ABOUT

Vision

The vision of ConnectEd Learning Community is to be instrumental in transforming education in a manner that provides educators a space for reflection and creativity, maintains high standards for professionalism and classroom practice, and is girded by an understanding that those who teach must also be those who continually learn. We envision that educators such as these will foster student agency, create environments characterized by empathy and respect, incorporate a range of right-sized, relevant academic challenges, and lead to students’ abilities to contribute positively as adult citizens in a democracy.

The vision of ConnectEd Learning Community is to provide educators a space for reflection and creativity, maintain high standards for professionalism, and is girded by an understanding that those who teach must also be those who continually learn. We envision that educators such as these will foster student agency, create environments characterized by empathy and respect, incorporate a range of right-sized, relevant academic challenges, and lead to students’ abilities to contribute positively as adult citizens in a democracy.

Goals

• To be a hub of connection for educators from varied backgrounds with common interests – novice teachers, experienced teachers, teachers from across the United States, teachers from around the world, teachers from a rich diversity of culture, race, orientation, and identity – all striving to create educational experiences that will equip future generations.
• To provide learning experiences for adults that inspire, equip, energize, and foster empathy and will consequently lead to similar experiences for students.
• To stay future-focused, remembering that education exists to prepare students to live successfully in THEIR futures.
• To be instrumental in helping people better understand the lived experiences of others.

In a nutshell

Supported educators; thriving students.

Dr. Suzanne Newell, Founder

An avid gardener, Suzanne often finds professional inspiration while up to her elbows in dirt. During a recent project that included a study into the life cycles of trees, she learned about the invisible power of trees living in community. When growing in close proximity and in seemingly haphazard natural clusters, nutrients and water can be optimally divided amongst each tree allowing for maximum benefit. These enormous underground networks act as redistribution mechanisms between trees and result in trees living longer and more healthy lives.  Weakened trees are propped up by their stronger neighbors, threats of pest and disease appear and are protected against through a warning system and the increased production of needed nutrients, and the impact of strong storms is less catastrophic because of the dense tangle of subterranean roots holding trees upright like a giant web locked in unity. 

An idea took hold. What if she could build a community for educators that had the same characteristics as a healthy forest? Educators need a network of connections, shared resources, supportive colleagues, and diverse viewpoints – all working together to grow the next generation. Certainly, these communities exist within local districts and campuses, but the opportunity to grow roots beyond the shade of one’s own tree leads to even greater strength.

It is Suzanne’s hope that through the Community’s resources, educators can access what they need in order to sustain themselves in the profession, bring fresh solutions to their challenges, and leave any interaction with this organization feeling more inspired and empowered than they were when they arrived. 

Suzanne’s educational career spans over 25 years and includes experience as a teacher, campus leader, curriculum specialist, executive director, professional developer, consultant, coach, and adjunct professor. Having served in small, mid-size, and large districts spanning a wide array of demographic and geographic configurations, she brings deep and broad understandings to this Community’s work. While she spent most of her career serving public schools, her recent experience as Chief Education Strategist for a top technology company became the catalyst to launch the ConnectEd Learning Community. Through this role, she met educators from across the US and enjoyed helping build community across diverse and geographically distant systems.