This is built to last. Months later, your staff will still be using what they learned, even on the hard days, long after an ordinary talk would have worn off. It's the rare PD day that's still paying off over the years, and the difference between a keynote and a turning point.
A keynote with Dr. Jen Rafferty gives staff practical, brain-based tools they can use the next day
"Dr. Rafferty masterfully meets teachers where they are, so they leave reinvigorated and excited to return to their classroom with a rekindled joy for the important work they have chosen to do."
-Laura Havill, mentor team coach
Signature Keynotes
Based on Dr. RAFFERTY's TEDx talk
- Generational Change Begins with Empowered Educators
You can feel it when a staff has lost sight of why they came to this work. Drawn from Jen's TEDx talk, this keynote reconnects your teachers to the meaning behind the job and shows them that caring for themselves is part of how they show up and care for kids. They leave re-engaged, and reconnected to the reason they stay.
- Sustainable Success: Tuning Your Mindset for Energy, Clarity, and Longevity
Every leader knows the slump: a staff that starts the year full of energy and is running on fumes by February. This keynote gives your staff a sustainable way to manage their own energy across a long year, so they stay present and effective through the stretches that feel especially demanding. This means fewer people hitting the wall mid-year, right when you need them most.
- Momentum That Lasts: Where Intention Meets Action
Your staff know what they value. The hard part is living it when the day gets noisy. This keynote closes the gap between intention and action, so they move through their days on purpose instead of on autopilot, and their everyday choices start lining up with the goals you're all working toward.
- Elevating Emotional Intelligence in a World of Artificial Intelligence
Much of what lands on a leader's desk is really a regulation problem: a conversation that went sideways, a conflict that escalated, a reaction someone wishes they could take back. This keynote builds your staff's emotional intelligence so they handle pressure and hard conversations before those things reach your office. A calmer staff makes for a calmer building, and far fewer fires for you to put out.
Workshop Topics
- Thanks for the Feedback: Listening Beyond the Ego
- Mind Your Words: How Language Shapes Culture and Connection
- Navigating Conflict With Clarity and Confidence
- Energy Over Hours: Rethinking Time Management
- Calm Is Contagious: The Neuroscience of Self-Regulation
- The Secrets of Teacher Retention
Dr. Jen Rafferty is a former music teacher, TEDx speaker, and the founder of Empowered Educator. She holds a PhD in educational psychology and certifications in emotional intelligence, and neuro-identity evolution. She builds every talk on brain science and her own years in the classroom, so it lands with teachers instead of going over their heads. She's the author of The Empowered Educator (Penguin Random House), host of the podcast Unlock Your Teaching Potential, and has worked with educators across the country.
The well-being of a school is dependent on the well-being of its educators.
Meet Dr. Jen Rafferty
READ MORE ABOUT DR. RAFFERTY
"Jen is a fantastic presenter and wonderful human being. Her words are meaningful and heartfelt, as she is one of the most passionate educators I have encountered.”
Dr. Jody Blake, professor of educators
"Jen is a passionate educator who has the ability to draw out other educators' strengths, efficacy, and internaal motivation."
– Erin W. Director of Professional Learning and Innovation
– Terri H., high school chemistry teacher
"Jen Rafferty is an exceptional speaker who is full of energy and positivity."
Michelle Cox, principal
Jen's engaging presentation teaches educators how to regulate themselves so they can remain focused on what is truly important.”