We’re very proud and honored to welcome Erica Rabner to the team as our Chief Happiness Officer and Production Assistant. We first got to know Erica through our work with WGBH, where she served as Special Projects Assistant. We couldn’t be more delighted to have her onboard.

Erica is currently pursuing a masters in Technology, Innovation, and Education at Harvard Graduate School of Education to apply her knowledge of child development and research methodology to the educational media industry. Outside the classroom, Erica enjoys working on STEAM Adventures at the Harvard Innovation Lab and building the Children’s Media Association presence in Boston as their Events Co-Chair.

When she isn’t busy working on projects, you can find Erica singing soul, jazz, and soft rock at the Harvard Yard Starbucks as part of Accidental Duet.

Erica studied psychology and theater arts at Brandeis University.

Our latest video explains how Tripod helps teachers and administrators gain crucial insights about student experiences, insights that make it possible to help every student engage and succeed. We loved working with Tripod Education Partners on this one and we were honored to be a part of their mission.

The script:

Imagine what teachers might do differently if they understood what students were really feeling and experiencing in the classroom.

Thanks to Tripod, giving teachers access to student perspectives is an easy process.

First, administrators log into their Tripod account and invite teachers to launch a classroom-level survey. Teachers can get started with a survey in just a few clicks.

Next, students fill out the survey on computers or other devices with Internet access, revealing thoughts more honestly and completely than they ever could in the daily flow of classroom life.

Tripod surveys measure a range of key indicators of student engagement, plus seven proven teaching components we call the Tripod 7 Cs.

Survey results are compiled for teachers in clear online reports that inspire new ideas for teaching. Meanwhile, building-level summaries for administrators spark fresh insights for instructional leadership. Before you know it, students are more engaged, and more successful.

At Tripod, we know that every classroom has a story. Join us to discover all that your students are ready to share.

Last year, we partnered with Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma to produce a Nutshell designed to help them expand access to justice. That project led to an invitation to attend the annual LSC Technology Innovation Group (TIG) conference. I’ll be presenting tomorrow on our production process, digital storytelling, and serving the needs of underserved communities.

Here’s the video we produced for LAOK in 2014.