Michelle Dittmer Email & Phone Number

Canada

Recognizing a need to support Canadians who choose to take a gap year, and advancing the gap year movement in Canada, we founded the Canadian Gap Year Association. We are currently supporting gappers, their families, educators, post-secondary institutions and other complementary services that support young people on alternative pathways of learning.

Toronto, Canada Area

A Twenty One Toys Associate Facilitator supports the delivery of Twenty One Toys Empathy Toy™ workshops. While they do not lead the workshop, they are key members of the Twenty One Toys team, and play an integral role in supporting the lead facilitator, setting up gameplay, and providing rich debriefs at individual tables. Becoming a Twenty One Toys Associate Facilitator involves completing Level 1: Empathy Toy™ Training, and supporting a minimum of 3 Twenty One Toys workshops over a 6-month trial period. This badge is awarded to facilitators who, during that trial period, demonstrated the professionalism, collaborative spirit, empathic listening skills, and sense of fun that are at the heart of the Twenty One Toys team.

Toronto, Canada Area

• Responsible for the strategic direction, change management, systems thinking, strategic partnerships and market research designed to expand services and increase client-base• Directed financial, human resource and program development for all of mygapyear’s services• Worked with families and gappers to connect experiential learning opportunities with the achievement of individualized gap year goals• Grew the mygapyear team from 4 to 10 team members and associates• Formalized the mygapyear programs and training for new associates• Delivered 6+ training and information sessions per year to educators, professionals and young adults

Toronto, Canada Area

• Part of initial start-up management team, responsible for procedural framework, social media, client communication, community connections, marketing, provider relations, alumni and community building, overall leadership role• Helped mygapyear develop a grant proposal for a youth volunteer initiative involving at-risk youth from the Greater Toronto Area

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

As a board member, I supported the Mission of CCYP to further youth prosperity in Canada. I worked diligently to advise strategic direction, monitor fiscal spending and broaden the impact of CCYP through my personal and professional networks.I also supported the organization in an unexpected wind-down due to a catastrophic disruption of funding. We were able to wind-down operations without fiscal penalty and maintaining positive relationships with all stakeholders. This winddown included: staffing, projects, closing out & transferring grant deliverables, and meeting federal CRA and non-profit closure requirements)

Milton, Ontario

Responsible for designing, implementing and analyzing a large-scale youth-feedback initiative that focuses on ensuring an equitable response rate from all demographics of Milton Youth between the ages of 12 and 19.Partnering with local youth-serving organizations to reach Milton youth to better understand what makes Milton a youth-friendly city.Using a variety of mediums (paper and online surveys, focus groups, social media and RoadShow Kiosks), ensuing deep engagement and comprehensive feedback.Providing an in-depth analysis of the responses and providing recommendations for improving Milton as a youth-friendly city. Information is informing strategy and future development for all youth-serving organizations and youth themselves.

Toronto, Canada Area

• Responsible for managing and enhancing 50+ partnerships with School Boards across Canada and the United States, working directly with Directors of Education and Superintendents • Connected current pedagogy and educational practices with the WE Schools program design and implementation plans• Supervised the strategic planning for a holistic offering to educational institutions that encompasses all departments within the WE.ORG family• Advised all WE.ORG departments on emerging educational trends, needs and opportunities for integration of WE programming with educators, students and their families• Directly led a team of 8, and supported a team of 50, to further the WE Schools and Leadership Training Program mandates• Responsible for all Canadian sales of Leadership training programs ($700K) at school board and community partner levels• Designed, piloted and launched innovative Leadership Training Programs that meet the goals of our partners and create young leaders within communities

Toronto, Ontario

• Responsible for evaluating and improving all youth experiences offered by Me to We including domestic leadership programming, Take Action Camp and international Me to We Service Learning trips• Founded the Quality and Development department to improve communication, design systems of accountability and ensure the highest quality final product, linking teams from 8 countries• Designed and implemented training for 200+ facilitators annually to ensure quality Me to We Service Learning Trips experience• Created new staffing model to improve scalability of program delivery to meet increased sales; responsible for hiring and training all seasonal staff on process and organizational culture• Acted as support for regional offices and international teams with regards to all programming design, delivery and evaluation

I am developing resources for teachers to better integrate the findinglife.ca adventure 2011 - Together We're Moving Mountains. This includes curriculum links, background information and character development. I am also raising awareness of the program through social networking and existing education contacts.

Orillia, Ontario

• Inaugural supervisor who created and maintained partnerships with community organizations; developed projects that could be completed by students and fulfill a need of the community organization• Supervised and supported 23 students working to complete diverse projects for 6 community partners; event planning for Girl Guides, founding a chapter of Kids Help Phone, appealing to the City of Orillia City Council, and community needs assessment for Boys and Girls Club, the Orillia Cycling Club and the Common Roof• Responsible for Project Management for all projects, providing skill development opportunities and evaluating student performance

Eastern Ontario

• Developed and facilitated training programs for a variety of teachers including specific training for elementary, secondary, math, special education, and French as a Second Language teachers. Lead sessions for 4-30 educators 4 days/week• Responsible for creating digital resources for use in 500 hours of www.blossomlearning.com online training and distributed as training resources• Participated in and presented at educational technology conferences related

I was in charge of posting updates to Twitter and responding to Blog postings to promote DreamBox learning and 2plus1 family to "Mommy Bloggers," homeschoolers and other educational professionals.

Toronto, Canada Area

• Recruited, hired, trained and led a team of 70 educational tour guides in 4 destinations (Ottawa, Quebec City, Montreal and Niagara Falls)• Managed organization of tour guide logistics and scheduling, payroll, budget for Tour Guide Department, created feedback cycle to improve training of staff and delivery of tours, liaison between departments (finance, operations, sales, ground staff)• Remotely managed all tour guides and provided all performance evaluations

Quebec City

• Representative of the company once school groups arrived in destination (10,000 students per season), proactive organization to prevent problems and solved problems to ensure that clients are satisfied with their Educational Tour experience• Managed the daily operations of all tours in Quebec City/Ottawa with other members of the ground staff• Maintained relationships with suppliers and clients to ensure the smooth operation of tours, follow up with problematic suppliers to ensure that problems do not reoccur.

Toronto, Canada Area

• Ensured the customer satisfaction of teachers, parents and students involved in the educational tour• Led students through the historical, cultural and political aspects of Quebec City and/or Ottawa to both educate and entertain Grade 7 and 8 students in an interesting and age-appropriate manner• Coordinated the smooth operation of meals, accommodation, transportation and other scheduled activities

Durham, Ontario/United Kingdom

• Created and delivered lessons based on Ontario Curriculum and UK curriculum that incorporated current events, progressive pedagogy, technology and social justice elements• Responsible for classroom behavior management, student learning and achievement, parental communication and departmental initiatives• Grades 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

Ma In Leadership, Leadership

• Real world problem-solving grounded in a rigorous theoretical and practical understanding of the nature of today’s organizations.

B.Ed., Education - Intermediate/Senior Biology And Chemistry

Activities and Societies: Student Council - I/S Representative

Bachelor Of Science (B.Sc.), Honours Biology

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