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Learning & Development for the
State of Colorado
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In this Issue:
- Finding Your Perfect Skill Match
- What We're Loving in L&D
- Trainer Spotlight: Dan Wilde
- Emerging Leader & SupCert Dates
- #ColoradoForAll Lunch & Learn
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 -Joanna Logan, LDC Manager
In L&D, we often talk about driving engagement, but this February, let’s look at training through a different lens: chemistry. There is a unique spark that happens when your natural curiosity meets the exact right resource at the right time. Finding that "perfect match" of training isn’t just about checking a box; it’s about the professional fulfillment that comes from meaningful growth.
Curated Learning
Professional development shouldn’t be a solitary journey. We have a powerful library of training in the Learning Experience Platform (LXP) that allows you to move into intentional, self-directed growth:
- Own Your Formula: We encourage you to explore the LXP and find the training that complements your unique "human" strengths, such as pairing technical data proficiency with the art of storytelling to inspire action.
- A Collaborative Spark: For supervisors, use your next 1:1 to act as a learning partner. By hand-picking content based on an individual’s specific goals and passions, you aren’t just assigning work; you’re investing in their future.
All you have to do is use the search bar in the LXP to type in the skill that you are interested in. There are a whole host of topics to choose from such as professional writing skills, data-driven decision-making, team workflows, creating psychological safety, and so much more.
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Skills Over Titles
The landscape of talent development is undergoing a fundamental shift. Across State government, we are moving toward a Skill Based Hiring model that prioritizes proven aptitude and competency demonstrated through prior work experience, education, military service, and lived experience. This shift is designed to support the retention and upward mobility of our most valuable asset: you.
When you identify and match with competencies in the LXP, you are doing more than just taking a class; you are building a professional toolkit of high-demand, transferable elements, such as:
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Analytical Problem Identification: Moving beyond seeing a "glitch" to identifying the root cause of a systemic issue.
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Self-Management & Reliability: Demonstrating the autonomy and discipline required for high-level personal accountability.
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Project & Change Management: Showing you have the framework to lead people and processes through transitions effectively.
Investing in your growth sharpens your competitive edge. While taking a course isn't a guarantee of a new role, this self-investment can help provide you with objective, common language needed to articulate your value and demonstrate capability and passion in line with your personal goals.
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 Recently, we asked our State of Learning community to share the tools, tactics, and trends that are energizing their work. From practical facilitation strategies to intentional team development, here are a couple of favorites making an impact across agencies.
The Art and Science of Training — Learning Together as a Team
Submitted by Autumn Marschall, Professional and Organizational Development Manager, CDLE
Autumn shared that her Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Team has formed a book club and is currently reading The Art and Science of Training by Elaine Biech.
The team reads three chapters at a time and meets every other month to discuss key takeaways and explore how to apply the concepts in their work as facilitators. It’s a structured yet flexible way to deepen expertise while strengthening alignment across the team.
Creating space for shared learning not only sharpens facilitation skills, it builds a culture of continuous improvement. Sometimes the most impactful development strategy is simply learning together.
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The Waterfall Effect — A Virtual Engagement Boost
Submitted by Rudy Sanchez, Organizational & Training Development Specialist, CDLE
Rudy’s favorite tactic for virtual training is something he calls “The Waterfall Effect.”
When posing a question, ask participants to type their response into the chat, but not press Enter until you count to three. On “three,” everyone hits Enter at the same time.
The result? A cascade of responses filling the chat all at once — a true “waterfall” of ideas. It’s a simple but powerful way to increase participation, spark energy, and quickly generate discussion. Rudy notes it works especially well for brainstorms and icebreakers.
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Across our State of Learning community, these ideas share a common thread: intentional development. Small shifts can create meaningful impact. Next month, Dr. Nathan Bullock, the Associate Director of Staff Training & Development at the Colorado Department of Corrections, will explore what it means to become a “Career Development Champion” and how simple, practical strategies can strengthen engagement and retention across public service.
Want to join the State of Learning: Community of Practice? Fill out this form to get connected, and feel free to share it with colleagues on your team who may be interested.
Have a strategy or success story to share? Reach out to dpa_ldc@state.co.us. We'd love to feature you in a future edition.
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Tell us a bit about yourself.
I am a multi-generational born-and-bred product of Colorado. I am lucky to be a dad to two phenomenal humans, ages 21 and 25, who inspire, challenge, and help me to always be learning and to be a better human myself. I am hopeful that I have given them back even a fraction of what they have brought to me.
Oh, and there’s also Geddy (known aliases include: Nubby Butt, Corn Dog, Yellow Dawg, Rez Dog, Ghee-Ghee, Sir Gedward). Named after Rush bassist/keyboardist/singer/prog-rock icon Geddy Lee, this boy came from the Navajo Nation chapter of Naatʼáanii Nééz (“Tall Leader”), also known as Shiprock, New Mexico. He is a very good boy. Mostly. Except for his tail because he left the majority of it on the reservation. They found him with a partially severed wag mechanism, along with his eight siblings, in a roadside ditch. He’s okay with it. Well, other than the nicknames Nubby Butt and Corn Dog. We are in couples counseling.
My career journey has led to stops along the way in the form of marketing, graphic design, elementary school teacher, middle school teacher, technology education specialist for two large school districts, an Equity Specialist for a regional Equity Assistance Center (funded through the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, covering 13 states and two territories: Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands), a regional Education Director for a national civil rights/anti-hate organization, and now as the Equity Specialist - Trainer for Colorado’s Statewide Equity Office. Not too bad for a dude who studied 19th Century British literature in college.
I’m an Aquarius. My favorite dessert is Banana Cream Pie, but only from one specific bakery. I refuse to give up my physical collection of 5,000+ compact discs.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
My free time is spent going to really loud concerts with my aforementioned children, walking and playing with the aforementioned dog, watching the strangest non-US murder mystery shows I can find (beyond the amazing choices from Great Britain, Ireland, and Canada, Nordic/Scandinavian Noir always makes for good viewing), watching any television comedy series from Canada, finding new eating adventures in and around Denver, listening to most genres of music, and walking and playing with the aforementioned dog (Yes, I know I already mentioned it, but it does seem to take up the majority of my free time).
Tell us about a unique travel experience you’ve had.
That will be when I travel in August to Toronto to see Rush in their hometown. This will be my 9th and 10th time seeing Rush. Are we sensing a pattern?
What is your favorite tool to use when supporting employees with their professional development, and why?
My favorite tool to use in any adult learning and development opportunities is empathy. Andragogical theories (i.e., making sure learning is self-directed, applicable, and experience-based for intrinsically motivated adults) absolutely provide a framework for adult learning. However, it is understanding of how this foundation bridges those theories to be applied effectively in providing a safe, supportive, and respectful learning environment. That bridge is empathy. This type of learning and the facilitation of that learning must be human-centered.
What was your dream job as a kid, and how has that changed?
As a kid, I wanted to be an architect. What changed is that I quickly recognized I suck at math. There is a lot of math in architecture.
What’s your go-to song when you want to have a solo dance party?
As an aging punk/metalhead/hard rock kinda guy, dancing has never been my forte. Honestly, moshing, headbanging, and slamdancing by yourself looks absolutely ridiculous. Or so I’ve heard. I’ve never tried it. Really.
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 New cohort dates for Emerging Leader and Supervisor Essentials are coming soon to the LXP.
Both programs are cohort-based and require participants to attend all sessions within the same month. These virtual series build practical leadership skills while creating space to connect and learn alongside leaders across the State.
Upcoming Cohorts:
April
- Emerging Leader: Tuesdays, April 7, 14, 21, 28 (8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.)
- Supervisor Essentials: Thursdays, April 2, 16, 23, 30 (8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
May
- Emerging Leader: Wednesdays, May 6, 13, 20, 27 (8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.)
- Supervisor Essentials: Tuesdays, May 5, 12, 19, 26 (8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
June
- Emerging Leader: Tuesdays, June 2, 9, 16, 23 (8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.)
- Supervisor Essentials: Thursdays, June 4, 11, 18, 25 (8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
Search “Emerging Leader” or “Supervisor Essentials” in the LXP for full details and registration information.
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#ColoradoForAll Lunch and Learn (International Month of Black
Women in the Arts)
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“After I decided to be an artist, the first thing I had to believe was that I, a Black woman, could penetrate the art scene, and that, further, I could do so without sacrificing one iota of my blackness or my femaleness or my humanity.”
― Elizabeth Catlett (1915 - 2012),
Sculptor, Graphic Artist, Activist
Coinciding with Black History Month (February 1 through March 1), the International Month of Black Women in the Arts celebrates the immense creativity, resilience, and cultural impact of Black women through their artistry and leadership. Throughout its 150-year history, Colorado has been home to many such women in artistic fields, such as:
- Performance (Cleo Parker Robinson, India Arie, Diana Reeves, Louise Duncan)
- Visual (Jordan Casteel, Senga Nengudi)
- Cinema (Pam Grier, Hattie McDaniel)
- Literature (Mildred Pitts Walter)
- Education (Rachel B. Noel, Ruth Denny, Elizabeth Piper Ensley)
- Science (Dr. Justina Ford, Zipporah Parks Hammond)
- Business (Fannie Mae Duncan, Madam C.J. Walker)
Join the Statewide Equity Office for our February lunch and learn, where we will talk with three more Black women artists with Colorado connections. In their own distinctive manner, method, and medium, each of these artists have brought change, awareness, impact, education, community, inclusion, and human-centered creativity to our state.
About the Artists:
Hazel Miller - Singer (Blues, Jazz, Gospel, and Pop)
Ms. Miller has been performing for almost four decades in Colorado. In addition to her solo work and fronting her band, The Collective, Ms. Miller has opened for and sung with such notable legends as Herbie Hancock, Michael McDonald, Al Green, Big Head Todd and the Monsters, Julian Lennon, Peter, Paul & Mary, Leo Kottke, Bob Weir, Five Blind Boys of Alabama, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Lou Rawls, Rickie Lee Jones, James Taylor, and many more.
A staple in the Colorado music scene, Ms. Miller is an inductee to the Colorado Music Hall of Fame and has been honored on the floor of the Colorado State Senate. In addition to many performances in front of large crowds at Red Rocks Amphitheater and other well-known Colorado venues, and singing the National Anthem at major sporting events, Ms. Miller has performed at the White House and toured with the US Military multiple times.
Adri Norris - Muralist, Painter, Jewelry Maker
As a Black, queer, immigrant woman, Adri describes herself as being a “quadruple threat.” This declaration shapes the way she examines and interacts with the world, and it is this experience that she uses in her art. Born in Barbados and moving to the United States at the age of five, Adri’s journey has led her to living in New York, Denver, and New Mexico, while, along the way, attending a boarding school in Italy and joining the United States Marines.
Adri’s artwork centers on women in history with a focus on those from systemically marginalized identities and groups. Afro Triangle Designs, her personal design company, concentrates on the intersection where art meets education.
Kaci Taylor
Kaci is the founder of THE5WH, a Denver-based, female-led architecture, design, and consulting practice dedicated to creating spaces that support collective well-being and equity. With a background in community-centered and environmentally conscious design, her work spans public, commercial, and cultural projects that reflect the values, voices, and lived experiences of the people they serve.
Driven by a passion for inclusive design, Kaci approaches every project with collaboration at its core. She sees architecture as an act of empathy—one that invites engagement, honors people’s stories, and expands what’s possible through respect, intention, and joy. This philosophy shapes everything from reimagining breweries and community hubs, to envisioning city-wide networks of supportive, interconnected spaces.
Meeting Information
This webinar is open to all State of Colorado employees. To request an accommodation, please contact Sarah Rothberg at sarah.rothberg@state.co.us at least 24 hours before the event.
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