Rachel has worked for over 20 years in the field of adult education, adult literacy, and workforce development. She works with organizations doing good in the world to design and facilitate projects that incorporate what we know about how adults learn for deep, personal learning that lasts.
Rachel became a plain language advocate during the recovery from the human-caused disaster following Hurricane Katrina. She reviews and edits communication materials, trains staff on how to write using plain language concepts, and conducts plain language field tests with potential audiences.
She is from New Orleans, and recently moved to Bend, Oregon with her husband and two children. She stays energized through involvement in her children’s school, her community, her carnival krewe, and spending time outdoors (especially around black bears).
Education & Training
FORMAL
- Bachelor of Arts: Journalism
Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge - Masters of Adult Education
St. Francis-Xavier University, Nova Scotia | Canada
CONTINUING EDUCATION
- Global Learning Partners
Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach, Foundations of Dialogue Education - Technology of Participation and Strategic Planning
Institute of Cultural Affairs - Undoing Racism
People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond - Industrial Areas Foundation
10 day community organizing training - Intensive Workshop on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Overcoming Racism
What Clients Say
Rachel’s Work
Helping College Students Advocate for Themselves
Project HELP (Health Education Laddering Program) was a multi-site program available at several community colleges throughout central Nebraska through funding from the national Health Profession Opportunity Grants program.
Volunteer Orientation for Disability Concerns
The Disability Concerns Ministry is an agency of the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA). It oversees the work of both regional and church disability advocates throughout Canada and the US.
Deepening Learning through a Blended Approach
Alzheimer Society of Ontario (ASO) started a journey to become a learning-centered organization almost ten (10) years ago. They partnered with Global Learning Partners (GLP) and it has been a rich and transformational partnership since then.
rachel’s Resources
Freedom Paves the Way to Learning
A learner had a strikingly negative reaction when I referenced university lectures while facilitating on the concept of “teaching-centered versus learning-centered. I remarked that there is a place on the continuum for everything, and that I have also experienced many excellent lectures.
Plain Language is Universal Design: 5 Tips
Plain Language – its very name doesn’t make for an exciting introduction! So, I’ll tell you how I got started as a avid proponent. After the human-caused flooding from Hurricane Katrina in southern Louisiana in 2005, I got connected with “The Road Home” program that was giving money to homeowners who lost everything in the floods. They believed low literacy was causing people to misunderstand the funding application and to return confused for added appointments.
Receiving and Offering Feedback: An Organizational Culture Worth Building
Cultivating a culture of healthy feedback – receiving and offering it – takes time and intentional work in multiple areas. It can begin during onboarding and run through to the exit interview. Leaders can model healthy feedback processes and ensure commitment at all levels of an organization. It can take place in one-on-one settings as well as collectively in groups, personally and professionally.