Innovative Leadership

From brick and mortar to the online world, whether educating K-12 students, college students, or adult learners, Jodi brings unparalleled passion and energy to each and every role!  She has taught grades 6, 7, 8, and 10, as well as university undergraduate and graduate courses, and is a proven leader in traditional, blended and online settings.  Jodi was also chosen to facilitate new member orientation classes at her local church, and  has tutored adult learners in need of help throughout her life. 

(Pictured: First year of teaching - Literacy Project Classroom at  Ocoee Middle School)

Always curious about how things work, and how to make them work even better,  Jodi is often driven to serve on task force groups, textbook adoption committees and advisory boards. She was instrumental in the design and creation of the first suite of online middle school courses, and the first reading plan approved for virtual education in Florida.  Later in her career, Jodi leveraged the talent in the teaching staff by creating a process by which teachers would rotate into the curriculum development team and participate in work sessions each quarter to improve content development and design. This standardized a process to utilize fresh talent with relevant teaching and learning that is still in use today. 

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Working with 360ed and Florida Virtual School, Jodi led the team that created the first online game-based intensive reading course for at-risk students, Conspiracy Code Mindbender

Throughout her career, Jodi has used data insights to create  communities of practice to drive outcomes. Examples include: Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) in each content area which focused on using data to drive actions at the classroom level;  Reading Leadership Teams to improve literacy levels in students across all content areas; and an Innovation Schoolhouse whose mission was to participate in agile development and create a variety of pilots and prototypes to be analyzed to drive student success. 

A life-long learner who believes there is always more to learn and more one can contribute, Jodi earned an MBA from Florida International University in Innovation and Entrepreneurship in 2017. Earlier in her career, she brought action-research to life at her school and district and encouraged others to do the same.

To promote a love of learning across the organization, Jodi helped get salary increases approved for those who earned advanced degrees, and also instituted  a process for tuition reimbursement. In addition, she supported the professional development team in creating a menu of personalized in-service options that catered to virtual teachers, and delivered completely online  - with both synchronous and asynchronous delivery options. 

 Jodi is currently leading a study on teacher workload at K12, Inc, to determine what changes might be needed to increase teacher productivity and, in turn, student progress. 

In the EVP role at FLVS, Jodi led the senior leadership team in creating a dynamic strategic plan, which would position the organization as the preferred partner and leader in the industry.  Key  successes achieved during year one:

• Commissioned major research studies with prominent universities to validate teaching and learning models (i.e. growth mindset with Stanford)
• Exceeded target of increasing homeschool student enrollments, thereby also increasing revenue
• Developed and marketed  K-8 Spanish courses to allow for a continuum of Spanish instruction (K-12), enabling students to graduate as bilingual citizens 
• Added 45 courses to expand the course catalog to include the organization's first  K-5 offerings
• Expanded partnerships  to include SEL, leadership, and peer counseling, as well as  exciting electives like fashion design and culinary arts.

Jodi started as a part-time teacher in 2001 and served in a variety of roles during her seventeen years at Florida Virtual. No task or role was too small or too great; if there was a need, she did her best to fill it. She was humbled and honored to be asked to deliver the opening keynote address at the FLVS Annual Staff Conference in November 2017.

Earlier in her career, she  was nominated for Teacher of the Year each of her first three years and was the first person in her district to obtain National Board Certification.

During the year the organization celebrated its 20th anniversary, Jodi led all staff in reaffirming the mission and vision of the organization. In order to create a culture of learning and innovation, she  enlisted leaders across a variety of teams to collaborate with the executive team and board of trustees  in creating and implementing new, relevant, actionable values to move the organization forward. These were well-received by all,  and are still in use today.

Put People First

Take the Lead

Blaze the Trail 

Love What You Do 

To ensure positive organization-wide change, Jodi assembled an extremely talented executive team, whom she knew could execute the strategic plan. The traditional CIO role was evolved to become a Chief Technology and Innovation Officer and supported content development, enterprise project management, and all technology teams. The leader of global sales, content licensing, and franchise/district business transformed into a Chief Customer Officer who supported marketing while also creating a small but critical customer listening team. Jodi also added a Data Analysis, Assessment, and Accountability team, which included the first data scientist role.

Jodi promoted work-life balance and encouraged all teams each year to run in the 5k Corporate Run, held each year in

 Orlando, FL. She also brought back the encashment program, which allowed employees to submit unused sick leave each year to be turned into dollars which could then be spent on any expenses related to wellness. Jodi also created a process by which staff could voluntarily donate sick or vacation days to others when needed. 

In addition, her executive  team brought fun back into the corporate headquarters with events like a Back to School Potluck Breakfast, Chili Cook-offs, Halloween Cubicle Contests, Bring Your Child to Work Day, the Ugly Sweater Holiday Party,  and  many User-testing and Customer -listening days. Staff morale and satisfaction was at its highest during this time.