
COLAB INITIATIVE
The CoLab Initiative is a bottom-up professional learning collaboration that supports Social Emotional Learning skills and community-based leadership.
Born from Arts & Sciences’ long-standing commitment to community service, the launch of the CoLab will signify a deep investment in impacting educational outcomes, on the Santa Fe’s Southside and throughout New Mexico.
High-quality professional development to help teachers expand their skills and the self-wellness strategies they need to meet social emotional challenges – both their own and those of the children they serve.
The CoLab Initiative is led by Suzanne Maheshi Shakespeare-Jones and her partner Kim Shakespeare-Jones. Suzanne led the Unicorn (Preschool/PreK) class for two decades. For many of our students, she was their First Teacher. She was featured in Santa Fe Magazine’s inaugural issue.
This year Suzanne moved out of the Unicorn classroom to launch the CoLab Initiative, a bottom-up collaborative teacher training program, focused on Social Emotional Learning, outdoor education, and early childhood. The CoLab embodies our core values of Service & Compassion. “We are crew, not passengers.” The CoLab follows in the footsteps of Reading is Magic and Math Mindset summer camps, and demonstrates our belief that we are all strengthened by acts of consequential service to others.
For more information, please contact Kim Shakespeare-Jones at colab@santafeschool.org


High-quality professional development
High-quality professional development to help teachers expand their skills and the self-wellness strategies they need to meet social emotional challenges – both their own and those of the children they serve.

Community-Led
Community-Led: Collaborative learning for teachers, by teachers. Working with community and educational partners to tailor professional development to specific needs. The CoLab is driven by collective wisdom and supports teacher and student agency.

Equity-Centered
Equity-Centered: Support multiple intelligences through inclusive learning practices, language justice, accessibility (travel, in-person as well as virtual), and diverse perspectives.

Innovative Educational Practices
Innovative Educational Practices that are experiential, invite shared leadership, and provide arts-based self-inquiry and reflective practices that lead to deeper understandings.

Co-Lab Workshops for Educators
Next Workshop April 2023
Email colab@santafeschool.org for more information
The CoLab’s October 2022 workshop brought together early childhood educators and program directors. The workshop focused on the Window of Tolerance, developing practices for improving and maintaining mental health and well-being during stressful times.