Welcome & Introductions

Howdy all, this is Cynthia reporting from Kingwood, Texas with Insperity. I am an Instructional Designer and do all things instructional design. Excited to learn how AI has shaped the ID world. No furry or scaly pets - just a fiancé :) 

Hello! I’m Alyssa, based in sunny Orlando, Florida. I’m a Learning Designer at Marriott Vacations Worldwide, where my team and I focus on developing sales training programs. We create a range of learning experiences, from eLearnings to ILTs. Articulate is our primary authoring tool, and we’ve recently started using its AI Assistant for text-to-speech and AI-generated images. I’m excited to continue learning how to best leverage AI to design more efficiently and effectively.

My camera roll contains (literally) thousands of pictures of my dog, so I will happily share one here. :) She is a lovable Cavapoo named Fiona.

👋 Hi everyone! I’m Dr. Joanne Bentley — broadcasting to you from the beautiful snowy mountains of Northern Utah, where I get to wear a few different hats!

I’m a learning problem-solver, design geek, and performance improvement advocate. That means I spend my time turning complex challenges into clear, engaging solutions — whether it’s coaching clients through a sticky performance gap, architecting interactive learning experiences, or helping teams connect the dots between what people know and what they do.

💡 I joined this Certification Cohort because I love learning, learning about learning, and leveling up alongside other passionate practitioners like yourselves. I’m here to stretch my skills, spark new insights, and walk away with tools that help me make learning even more impactful — for the people I serve and for the broader community of learning professionals.

Looking forward to learning with you all and sharing a few laughs along the way! ✨

FYI: The two barn cats that adopted my family several years ago refuse to pose for pictures – cats, go figure! 😺😂

Hello! I'm Kim in Tallahassee, Florida! I am currently working as a technical trainer for a large government software upgrade for the state of Florida. I spend a lot of time using Articulate software in this role.

I am excited to be part of this cohort because I am interested in seeing how AI can level up our team's product/output/efficiency. 

I have 5 pets at home but they're never in the same place at the same time. I asked the AI image generator on FreePik to combine their pictures into one. This was the result after three attempts!😆

Back from left to right: Oyster, Iron Maiden, Miss Tuffsy, The Baronness of Squid. Front: The Duke of Tuna (he only has three legs, which I think confused the AI generator).

Hello,

I am Sara Houser, a Sr. Instructional Design Specialist with Liberty Mutual, residing in the Metrowest area outside of Boston, MA. I work in our L&D group, which supports personal lines service, distribution, underwriting, and claims functions. I've been designing learning for over 25 years, primarily in the high-tech industry, with the last 13 years at Liberty. 

I'm excited to stretch my AI skills even further in this cohort and to see other Liberty IDs joining as well!

Hi everyone! My name is Megan French, and I’m based in North Carolina. I work at Rentokil Initial, where I’m an Instructional Designer supporting our sales and service teams.

In my day-to-day role, I design and develop training programs and curriculum that help our teams build skills, improve performance, and feel confident in the field. I collaborate closely with subject matter experts to turn complex information into engaging, practical learning experiences that drive real results.

I joined this Certification Cohort to deepen my expertise, connect with other professionals in the learning space, and continue growing my skills. I’m especially excited to gain new tools and insights that I can immediately apply to the programs I build and support.

Ellie Rae (Left, Brittany Spaniel) + Freddie (Right, Golden Doodle)

Looking forward to learning alongside you all!

Hello, my name is Nick Vetter, I am a Learning Experience Designer at Thomson Reuters and I work out of Ann Arbor, Michigan.  I develop implementation content and content strategies surrounding our product training.  I joined this content to continue learning about the ways AI tools can impact and share learning design and just excited to see what now doors it can open in how we create training content.

Hi, I am Kristine Ræder from Norway. I am a product manager at Sticos. Sticos specialize in digital solutions for accounting, auditing, payroll, and HR and the company was founded in 1983. As a product manager for our course product, I have joined to make sure that we continue to make high quality courses better, faster and with less effort using AI. So I am looking forward to start this 2-weeks journey with my team and all of you😁.

Hi all,
I'm Francesco, from Italy, more specifically from the Florence outskirts. I use Articulate as part of my engineering job to explain to the customer of O&G market how to operate and mantein our equipment.

From this cohort i'd like to know more ways to create faster and which AI instrument can help me.

I've two lovebirds with me everyday, but sorry, no pics from work pc :)

My name is Jessica, and I’m located in Michigan. I work as an Instructional Design Supervisor, where my day to day focuses on partnering with subject matter experts, guiding learning strategy, reviewing and improving course design, and supporting my team in creating effective, efficient learning experiences. A big part of my role is helping ensure our learning solutions are aligned to business goals while still being engaging and meaningful for learners.

I joined this Certification Cohort because I wanted dedicated time to sharpen my skills, deepen my understanding of best practices, and learn alongside other instructional designers. 

Attached is a picture of my two corgi-mix pups. Cooper and Peaches. In my spare time, I foster puppies and pets rotate in and out of my home regularly. Not pictured are my cats Penelope and Little One.