From Boring to Bold: Visual Design Skills for Trainers | 2025 Design Better Learning Series (Partner, Virtual)
Virtual Training
Event Details
2025 Design Better Learning Series
A 3-part series for nonprofit & social sector educators who want to create more inclusive, engaging, and effective learning experiences.
Design Better Learning is the 6th annual fall series for nonprofit and social sector educators who want to create more inclusive, engaging, and effective learning experiences. Now more than ever, we need learning that meets the moment—learning that helps people not just understand, but take action. The people in our workshop and webinars have carved out time to learn because they care about doing their work well. We owe them well-designed experiences that lead to lasting change. This series offers practical, adult learning research-informed strategies to help you deliver learning that truly makes a difference.
“Those of us teaching others also need time to deepen our own practice. Consider this series ‘capacity building for capacity builders.’ It’s an opportunity to strengthen our skills as educators—so we can better support the people and causes at the heart of our communities.”—Nancy Bacon, Series Producer
All sessions take place from 10:00am - 11:30am Pacific | 1:00pm - 2:30pm Eastern
From Boring to Bold: Visual Design Skills for Trainers
October 28, 2025
Did you know you can improve your visual design skills even if you can't draw? If visual design feels like a challenge or you’re ready to take your skills to the next level, come immerse yourself in this interactive and energizing workshop.
Training and presentation slides are visual mediums, and their design has a direct impact on learning and motivation. In this session, we’ll explore the essential components of visual design, and you’ll learn practical ways to optimize graphics to support learning. You’ll leave with the ability to design with intention instead of relying on guesswork or haphazard choices.
You’ll gain confidence in your visual design skills by learning how to:
- Think like a visual designer so your choices feel intentional, not random.
- Quickly create layouts that are clean, balanced, and easy to take in at a glance.
- Choose and customize images that enhance your message (no more generic stock photos).
- Pick the right fonts to improve readability and reflect your tone.
- Transform bullet points into visuals that clarify ideas and support understanding.
Connie Malamed helps people learn and grow instructional design skills that make them stand out through her courses and community, Mastering Instructional Design. She’s a consultant, author, and international speaker specializing in learning experience design, visual design, and professional visibility. Connie is the author of Visual Design Solutions and Visual Language for Designers. She shares practical insights through her long-running site and podcast, The eLearning Coach. She was recognized as a Guild Master from the eLearning Guild for her contributions to the learning technologies industry.
2025 Design Better Learning Series
Trauma Informed Instruction | September 30, 2025
From Boring to Bold: Visual Design Skills for Trainers | October 28, 2025
Stories That Stick: How Real-World Scenarios Spark Change | November 13, 2025
Tuition
$150 for the full series. Includes pre- and post-communication designed to extend learning and all tools related to each session.
$70 for individual sessions
NAM Members use code NAM10 during registration for 10% off tuition
Series Details
You are encouraged to register for the full series to experience the full collection of knowledge and tools; you may register for just one of the sessions if you prefer.
All sessions will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recordings and have access for 3 months. If you are unable to attend the session, we encourage you to register anyway so you receive all of the related materials. Because the sessions will be recorded, we are unable to offer refunds.
Closed captioning will be available in all sessions in the series. We will do our best to accommodate any other accessibility needs expressed through the registration system.
The Design Better Learning Series is moderated by Nancy Bacon, a teacher, instructional designer, and learning strategist who has worked for over 25 years in the nonprofit sector. Nancy began her career in international education, leading an ESL school in Boston and teaching social studies in the Philippines. She worked for ten years leading nonprofit fundraising and capacity building efforts alongside a community of Afro-Brazilian women in Salvador, Brazil. Nancy created the award-winning learning program at Seattle's World Affairs Council, as well as the state-wide nonprofit learning program at the Nonprofit Association of Washington. In 2022, Nancy co-founded the Nonprofit Learning Center to expand access to high quality on-demand nonprofit learning. Nancy collaborates with diverse communities and organizations to design and deliver relevant outcome-based learning tools and experiences. Nancy co-hosts the Nonprofit Radio Show with Sarah Brooks, offering free, practical nonprofit learning for rural and small nonprofits.