About Me
My Background
With over 10+ years of experience designing and implementing impactful learning experiences for a variety of audiences and industries, I am a senior-level instructional designer and learning strategist.
My core skills and experience include:
Course design and development (e.g., self-paced online, virtual instructor led, instructor led)
Assessment program strategy and management
Analytics and continuous improvement
AI workflow development and implementation
Project management
Prosci Change Management Practitioner
I developed an interest in education when I got a job doing data entry for a science department at the education publisher Harcourt in 2007. Since then I’ve earned a Master’s Degree in Learning Technologies from the University of Texas-Austin, and I have worked as an instructional designer for companies such as Six Red Marbles, Whole Foods Market, Apple, and Applied Materials.
The field of instructional design appeals to me because I get to think creatively and apply my skills to the important job of helping people learn. I enjoy untangling tricky learning problems and devising solutions that satisfy learner needs while supporting business objectives.
When I’m not working, I enjoy reading, playing the piano, and spending time with my family. I also write original articles about learning and AI for my blog at Medium.
My Philosophy
I consider myself a learner-centered instructional designer and learning strategist. Business goals are important, but ultimately the primary stakeholder is the real person taking an online course or attending an instructor-led session. All learning design and planning decisions aim to serve the end user: an actual human attempting to gain knowledge or skills via a designed learning experience.
Research and evidence should form the backbone of design and program strategy decisions. I consult with tried-and-true instructional systems design theories and methodologies to produce high-quality, effective learning experiences. Adult learning theory, Bloom’s Taxonomy, ADDIE, SAM/Rapid development, and various models inform how I approach learning problems on a micro and macro scale. I strive to stay current on peer-reviewed learning research in order to directly apply findings towards learning solutions.
My Approach to AI
Artificial intelligence tools have already proven to expedite and enhance a multitude of instructional design processes. Most training organizations utilize AI to perform needs analysis, generate course and assessment content, create storyboards and scripts, vibe code web-based interactions and online courses, and more. AI can certainly speed up the timeline in almost all steps of the course creation process. However, skilled, knowledgeable learning professionals are still needed to evaluate outputs and shift gears when things are going in the wrong direction. Instructional designers do “human” things that AI cannot, such as build relationships with subject matter experts and manage stakeholders.
It’s getting easier to imagine a not-so-distant future in which artificial intelligence replaces many jobs and knowledge work. No one knows when that day will come. In the meantime, instructional designers and learning program managers are critical to steering organizations towards high-quality, sound solutions, ensuring quality checks at every step of the process.