Hello!

Confession-I don’t particularly love reading long bios; they are an amazing space to brag professionally. (Yes, once upon a time I was a Rookie Teacher of the Year, and yes, I have helped D and F-rated schools in Arizona move to A and B ratings. Woohoo!) And, I get it. Bios do help you establish someone’s credibility and background. (Mine is in K-12 education) But…bios can be so dull. Ugh. So, here’s the gist of me, Michaela Rose Claussen, in a timeline version so you can skim quickly. Enjoy!

  • 2009: I joined Teach for America and taught middle school while getting my Masters in Education.

  • 2012: I taught 5th & 6th grades at Arizona School for the Arts and became a team leader. #biobrag

  • 2016: I burned out. Yup. I thought “teaching” was the problem, so I got a fancy sales job so that I could “finally make some money.” (Because of course that would make me happy…)

  • Still 2016: Uh oh. I’m spending all my free time volunteering at schools, tutoring, mentoring teachers…

  • 2017: A return to education! I started working at the Center for Student Achievement (Arizona Charter Schools Association) as a trainer and coach and traveled to schools all over AZ.

  • 2019: One of those schools, Friendly House Academia del Pueblo, hired me full time to be their Director of Teaching and Learning. #anotherbiobrag

  • 2020: We all know what happened…so, lots of pivoting and lots of work in new ways, but, I did get a chance to hone in on an emerging new interest: facilitating adult social-emotional learning…

  • Still 2020: I began to reflect in my journal that there had to be a better way to lead teachers during tough times, so I started courses through Breathe for Change to gain more tools… 

  • 2021: I completed my 200-hr yoga teacher certification and became a certified social emotional learning facilitator (K-12 students and adults) #omganotherbiobrag and in building my capstone project, well+aligned was born!

  • 2022: Became a National LETRS Professional Learning Facilitator and began to work with schools across the country on integrating science of reading practices to improve literacy

  • Today: well+aligned is up and running, and I’m ready to partner with you to develop customized professional development and coaching opportunities that meet the needs of your educators.

“If we want authentic and long-term school improvement, it’s time to HONOR AND center educators by providing professional development that BUILDS ON existing talents, strengths, and values.”

-Michaela Rose Claussen