The Situation
In March 2020, the language school where I served as Education Coordinator shut its doors overnight. There was no transition plan. No digital infrastructure. No remote learning capability. Just a school full of students who still needed to learn and teachers who had never taught online.
We had days.
The Response
I led the complete transition of the school's operations from paper-based to a live online learning environment. This meant:
Curriculum digitization: Every course material, exercise, and assessment existed only in physical form. I oversaw the digitization of the full curriculum into formats compatible with online delivery.
Platform selection and setup: Evaluated and deployed video conferencing, learning management, and student communication tools that would work for both teachers and students at varying levels of technical comfort.
Staff training: The teaching staff had little to no experience with online tools. I designed and delivered a crash-course training program to bring the entire team up to speed quickly enough to start delivering live online lessons within days.
Student communication: Managed outgoing communication to students and families to maintain confidence, set expectations, and provide clear instructions for the new format.
The Outcome
The school maintained educational continuity through a period when many institutions simply went dark. Students continued their courses. Teachers adapted. The institution survived a crisis that forced many similar schools to close permanently.
The Lesson
A crisis is a compressed version of what's always true: the organizations that adapt fastest are the ones that have invested in clarity — clear processes, clear communication, clear roles. When everything is on fire, you execute what you've already thought through.