Mika Burch

Mika Burch is a native of Okayama, Japan and has lived in the United States since 1995, with her husband and their two children. She graduated from Tezukayama College in Nara, Japan, and earned a degree in English. Mika began working with Collingridge Consulting in 2006, as a relocation advisor.

Deborah Collingridge

Deborah Collingridge has been involved in the relocation of overseas expatriates for over twelve years.  She enjoys meeting new people and finds tremendous satisfaction in helping newcomers comfortably adjust to living in the United States. 

Volunteer service has been very important to Deborah and she has served in a variety of capacities.  Her most interesting volunteer experience has been to serve as a partner in the language program at the University of Michigan. 

Currently, Deborah is pursuing a degree in Psychology at the University of Michigan.  She has studied French and Spanish and understands the complexities of learning a new language.  Visiting with members of her family around a roaring campfire, chatting with friends, walking her dog and reading are among her favorite activities.

Linda Gutman

Linda has been a lifetime resident of the Detroit, Michigan, area.  She received most of her formal education at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI.  Her liberal arts degree was awarded in United States History and Social Studies.  She also earned a Master’s Degree in Reading Education.  In addition she later earned another degree from Madonna University in Japanese Language and Culture.

Most of Linda’s working career has been in the public school system.  She taught for over 30 years at the junior high and high school levels.  She has taught American history, English, geography, and non-western cultures.  At a specialty magnet school in her public school system, Linda also taught beginning Japanese language and culture. 

For over 20 years, Linda has been actively involved in the Michigan-Shiga (Japan) High School Student Exchange program.  She has chaperoned Michigan students visiting Japan several times, and assisted Japanese students and their chaperones while they visited Michigan.

Linda has also worked teaching English to Japanese transferees for the past several years, both for C.C.I. and privately.

Mary Henning

Linda Newberry

Linda left her native Iowa and began a 25-yr nomadic life as a ‘dependant’ Army wife, living in several culturally and linguistically challenging areas of the US and Europe.

In each location she conducted adult English (American) conversation classes for partially fluent adults. Settling in Canton, Michigan and employed by Plymouth-Canton Community Schools (PCCS), she worked exclusively with non-English speaking Middle and High School students in the English as a Second Language (ESL) department. In addition to language instruction, Linda was editor of several newsletters for social/welfare organizations.

She brings a love of American history and culture; slang and idioms; fun and casualness to her work with English students of all ages.