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PROFESSIONAL development

Advancing Professional Growth in NYC Schools

As an NYC DOE approved vendor, we provide unique experiences tailored to NYC’s educators that empower transformative learning and champion bold educational change.
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Leading learning forward

Professional development is vital to an organization’s growth, but it requires a meaningful investment of time, energy, and resources. Your school deserves to see tangible improvements—in classrooms, relationships, and student achievement—that make that investment worthwhile.

Here’s what you can expect when partnering with Audacious Inner Works Institute:

Customized

Well-crafted experiences tailored to your school’s context, culture, and goals—with a focus on practical application and measurable outcomes.

Empowering

Programs that foster social-emotional literacy and growth mindset while building self-awareness and confidence (so-called “soft skills”).

Insightful

Coaching that cultivates thinking habits, problem-solving mindsets, and self-management skills while strengthening professional relationships.

Strategic

Offerings focused on the ultimate goal: advanced learnings and improved performance. Together, we identify the key success indicators for your team.

Strengthening Self & Community

Our approach to personal development is grounded in social-emotional learning. We support educators in deepening self-awareness, building emotional intelligence, and strengthening interpersonal skills—while cultivating a shared sense of well-being and community within their schools.

DOE Vendor ID: GLE329597

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Programs & Services

We meet teams where they are with a one-size-does-not-fit-all approach that centers inside-out development.

“Sawabona”:

Centering Staff Wellness

This workshop series was designed to make staff wellness a visible and valued part of school culture. It creates space for educators to share experiences, strengthen community bonds, and imagine a sustainable culture of care.

Rooted in the South African Zulu concept of “Sawabona” — I see you — the series embraces the humanity, resilience, and voices of every staff member.

 

Program Themes

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“Sawabona” (I see you)
Embracing our shared humanity

Resilience & Wellness:
Building a sustainable culture of care

Key Outcomes

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Community Bonding
Sharing stories , compassion, and resilience

Team Gratitude
“Appreciation Wall” activity to honor colleagues

Wellness Visioning
Identifying self-care needs & imagining a sustainable wellness culture in schools

Session Options

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45 Minutes
4-6 sessions total

1 Hour
3-4 sessions total

 

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Leading

With Character Strengths

Grounded in the VIA Institute on Character™ model, this workshop series helps participants identify and apply their unique character strengths as a pathway to personal and professional growth.

Character strengths are the positive traits that make us feel authentic, engaged, and energized. By understanding and intentionally using our greatest strengths, we can navigate challenges, achieve goals, and create more fulfilling lives—at work and beyond.

Program Themes

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Introduction to Character Strengths

Signature Strengths & Their Optimal Use

Key Outcomes

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Discover Your Strengths
Gain insight into character strengths and their positive effects on life and work

Your Signature Strengths
Identify your core strengths and explore how to leverage them

Live Your Strengths
Use your strengths intentionally to enhance mindset, behavior, and well-being

Pre-requisite:

VIA Survey of Character Strengths

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The VIA Survey of Character Strengths is a free, validated self-assessment from the VIA Institute on Character™ that identifies your top strengths in under 15 minutes. Registrants will receive a link before the series to complete the survey and get a personalized report to understand their best qualities.

Session Options

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45 Minutes
8 sessions total

1 Hour/2 Hours
6 sessions/4 sessions total

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How Do You See:

The Role of Mindset in Shaping Experiences

Mindset shapes how we interpret experiences, respond to challenges, and create meaning. This workshop series examines mindset through the lenses of professional coaching and neuroscience, drawing on Dr. Carol S. Dweck’s groundbreaking research.

Participants explore their own mindset orientations, reflect on the impact of those beliefs, and learn strategies to foster a growth mindset in themselves and their students.

Program Themes

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Mindset Through Coaching & Neuroscience

Your Mindset and Personal Impact

Your Mindset and Professional Growth

Fostering Growth Mindset in Students

Key Outcomes

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Mindset Science
Foundational understanding of mindset research

Self Awareness
Exploring your own mindset orientation

Personal & Professional Impact
How mindset shapes your life and work

Teaching Growth Mindset
Strategies to promote a growth mindset in students

Session Options

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45 Minutes
6 sessions total

1 Hour
4 sessions total

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Team Building

Strong teams and positive relationships are essential for effective school communities, yet many educators still work in silos. This workshop uses team building to break down barriers, strengthen trust, and tap into the collective wisdom of the group, all while having fun.

Activities can be held on site or offsite, indoors or outdoors, and range from light icebreakers to more complex challenges that foster self-awareness, problem-solving, and collaboration.

Key Outcomes

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Shared Accountability
Creating and upholding team guidelines that build trust and responsibility

Effective Collaboration
Organizing, communicating, and problem-solving together to achieve goals

Reflective Growth
Using insights to strengthen teamwork moving forward

Session Options

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Varies by Program or Experience
Every experience is tailored to your team’s unique needs and goals

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Spotlighting Individualized Impact

Exploring a Growth Mindset in Equitable Teaching

YMCA of Bogotá, Colombia & Unicompensar

 The AIW team, led by CEO Glenda M. Francis, was invited to present in a speaker series for YMCA youth coordinators and university students, many of whom are educators.

The team designed and facilitated a workshop on growth mindset rooted in Dr. Carol S. Dweck’s groundbreaking research. The workshop supported participants in exploring their own mindset orientations and learning teaching strategies that foster a growth mindset in students.

Key Outcomes

Deepened Mindset Insight
Participants developed a stronger grasp of mindset as a guiding framework and recognized the critical role teachers play in shaping student mindsets—measured through pre- and post-session assessments.

Empathy for Student Challenges
Educators gained fresh understanding of their students’ hesitation to learn and speak English, discovering how growth mindset strategies—like teaching intellectual dispositions and using meaningful, relevant tasks—can unlock language learning success.

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