitment to understanding customer challenges, crafting differentiated positioning and messaging, and executing data-driven strategies that deliver measurable results. Kim is passionate about learning and loves experimenting with emerging technologies and AI, routinely looking for new ways to use technology to increase the effectiveness of GTM initiatives. A local Austinite, Kim received Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, and Executive MBA degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. She looks forward to sharing her knowledge and experience to help shape the future of marketing education at Austin Community College and empower the next generation of industry leaders.
Kathy Walton
Affiliation – ACC Marketing Adjunct
512-223-1790 x22184, [email protected]
Kathy Walton is an adjunct faculty member at ACC and has taught Marketing, Fashion Merchandising/Design, and Management classes at several institutions for over 25 years. Those institutions include Austin Community College, Salt Lake Community College, Purdue University and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She earned a BS at New Mexico State University in Home Economics in Business (fashion focused); MS at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Home Economics with a Merchandising emphasis; and a PhD in Education focusing on Community and Human Resources. In addition to serving as a faculty member and occasional department coordinator at Purdue and SLCC, she has served as the Director of Community Education at Brazosport College in Lake Jackson, TX. Kathy has also served as a consultant/industry trainer to numerous companies throughout the country through her consulting firm, Magistra Enterprises.
Kathy has been very active with Collegiate DECA, a student organization for people interested in careers in Marketing, Management and Entrepreneurship. She has been a chapter advisor, state advisor, regional board representative, and served on the National Board of Directors as the secretary, president-elect, and as the President. She has received numerous awards from Collegiate DECA including Texas Advisor of the Year, 40 Years of Service in 2022, and the Honorary Life Member Award (the highest award given in the organization) in 2007. In addition, she received the NISOD Teaching Excellence Award from UT-Austin in 1995; the Teaching Excellence Award from SLCC in 1989; Marketing Teacher of the Year for the state of Utah in 1987, 1990, and 1999; Utah Vocational Educator of the Year in 2000, and the Top 100 Alumni from the Past 100 Years at NMSU in 1988. She is active in the Texas Association of Continuing Education and is a Travis County Master Gardener.
The purpose of the Marketing and Fashion Marketing department is to provide premier courses and degree plans that give students the practical, theoretical, and technical knowledge needed to be successful in the field of marketing. Our curriculum provides students with first-rate professional and workforce programs that result in employment in the public and private sectors. It is based on identified competencies, has a capstone experience, and strives to be socially responsible as well as addressing employer needs. We are committed to:
- Providing students in the marketing degree plans the knowledge and skills necessary to enhance their marketing abilities that will enable them to seek employment in a marketing or fashion position.
- Providing students in the transfer degree plan the knowledge and skills necessary for transfer and success at a baccalaureate degree granting institution.
- Providing students in the workforce areas the knowledge and skills necessary for job enhancement.
- Providing employers in our community a trained, technically competent, and diverse workforce.
- Providing all students advising from a qualified, dedicated, and accessible faculty.
Our overall departmental mission is threefold: 1) to prepare students for entry-level employment in the rapidly expanding Marketing and Fashion industry, 2) to enable students to improve their job skills to promote career advancement and development 3) provide undergraduate courses to individuals who wish to transfer to complete a four year degree.
The department hires highly qualified professionals within our field of study and provides them the support they need. The department has relevant, up-to-date course materials and keeps text books current. Course content complies with federal and state laws and regulations and local industry standards and includes recommendations from the Advisory Committee. SCANS competencies along with Master Syllabi are posted on the departmental website.
The Marketing and Fashion Marketing Advisory Committee is composed of recognized leaders in the field in ACC’s service area. Members convene regularly to offer their combined expertise to influence the curriculum structure and instructional methods of the program.
* Google Translations are provided only for your convenience. *
Please contact the department if you have any questions.