Wendy Rose, M.Ed.

Futures Counselor: College & Career

I had been wondering for years how I can help people find a creative and life-affirming path in an increasingly complex world where the stakes are high and we need more innovators. After earning a degree in school counseling, I worked for 16 years in career and pathway planning in higher education at Colorado State University and the University of Wyoming. Working at universities, I worked hard to help students stay flexible and confident in who they are, but I always wished students had been given opportunities earlier in their educations to really explore their aptitudes, interests, and career options so that they had what they needed to make informed choices in their courses of study and efforts to find internships.

Compass showed me that secondary school education could be different and really prepare students to be both autonomous and compassionate with others and with themselves. I believe students need to learn a lot more than how to take a test or regurgitate information. The focus of teaching needs to lead students to be transformative change makers, entrepreneurs, informed citizens, and successful relationship builders.

This summer (2020), I completed my Holistic Narrative Career Professional Certification with Rich Feller and Mark Franklin—two amazing career gurus who have changed the profession with their genius. They have been instrumental in helping me develop a complete curriculum to guide students in crafting and refining their career futures with hope and creativity.

In 2009, my husband started Topo Designs, an outdoor clothing and gear brand. Standing alongside an entrepreneur while simultaneously working with interns and curriculum at CSU has helped me see how critical it is that education focuses on community, compassion, and emotional intelligence.

Compass is the education of the future. I hope to help Compass students see themselves more clearly, find purpose, express who they are, and work collaboratively with this amazing teaching team to become courageous human beings and lifelong learners.