The Neuroscience of Learning

Speaker: Paulette Risher - Program Director, Veteran Employment, Still Serving Veterans

Paulette Risher is twice retired, once as a civilian Organizational Psychologist with the United States Air Force Research Laboratory and once as a Major General (2-Star) in the United States Army Reserve. With 34-years of active and reserve service, Paulette was the first woman to command an Army Special Operations unit as a flag-officer.  Upon leaving active duty, Paulette joined Booz Allen Hamilton and led their Organization, Strategy, and Learning team in Huntsville for three years. Additionally, Paulette served as the Principal Director for Huntsville Operations for DigiFlight, Inc.

Today, Paulette serves as the Program Director for Veteran Employment Services with Still Serving Veterans (SSV), a Huntsville-based non-profit with offices in Birmingham and Phoenix City, serving Fort Benning and Columbus GA. Paulette's primary focus is on assisting Veterans in finding meaningful work and assisting employers in welcoming and retaining Veterans as valued members of their workforce.  Paulette manages a generous grant from the Call of Duty Endowment and serves on the Alabama Governor’s AlaVetNet and Small Business Advisory Council.  

Additionally, Paulette established Learning for the Journey, LLC in 2010 as a sole-practitioner consulting practice.  Paulette’s areas of expertise include strategic planning, organizational change, vision clarification, and mentoring.   Taking a multi-disciplinary approach and drawing heavily from the fields of neuroscience, design, psychology, organizational development, and adult learning, Paulette designs and delivers customized workshops and seminars. 

Paulette is a lifelong learner.   She holds a BS and MA in Psychology, as well as an MEd with a focus on workplace learning and educational technology.  Paulette is also a certified True Colors® facilitator. 

Topical Outline:

1.0  Foundations of Neuroscience

• Our Two Brains

• Heuristic-Driven Thinking

• Defend-Discover Access

• Mind-Body Connection

• Chemicals that Drive Us

2.0  Neuroscience Implications for Better Work and Better Lives

• Structuring Your Day

• Improving Productivity

• Building Stronger Relationships

• Managing Your Energy                            

3.0  Implication of Neuroscience on Learning

• The Counter-Cultural Research of Sticky Learning

• Deep Learning and Flow

• Presence

• Neuroscience Implications for ADDIE  

4.0  Bringing it All Together

• Q&A/Discussion

Learning Objectives

•     Participants will understand the foundations of major neuroscience research

•     Participants will be able to apply key neuroscience findings to improve the quality of their everyday lives

•     Participants will be able to create learning experiences strengthened by the neuroscience research findings