Los Angeles Instructors
Amy Diamond
Owner & Lead Instructor
Amy is the owner and lead instructor for Lil' Guppies Swim School. Amy grew up on the East Coast and fell in love with the water at a very young age. She was always the first one in the pool and the last one out! Amy swam competitively from age 8 through college. She competed in butterfly, backstroke, the IM, and freestyle relays and still enjoys swimming on Masters club teams. Amy has always loved working with children so it was a perfect combination of passions to start teaching swim lessons at the young age of 15. Amy has taught lessons for over 25 years and has lifeguarded and coached age group swim teams on both the East and West Coasts. She started Lil' Guppies Swim School in 2006 in Los Angeles, and recently upon relocating in 2020, has established a branch of the school in Sarasota, FL! Amy is also an acupuncturist, children's book author, and mom to two boys, ages 15 and 9. They are the original lil' guppies and love swimming just as much as their mom!
Shawna Watson
Shawna is not only an incredible swim instructor, but a mother of two young boys and an instructional aide for special needs children at a middle school in Los Angeles. Shawna has extensive experience as a lifeguard and swim instructor at both summer camps and privately for the past 7 years. She loves working with children and has a very gentle teaching style. Shawna - just like our whole Lil' Guppies team- believes that swim lessons should be fun as well as educational!
Brad Ulbrich
Brad comes with over 13 years of experience teaching swimming, ranging from infants to adults. Brad has also worked with special needs children with both physical and cognitive limitations. In the past, Brad worked within the Disney Theme Parks playing characters such as Aladdin, Prince Eric, and Prince Charming! Brad's background and experience along with his degree in Child Psychology have instilled in him key instincts when interacting with children of all backgrounds. He was also a competitive swimmer for 15 years and captain of his varsity team. He's got chlorine in his blood! Brad is passionate about teaching swimming for so many reasons - he loves watching someone learn a new skill, especially one as important as swimming. He loves watching people, especially children, grow more confident in themselves, and he loves helping people feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of every lesson.
Heidi Zeiger
Heidi is a seasoned swimmer and instructor, and she loves to be around the water! She began competitively swimming in her teens and swam in high school and college for the University of New Mexico. While competing, she also became a swim instructor and lifeguard. After graduating, she continued to teach swim lessons, coach a competitive swim team, and volunteer with the Special Olympics. She has over 9 years of experience teaching children and adults how to swim and always emphasizes creating a safe environment around any body of water!
Samantha Granados
Samantha Granados (an LA native) has been teaching swim for nearly 20 years in both New York and Los Angeles. She swam competitively from a very young age through college in NY. Naturally, she became a water educator; Samantha has taught every kind of lesson to an array of students and levels, from ages 6mo to the elderly. She is particularly trained with those who face mild to severe anxiety around the water. Her goal is to help all her students learn to love the water, as it will always be a lifelong safety skill and body therapy tool. Samantha focuses on water safety, stroke work, technique, and even water fitness, such as water aerobics.
Maya Gulvady
Maya has been a competitive swimmer for 17 years. She also swam Division 1 at Fresno State throughout her undergraduate career. Maya's favorite strokes are butterfly and freestyle! She has taught swim lessons since she was 15 and has also been an active lifeguard for several years. Maya is extremely passionate about swimming, and loves being able to teach people of all ages. Maya has also had experience working with children with special needs. Her favorite part about being a swim instructor is being able to see the smiles on her students' faces when they progress with a new skill. When not in the water, Maya is working towards her doctorate in Physical Therapy!
Leena Gulvady
Leena has been a competitive swimmer for 10 years and loves to be in the water. After attending San Diego State University for undergrad, she learned how to surf and now enjoys both the pool and the ocean. Leena has taught swim lessons since she was 16 and really loves
helping others achieve their goals, whether it be water safety or improving technique. Leena has worked with students of all ages and abilities. Her favorite part of the job is witnessing how
much progress students make throughout the lessons and how rewarding that feels to students, their famiies, and the instructor! Leena is currently a first year dental student at UCLA and is hoping to join the club swim team there. Fun fact: Leena and Maya are the first sister team ever to be on the Lil' Guppies staff!
Toomy Vilai
Ms. Toomy is currently a science teacher for LAUSD and has been teaching for over 15 years. She was a competitive swimmer in all four strokes throughout high school, specializing in freestyle and breaststroke. Ms. Toomy began incorporating her swimming skills and passion for teaching in 2015 to become a swim instructor. She loves teaching toddlers through adults and is always happy to see when students are able to apply the skills they have learned! Ms. Toomy is very athletic and has also participated in soccer, Thai boxing, and hip hop dance!
Jelena Sarac
Jelena is a dedicated swim instructor with experience teaching swimmers of all ages. She specializes in working with young children, helping them build confidence in the water, overcome fear, and develop essential swimming and safety skills. Jelena's approach is one of patience and encouragement, ensuring that each swimmer progresses at their own pace while having fun! In addition to her passion for swimming, Jelena has a bachelor's degree in International Relations and a minor in Russian language, and she also competes on the Women’s Water Polo team at USC.
Reggie Casagrande
Reggie is a passionate and dedicated swim instructor who loves helping people of all ages build confidence in the water. She grew up swimming competitively in Berlin, where she attended high school, and later worked as a lifeguard and swim coach throughout college. As a mom who loves working with children, Reggie brings warmth, patience, and a joyful spirit to every lesson. Whether she’s teaching beginners or coaching advanced swimmers, Reggie creates a positive, supportive environment where every student can thrive and develop a lifelong love of swimming!
Caroline Liekweg
Caroline swam competitively for 14 years and is currently obtaining her doctorate in physical therapy. Her teaching experience consists of private swim lessons, group lessons, and coaching both at both the Stanford Swim Camp, as well as at her childhood competitive swim team. Caroline has worked with young toddlers through adults. Teaching swim and water safety has always been both a is always a meaningful and fun way of sharing her passion and knowledge with those around her. Caroline looks forward to working with our Lil' Guppies families!
Otto Lowe
I’m Otto, and it’s wonderful to meet you. I’ve been teaching swim for the past two years, and I've enjoyed every second of it. I have experience working with students 8 months and up! Before I taught swim, I worked in a waterpark as a Head/Deep Water lifeguard! I also taught surfing during the same time. I learned how to swim in my infant years, so I’ve been in the water for a very long time. I love teaching and bringing people the joy that comes with learning an essential survival skill! I specialize in floating, buoyancy, diving, flip turns, side breaths, and all 4 strokes! I also have training to teach kids and infants how to be safe in the water and begin introducing them to everything they need to know. Excited to be on this journey and to make more people happy
Emma Blanchet
Emma has been in the water ever since she can remember. She learned to swim at a young age and grew up taking swim lessons at her summer camp. She started teaching swim lessons at age 14 and ran the swim instructor program at her camp, where she trained the counselors to teach swim lessons. She has taught students of all ages and leads with patience, understanding, and the ability to provide modifications. She is also currently working as a lifeguard and dance instructor. Emma is excited to get to work with the Lil Guppies Family!
Alyssa Libang
Alyssa is a former member of the Fresno State Swim and Dive Team, where she swam competitively at the NCAA Division 1 level for all 4 years. She has swam for a total of 17 years and has coached competitive club teams in Clovis and Simi Valley for 5 years. Her primary events were butterfly and individually medley, but she loves teaching all strokes and levels of swimming and water safety! Alyssa also has previous experience as a lifeguard and teaching private lessons with all ages. Currently, Alyssa is working towards receiving her Doctorate in Occupational Therapy, and has worked with children with special needs and a variety of different populations along the way. Alyssa's favorite part about being a swim instructor is helping everyone reach their goals and getting to be a part of that special journey!
Raychel Ybarra
Raychel has always been passionate about teaching children in the water. She has taught a wide array of children of all ages and adults! Raychel feels that as a teacher it is important to have compassion, patience and understanding for each individual student in order to improve. She looks forward to working with our Lil' Guppies families!
Stacey Sackin
Stacey has been teaching swimming since 2000. She has experience with infants as young as 6 months and children of all ages. Stacey's approach is gentle and patient! She focuses on building the essential trust with her students necessary to accomplish big things in the water, while incorporating play to enhance learning. Stacey's experience and natural connection with children is what makes her a terrific instructor on our team!
Andrea Acatto
Andrea is an Argentinian/American swim instructor and lifeguard who has experience working in schools, summer camps at the beach, and with students privately at their homes. Andrea has previous experience as a Spanish teacher, Kindergarten & Preschool teacher, and Teacher's Assistant, and also has extensive experience working with children with special needs. Andrea's passion for children and education doesn't stop there!
She has been a babysitter and nanny, and is also a dance professor and actor. She performs and teaches musical comedy, story telling, puppetry, arts & crafts, and cooking for over 20 years, both in the States and abroad. Andrea has a wealth of knowledge and experience to share with each and every student!
Each instructor at Lil' Guppies is handpicked for their experience and passion in teaching students how to swim, be watersafe, and accomplish their goals in the water. We maintain a fun and safe learning environment in which every student, regardless of age or skill level, can thrive!
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*Lil’ Guppies LA is a mobile swim school only; therefore participants must have a pool/access to one.