Meet the Trainers

JBKC Class Instructors

An elderly woman standing beside a Belgian Malinois dog at a dog competition. The woman is holding large yellow, purple, and green ribbons with the dog's leash. The setting appears to be indoors with a green floor and wall decorated with framed pictures of dogs.

Lynn Earhart, Senior Instructor

I joined the Janesville-Beloit Kennel Club in 1977, and have long been involved in training and competing with dogs. I’ve been teaching AKC Rally since the sport began in 2005.

I currently own and compete with Belgian Tervurens and have previously owned and competed with Boxers and Dobermans. I work with teams at all levels of Rally, from Novice through Master, and bring extensive experience preparing dogs and handlers for the ring.

My teaching style focuses on building correct skills from the start, with clear instruction and strong fundamentals. I enjoy teaching because I like seeing students apply what they’ve learned and succeed when they show and trial.

Whether the goal is advancing in Rally or developing a reliable working partnership, my focus is on helping teams train correctly, understand the sport, and perform with confidence.

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Questions for Lynn? Email justlikerintintin@gmail.com

Cathy Cline, Senior Instructor

Hi! I’m Cathy Cline I have had collies since my first in 1969, but only started showing with my current dog 4 years ago. Sera has titles in Fastcat, coursing, Rally, agility, herding, FitDog , Canine Good Citizen and Obedience. I trained and showed horses professionally for over 20 years when I decided to completely switch over to dog training full time. I am an evaluator for AKC in Temperament testing, Canine Good Citizen, Tricks, Farm Dog, and Fit Dog. I currently teach classes in Family Dog, Puppy/Young Dog, Fit Dog, Tricks, Canine Good Citizen, CGCA and CGCU, and Reactive Dog. I believe in making classes fun for both the dog and the handler and look forward to meeting you and your dog and making you a team.

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Questions for Cathy? Email mightymaremeadows@gmail.com

A woman standing on a blue floor holding a leash attached to a brown dog wearing a green bandana. The woman is dressed in casual outdoor clothing, and there is a white lattice fence and a dark blue wall behind them.

Emily Nie, Senior Instructor

I have been training dogs with the Janesville-Beloit Kennel Club for many years. Currently I teach STAR Puppy 1 and 2 and Obedience classes.

I am active in many dog sports including Conformation, Obedience, Rally, Fetch, Fit Dog, Tracking, Agility, Barn Hunt, Fast CAT, and Scent Work. My breed of choice is the English Cocker Spaniel.

I am a member of the English Cocker Spaniel Club of America, Vice President of the English Cocker Spaniel Club of Southeast Wisconsin, and President of the Pecatonica Tracking Club. I also serve as the Corresponding Secretary for JBKC.

I enjoy teaching owners how to teach their dogs. My goal in class is to keep the environment relaxed and positive so both dogs and handlers can learn and have fun. I believe training should help strengthen the bond between dog and owner while building the skills and confidence needed for everyday life or future competition.

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Questions for Emily? Emailjustlikerintintin@gmail.com

A woman with short blonde hair is hugging a black and white Border Collie dog that has an awarding ribbon attached to its neck. They are outdoors at a park or fairground with green grass and picnic tables in the background. There is a chalkboard sign in front of them with the date August 24, 2023, and some colorful letters and images.

Connie Grassl, Senior Instructor

Hi, my name is Connie Grassl and this is my wonderful demo dog Jynx DCAT GCGA CGCU HIT TKI. I’ve owned and trained Border Collies since 2004. Currently training and competing with Jynx in Agility, Rally Obedience and Fastcat.

I’m a certified AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator and ProDog Trainer. I really enjoy helping people train their dogs, turning their struggles into their strengths. My style is games based for real life results and my training philosophy is training for the situation not in the situation. Training sessions should be a fun time not a long time.

My current roster is teaching CGC, Tricks, and Family Dog. I plan on adding FitDog and Agility Foundations int he future. I look forward to helping you on your dog training journey.

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Questions for Connie? Email justlikerintintin@gmail.com

A woman with long gray hair and glasses sitting on a bench outside, holding a yellow Labrador retriever and sitting close to a German Shepherd dog. There is a red kettlebell on her lap and a decorative lantern on a small table nearby. The background shows leafless trees and a partly cloudy sky.

Dawn Czerwan, Senior Instructor

I’ve had dogs my entire life, and working with them has always been a core part of who I am. From a young age, I’ve trained my dogs to be well-behaved, reliable companions, building strong foundations in manners, engagement, and everyday life skills.

I currently train my two dogs, Malachi and Zeus, in a variety of dog sports including Rally, Obedience, Agility, Tracking, Scentwork, and Barn Hunt. While I’m newer to the competitive dog sport world, I bring a lifetime of hands-on experience with dogs and a deep understanding of what it takes to create confident, responsive partners.

My training style is balanced through engagement and play, focusing on clear communication, motivation, and relationship-based learning. I believe training should be enjoyable for both dog and handler while still producing reliable, real-world results.

Whether working toward sport goals or building a solid family companion, my goal is always the same: to help dogs become happy, well-mannered canines and to support their people throughout the training process.

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Questions for Dawn? Emaildawnczerwan@gmail.com

Darcy Keehn, Senior Instructor

I instruct the daytime Barn Hunt classes at JBKC. I am currently an AKC breeder-exhibitor of Longhair Dachshunds.

Over the years my Dachshunds have competed in Conformation, Dachshund Field Trials, Barn Hunt, FastCAT, Rally, Obedience, Temperament Tests, Tracking, and Earthdog. They also participate in parades and have served as breed representatives at the Badger Dog Fair.

I got my first show dog, a Doberman, in 1975. After graduating from college, I bred and showed Bernese Mountain Dogs. There were fewer performance options available back then than there are today, but we still competed in Obedience through the Open level and also did carting.

My teaching style focuses on building a positive relationship between dog and handler based on trust. When a dog is rewarded for cooperation in a way that it enjoys, it typically becomes a dog that is happy to participate and work with its handler. I’m certified in Animal Chiropractic in 1991 through the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association (AVCA).

One of the things I enjoy most about teaching classes is the conversations that happen between people with decades of dog experience. We often talk about training techniques, health, behavior, and breed differences. Even better, many people are willing to experiment with new ideas, and sometimes those ideas turn out to be very worthwhile.

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Questions for Darcy? Email darcykeehn2001@yahoo.com

Don Miller, Senior Instructor

I joined the Janesville-Beloit Kennel Club in 1998 and have been teaching Scent Work classes at JBKC on Monday nights for the past nine years.

I currently compete with a Belgian Tervuren and a Belgian Sheepdog. In the past, I have also trained and competed with a German Shepherd and a Labrador Retriever.

What I enjoy most about teaching is watching handler and dog teams gain confidence and learn how to work well together.

My teaching style focuses on the individual dog and handler. I believe every team is different, so I avoid a cookie-cutter approach and instead tailor my instruction to help each team progress in a way that works best for them.

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Questions for Don? Email millstone55@yahoo.com

Matt Hennek, Conformation Instructor

I began teaching Conformation at the Janesville-Beloit Kennel Club in 2023. Along with Judi Roller and Pat McGovern, I help teach the Conformation classes that rotate weekly.

My breeds are Swedish Vallhunds and Chihuahuas. My current Swedish Vallhund has had an exciting show career, including being ranked the #1 Swedish Vallhund All-Systems for 2024–2025, earning Best of Breed at the AKC National Championship (2024–2025) and Best of Breed at Westminster (2024–2026), and finishing in the Top 10 Herding Dogs in 2025.

What I enjoy most about teaching is seeing people succeed and being able to help them achieve their goals with their dogs.

My teaching style is collaborative. Every handler and dog learns a little differently, so I prefer to avoid a rigid approach and instead work with each team in a way that helps them progress and gain confidence in the ring.

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Questions for Matt? Email justlikerintintin@gmail.com

Judi Roller, Conformation Instructor

I help teach Conformation classes at the Janesville-Beloit Kennel Club. Over the years I have bred and shown Rough Collies and Irish Wolfhounds.

In addition to exhibiting, I have judged a number of Owner-Handler groups and 4–6 month puppy competitions. Through that experience I try to stay familiar with the standards of many breeds, though I feel most knowledgeable working with hounds and herding breeds.

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Questions for Judi? Email justlikerintintin@gmail.com

Pat McGovern, Conformation Instructor

I have raised, trained, and shown Alaskan Malamutes since 1993. Our first four Malamutes came from excellent breeders, and while living in California I finished championships on two of them.

After relocating to Wisconsin in 2004, our third champion became our foundation bitch. Since then I have bred and finished six additional champions from the Bred-By-Exhibitor class.

I enjoy sharing what I’ve learned with newcomers and hope they leave class with a few helpful tips and tricks to use with their own dogs.

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Questions for Pat? Emailjustlikerintintin@gmail.com