In the first town hall with its new Dean, College of Lifetime Learning colleagues came together to explore a central question: what does it mean to learn, and how can that spirit shape the way we work?

Bill Gaudelli, Ed.D., joined the College Aug. 1 as the inaugural dean. He brings more than 35 years of experience as an educator, researcher, and academic administrator to this role. 

Rather than beginning with charts or plans, the Dean opened with two polls. The first asked: What did you learn? What did you notice about your learning? How did you feel before, during, and after? The second posed a broader challenge: What is a learning organization? Colleagues shared learning experiences that ran along a fairly common path: anticipation, uncertainty, frustration, and, ultimately, accomplishment. 

“Not one of you said I had no emotional response to the learning. Not a person. There was joy. There was a lot of laughter. And everyone had something to share because that is how fundamental learning is,” Dean Gaudelli observed. “And so, as a learning organization. We've got to think about how we meet the moment and the learner in a context that's totally new. We've got to figure that out in a new space, using new tools, recognizing that the desire to learn is permanent in humans.”

With these shared experiences in mind, Gaudelli introduced the concept of a learning organization, drawing from Peter Senge’s landmark work The Fifth Discipline. He outlined the five disciplines (personal mastery, mental models, shared vision, team learning, and systems thinking) and invited colleagues to see them not as abstract theory, but as a practical framework for how the College might operate.

Becoming a learning organization, Dean Gaudelli said, is not a label but a way of working: embracing curiosity, being adaptable, questioning assumptions, and understanding that the whole is stronger than its individual parts. “If we’re going to promote learning in the world, then we have to be learning ourselves,” he noted. That means committing to continuous improvement, viewing mistakes as opportunities, and aligning every role with a shared purpose.

This vision brings to life the College’s mission to support learning across the lifespan and positions the College to respond to a rapidly changing educational landscape. By building systems and culture that make learning continuous, collaborative, and transformative, Gaudelli sees an opportunity to lead not just in what the College teaches, but in how it works together.

Dr. Roslyn Martin, Director of Professional Education Programs for the College and GTPE , later reflected on the meeting. “It was powerful to reflect on the learning journey and experience the process organically to deepen our understanding,” she shared. “And I’m excited about this pivotal chapter for Georgia Tech, as the College creates more impactful learning experiences and pathways to transformative education for communities around the globe!”

In the months ahead, the College will begin crafting a new strategic plan rooted in these ideas. Gaudelli encouraged everyone to take an active role in shaping the future. His closing challenge: learn something new in the coming month, and not for the skill alone, but for the insight into how you learn. That awareness, he said, is the foundation for building a true learning organization.