Our Journey

Empowering the Next Generation of Innovators

At Learn Collaborate, we’re bridging the gap between education and the workforce by providing students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

Our Mission

The Vision

To close the education-to-workforce gap by equipping students with real-world, project-based experiences, personalized learning journeys, and meaningful mentorship. We’re committed to ensuring every learner—no matter their starting point—has the skills, support, and opportunities to thrive.

Three young adults sitting on the floor of a modern building with large glass windows, talking and sharing a laptop and books.
A young woman with long brown curly hair wearing a pink button-up shirt, sitting at a table with open books, notebooks, and a pen, looking down thoughtfully at her work in a well-lit room with bookshelves and decorative items in the background.

Our Founder

Driven By Purpose

Tracie Dean Ponder is the Founder and CEO of Learn Collaborate (LC), an AI-powered platform reimagining how students build, apply, and own their skills. Her vision was born from leading the B~STEM Project, a national nonprofit that delivered 21,000+ hours of free programming to over 10,000 learners through partnerships with top tech companies.

In that work, she identified a critical need: students don’t just need their skills validated—they need opportunities to cultivate them in meaningful, real-world contexts.

LC does exactly that. The platform brings students into role-based, mentor-supported teams where they lead projects, receive guided feedback, and grow both hard and soft skills. Educators gain tools to track engagement, personalize learning, and assess progress in ways traditional systems can’t. It’s project management, workforce development, and personalized learning—built into one collaborative ecosystem, powered by AI.

Backed by over $1.3 million in National Science Foundation funding, Tracie leads with a bold vision shaped by her own lived experience with systemic inequity on Chicago’s South Side. She holds a BA from NYU and an MA from DePaul, and is building Learn Collaborate to ensure the next generation isn’t just workforce-ready—but future-ready.

A confident woman with dark skin, wearing a white blazer and a bright pink blouse with a bow tie, standing in front of large windows.

What We Stand For

Our Core Values

  • Checkmark icon inside a teal circle.

    Real-World Readiness

    We prepare learners not just for the classroom, but for life and the workplace through hands-on projects, micro-internships, and industry connections.

  • A hand holding a pie chart with three segments, and upward arrows indicating growth or increase.

    Educational Equity

    We champion educational equity by providing inclusive and accessible opportunities to students from underserved and underrepresented communities.

  • Icon of three stylized human figures in blue, purple, and yellow representing a group or community.

    Collaboration & Community

    We foster collaboration between students, educators, and industry mentors to create a dynamic learning ecosystem where everyone grows together.

  • An icon of a person reading a book, with a yellow circle representing the head, and a stylized open book in teal and purple

    Personalized Learning

    Powered by AI, our platform adapts to each learner’s strengths and needs, ensuring personalized and meaningful skill development.

  • An illustration of a light bulb with atomic orbits and electrons around it, symbolizing innovation and scientific ideas.

    Innovation for Impact

    We use technology to push the boundaries of what learning can look like, always grounded in real-world outcomes and workforce alignment.

The Architects

  • Briana Bell

    PROJECT MANAGEMENT & GTM STRATEGY

    LinkedIn

  • Maria Ponder-Duncan

    BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & PARTNERSHIPS

    LinkedIn

  • Jeff Durst

    ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE & MACHINE LEARNING

    Linkedin

  • Lisa Hagen

    PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

    LinkedIn

  • Aeri Kim

    LEARNING & USER EXPERIENCE

    LinkedIn

  • Chris Kincanon

    PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

    LinkedIn

  • Melisa Bueno-Vega

    ENGAGEMENT & OPERATIONS

    LinkedIn

Our Platform

Cultivating Talent

Learn Collaborate is an AI-powered platform redefining how students engage with learning, collaboration, and career preparation. Evolving from the success of the B~STEM Project, it advances the Collaborative Project-Based Learning (CPBL) model into a dynamic, scalable system. The platform uses AI to transform static assignments into interactive, mentor-guided projects—prompting students to plan, manage, and reflect as they work. It tracks individual and team progress, surfaces challenges early, and offers targeted insights that help students strengthen their skills over time. For educators, it delivers real-time visibility into student engagement and growth, enabling more responsive instruction. Designed with equity at its core, Learn Collaborate empowers students—especially those historically underserved—to not just validate their skills, but to actively shape and evolve them with confidence.

A hand placing a wooden block with an upward arrow on top of a staircase of wooden blocks with similar arrows, symbolizing growth or progress against a yellow background.