Howdy, MacKenzie!

Who am I?

Last year, I asked family members and friends what my strengths are. These strengths are in line with the skills that Alpha School is looking for:

"To read the room. To assess people's non-verbal cues. High degree of emotional intelligence." - Mom

"Very intuitive. Problem solver. Compassionate." - Dad

"The ability to make other people the best version of themselves, to give people the opportunity to go deeper, to make people feel comfortable, welcome, + wanted." - Best Friend, Jeff

"Talking to people/creating conversation, leading, self-reflection/goal-setting." - Cousin, RJ

"You have the ability to read a room and get a sense of everyone's energy. You're able to find ways to boost energy and gather everyone's attention through your public speaking/storytelling skills, leaving the group of people feeling more engaged and more positive." - Best Friend, Mike

"Two things come to mind: intentional listening and foresight/wisdom." - Best Friend, Joey

"Connect and follow through. I don't think it occurs to many that you can just begin to know someone and what makes them tick with quickness, precision, and care. You do it innately." - Pastor, Chris

"Unite, lead, envision, strategize, plan. You are compassionate. You are loyal. You have an ability to forgive. I think you are good at setting out to learn something and being consistent with it over a long period of time because of your discipline." - Best Friend, Nick

The most important project of my life is my daily journal. These entries showcase my alignment with Alpha School's mission:

4/15/24 - "What would I do if I knew I couldn't lose? Guide people towards work that's more fulfilling."

6/14/24 - "I am supposed to be in education and provide opportunity to others."

6/18/24 - "I love to coach people, to teach them, to listen to them, to connect with them, to care for them. It's difficult to do that purely through tech."

7/8/24 - "I am an educator obsessed with teaching and learning."

8/12/24 - "I've been investing my focus into aligning my job with what I have an innate ability to do and what I have an incredible opportunity to serve in: storytelling; assessing where people are via emotional intelligence; making people feel welcome through hospitality + compassion; getting to know someone and connecting with them deeply; being consistent over time."

8/15/24 - "I don't just love to inform but love to educate. Informing is merely the presentation of facts and figures. Education is both to provide a sound foundation of information AND inspire people to care."

8/28/24 - "I am more steady when I am in a mode of learning. It's a sign that my soul needs rest when I don't want to learn."

9/27/24 - "Data + AI are a part of my toolkit but are not my craft. Emotional intelligence, community building, storytelling, active listening, + facilitation are my craft."

I'm a disciple, student, teacher, outdoorsman, and writer.

While my journal is the most meaningful project of my life, the most adventurous project of my life was converting a van and traveling the country.

For more on my previous goals and photos (bottom of each page), check out my annual reviews: 2022, 2023, 2024.

Now that you know a bit more about who I am at my core, let's jump into the most important part - why I think I could make a huge impact on the lives of Alpha students.

4 Specific Reasons Why I'm a Great Fit for Alpha School:

1. I love to coach.

Coaching gives me absolute joy. I use my strengths in empathy and emotional intelligence to know where to meet each individual kid and get the best out of them.

10+ years of Coaching Experience:

• In high school, I coached pre-k through fifth grade sports.
• In college, I facilitated leadership activities for kids on a ranch in Montana.
• During COVID, I mentored college students remotely.
• Today, I coach little league baseball and mentor at-risk youth through horsemanship.

Why this matters: Coaching isn't a job but a calling for me.

2. I'm on a mission to improve education.

This is what I'm called to do. I even declared it in an article 3+ years ago.

8+ Years Working on Improving Education:

• I'm currently the Lead Reflector and employee #1 for a pre-seed education startup in stealth mode. Here, I create playbooks on how to best facilitate lifelong learning for our users. The Co-Founder/CEO is actively considering dissolving the company due to personal reasons, hence my job search. I am able to provide a letter of recommendation from him to attest to my role and the circumstances.
• I obsess over how to improve education. I spent 3 years as a University Innovation Fellow and 3 additional years as a Guide to coach/mentor rising Fellows - something directly relevant to the Lead Guide position at Alpha).

Why this matters: I'm in complete alignment with Alpha's mission and have the facilitation skills to make a big impact on students' lives.

3. I've taken my own shots at executing that mission.

I'm not sitting on the sidelines. I've failed at building two different ideas.

4+ Years of Taking Risks:

• I built a holistic health curriculum + analytics tool to help people live happier, healthier lives (see case study).
• I built an audio summarizer to help people retain more knowledge from podcasts (see viral 725k+ view tweet and case study).
• Both ideas ultimately failed to become sustainable businesses, but I learned lessons in marketing, leadership, team building, and finance that can only be learned by doing.

Why this matters: I can motivate students to take calculated risks because I'm a calculated risk taker myself.

4. I'm no stranger to AI.

I've deployed AI products at major organizations and have used AI to make data-driven decisions.

5+ Years in AI:

• I led AI product + implementation for Deloitte Consulting's state + local government portfolio to help agencies better serve their citizens.
• I led marketing for a Series-A AI/ML startup. This included creating analytics dashboards and using them to recommend go-to-market tactics/plans to the CEO.

Why this matters: I have experience implementing AI successfully and making data-driven decisions.

Bonus Reason: I'm coachable.

From my journal entry on 8/24/24: "be coachable, not responsive."

28+ Years of being coached - here are a few highlights:

• Writing - I received coaching in 2 different cohorts of Write of Passage.
• CrossFit - I receive instruction daily on lifting technique.
• Decision Making - I have a "personal board of directors" that I turn to for guidance (see quotes from family and friends under "Who I Am" above).
• Facilitation - I meet with other little league coaches + horsemanship mentors to debrief how I can better facilitate.

Why this matters:  I'm receptive to feedback and am constantly improving my craft.

Closing with My Ask Again

I know I'd add value to the Alpha School team. Would you be willing to meet for coffee before the July 17th event in Raleigh so I can tell you more in-person?

Here are some great options across the Triangle:
• North Raleigh - Jubala Coffee

• Morrisville - Fount

• Durham - Cocoa Cinnamon

Thanks again for taking the time to read, and let me know what you think about meeting for coffee!