WHO WE ARE

MISSION & HISTORY

Our mission is to create equity in K-12 education by building the capacity of educators to implement student-centered learning.

History

On May 23, 2007, Colorado’s Governor Ritter signed into law House Bill 071066 creating two programs (Colorado Revised Statute 225119 and 222130) related to online learning.

C.R.S. 225119 establishes a statewide program for supplemental online learning, consulting support to school districts pertaining to district implementation of online and blended learning, and professional development for educators to increase their capacity to use standards, data, and interventions in regular, online and blended learning classes in school districts, charter schools and BOCES.

Through the enactment of the supplemental online education and blended learning education services legislation, the State of Colorado expects to:

  • Expand the availability of online courses and blended learning strategies
  • Increase the number of students taking high quality, effective and affordable online courses
  • Establish a program to work with school districts, charter schools and BOCES to create, offer and sustain their own high quality, effective and affordable blended learning courses, as well as targeted professional development and mentoring support
  • Increase the capacity of educators in school districts, charter schools, and BOCES to utilize standards, data, and interventions in regular, online and blended learning classes; and
  • Document and share best practices in online and blended learning.

iLearn Collaborative informally began in 2009 as a grassroots effort to start a dialogue between districts who were building online schools and then blended programs.

By 2013, the management demands and needs of member organizations were sufficient to warrant formal leadership and funding and we received our first grants from the Donnell Kay Foundation and the Gates Family Foundation. Using this funding, under Judy Perez’s leadership, we built out the course catalog and capabilities you see today. In 2016, we founded iLearn Collaborative and formally became an independent 501c3 non-profit.

The impact of our unique approach to professional development has earned us substantial recognition. iLearn Collaborative is the only state-subsidized provider of blended professional development in Colorado, we are a Future Ready Regional partner, and we have even started to receive international interest, currently piloting our programs in Latin America. Our success has been built on the strength, passion, and commitment of our member organizations, and we intend to build on this momentum with your support, amplifying talent, knowledge, and innovation in education to advance the practice of student-centered learning.