JORGE VALENZUELA
Jorge Valenzuela is a nationally recognized performance and education coach, author, and speaker at Lifelong Learning Defined. He got his start in education and has helped countless educators improve their leadership and instructional innovation skills. Jorge specializes in emphasizing core instruction and is a trusted deliverer of reputable professional training in team building, project-based learning, STEM pathways, and SEL integration across the curriculum. He partners with superintendents and provides professional development on behalf of ASCD, Corwin, Instructional Innovation Partners, and Solution Tree. He has authored several books and is the Lifelong Learning Defined podcast host.
His books Rev Up Robotics, Environmental Science for Grades 6-12, and jump-start guides are available from ISTE. His following book, which focuses on SEL activation across the curriculum, is published by Solution Tree. Jorge also teaches at Old Dominion University and previously hosted the SEL in Action podcast.
Awards, Accomplishments & Previous Work
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Jorge is the 2021 awardee of ISTE's Making it Happen Award for his visionary leadership and empowering others to solve tough problems in education.
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In 2020 he was appointed by the Governor of Virginia to the Virginia STEM Education Commission.
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In the 2019-2020 school year, Jorge has joined the Empowered Learner Magazine advisory panel for ISTE.
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In 2019 he was awarded ISTE's STEM Excellence Award.
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In 2018 he was awarded ISTE’s Computer Science Excellence Award.
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In 2018, he was the recipient of the 2018 Lynn Barrier Engineering Leadership Award for his contributions to STEM education in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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In 2018 Jorge and other education leaders from around the country attended Washington, D.C. to educate policymakers about the critical role of technology in transforming education at the EdTech Advocacy and Policy Summit. There Jorge and his colleagues led specific discussions on E-Rate, Title II and IV block grant funding, and net neutrality with policymakers.
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In 2016 he was awarded the Presidential Citation by the Virginia Technology and Engineering Educators Association for his leadership and commitment to providing professional development experiences that contributed to teachers' implementation of the engineering design process in Technology and Engineering Education classrooms across the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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In 2017 he was the Emerging Leader honoree for the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association.
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In January 2017, Jorge participated as an expert panel member in the U.S. Senate Career and Technical Education Caucus briefing to discuss how federal policy can support the intersection of infrastructure and Career and Technical Education (CTE). Also, his statement is in the bipartisan CTE Excellence and Equity Act press release proposed to support the redesign of American high schools with more of a CTE focus.
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In 2007-2017, Jorge supervised the Technology and Engineering Education program at Richmond Public Schools for nine years. There he served school division priorities with STEM leadership projects that integrate and connect both academic and CTE K-12 classrooms to higher education and the workforce.
