Who We Are

Heidi Larwick has over 15 years of experience working with nonprofits and is committed to collaborative processes, strategic visioning, innovative ideas, and sustainable planning. As the Executive Director, Heidi leads with passion, intention, and the belief that we can each make an impact around us. She is committed to creating a community where her two young children will have the opportunity to thrive, and where all children will have equitable access to opportunities. Heidi’s accolades include being a “20 Under 40” winner in 2017, a Register-Guard Innovation and Talent Winner in 2018, a TAO People’s Choice Finalist in 2018 & 2019, and was selected as a Silicon Shire Ambassador in 2020. When she is not breaking down barriers, she enjoys trail running, navigating the local food scene, playing team sports, and creating with her daughter and son.

Michelle Martin has over 25 years of experience as a Program Assistant for Lane ESD. She supports Connected Lane County and its workgroups, as well as managing Lane County truancy services for public schools and homeschool compliance. Michelle provides support to Connected Lane County’s Board of Directors and the many innovative projects and initiatives that Connected Lane County has created. In her free time, she enjoys camping and spending time with her family.

Becky–Jo is passionate about providing students access to educational opportunities. She is a previous volunteer mentor for ASPIRE Oregon, a program of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission, and she has volunteered with Connected Lane County as a Marketing Jam judge and as an event speaker. Becky–Jo served on the board of directors for Downtown Languages from 2017 to 2021 and as the board president from 2019 to 2021. In January 2021, she joined the board of directors for Centro Latino Americano and serves as the board secretary.

A proud Duck, Becky–Jo holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Oregon and a master’s of business administration from Northwest Christian University. She enjoys setting and striving to achieve goals, reading and learning new things, traveling, golfing, cooking, gardening, and spending time outdoors with her husband Josh and two dogs Mufasa and Albus.

Matt Hayes is the Data & Evaluation Coordinator for Connected Lane County and Lane ESD. He grew up in England but has lived in the United States for the last twenty-five years, having moved here to attend graduate school. He has over 15 years of experience in K12 education, beginning as a classroom teacher before moving to a data support position. In his current position, he provides data support, consultation, and collection services.

His work for CLC includes writing reports, running queries on our longitudinal dataset, survey building, and providing data support for the agency’s many programs. Matt serves on both the Oregon Data Warehouse Leader Group and the Oregon Data Suite Governance Committee. Matt lives with his wife, youngest son, and a seemingly ever-increasing family of animals. He has played guitar since he was in high school and continues to play local venues with his current band.

For over three years, Lizzie has been a vibrant, enthusiastic member of the Connected Lane County team. She is a Lane County native, a product of the Eugene 4J school district, and the Spanish Immersion program. Her academic achievements led her to the University of Portland, where she graduated in 2015 with degrees in Spanish and Sociology.

Now a seasoned member of the team, Lizzie’s passion and enthusiasm around equitable access to education for all students has grown stronger than ever. Though she doesn’t have any two-legged children of her own, Lizzie is an active and involved cat-mom to her boys Boomer and Gus. She enjoys going out to the Lane County wineries, biking to summer shows at the Cuthbert, and supporting local restaurants.

Christian is Connected Lane County’s Communications Coordinator, serving as the team’s go-to graphic designer, press release writer, video expert, and much more. Christian is happy to be part of the education sphere and bringing years of experience in media creation and design to the team.

An alumnus of the University of Portland, Christian moved from Portland to Eugene in 2019 to work with Connected Lane County. He enjoys photography, illustration, and gardening.

Brianna grew up on the Northern Oregon Coast and moved to Eugene to attend the University of Oregon, where she graduated with a degree in Psychology. Bringing half a decade of experience working with at-risk and low-income youth, she believes that connecting youth with college and career opportunities is an essential part of their basic education and can have a huge impact on their future. Outside of work, she loves the fall season (because it means decorating for Halloween) and attending football games at Autzen Stadium.

As a Project Coordinator, Justin helped bring SparkLab to life! He also works toward expanding the reach of digital literacy curriculum in Lane County. Justin brings years of experience coordinating maker spaces and engineering labs and uses hands-on design challenges and curriculum to support Lane County educators and students in exploring STEM curriculum and computer science pathways.

As a WIOA Case Manager, Jenna focuses on providing support and resources to youth and students facing barriers to accessing education and employment. Over recent years, she has worked closely with our community’s unhoused and at-risk youth and has witnessed the incredible opportunities that the WIOA program provides. She enjoys working alongside youth and students to break down barriers, connect to resources, and explore life opportunities.

As a Projects Assistant, Jenna’s role is to organize events and activities, as well as support the staff with programs offered across the county. Her background is in the environmental education field—focusing on connecting people with the natural world primarily through educator professional development, and programming. What she enjoys most about her role is making connections with the community, and working with the team to continue to engage and support youth, students, educators, and community members across Lane County.

As a Project Coordinator for Connected Lane County, Hilary is passionate about helping students succeed. She brings experience in education, program coordination, and community building.

Her background includes a Master’s in teaching from Pacific University and a Bachelor’s in International Studies from the University of Oregon. She exudes enthusiasm and positivity in everything she does.

When she’s not working, Hilary loves to try out new food trucks around town (always taking recommendations), ride her cargo bike with her kids, practice yoga, read, and spend time with her family anywhere outdoors.

Brice joined the Connected Lane County team as a project coordinator to further strengthen and grow the impact of Sparklab. Originally from Georgia, where he spent over a decade working as a technology and creative arts director, he decided to go west in 2017 to attend the University of Oregon. It was there that Brice received a Master’s of Nonprofit Management and developed a passion to use his education and diverse work experience to improve the lives of young learners.

Brice enjoys playing and writing music with fellow musicians around Eugene. On the weekend, you will find Brice and his 14-year-old border collie/corgi pup named Diesel in the woods or on the water somewhere exploring Oregon.

Sean grew up in Northern California and has spent the past decade in San Diego. He has years of experience inside the classroom and is dedicated to making a difference in the Eugene community. When he is not working he loves exploring the area with his dog Payton and loves to cook and tinker with flowers and plants.

As a Peer Support Specialist, Cheyenne uses her lived experience and training to help support those who struggle with navigating everyday life stressors, mental health, psychological trauma, and substance abuse. She has an educational background in Human Development and Family Science and Psychology from Oregon State University. In her free time she enjoys camping, star gazing, and spending time with her two dogs.

We’re looking for two Projects Assistants to:
➕ Provide program support to the Elevate and SparkLab programs.
➕ Assist in communication, outreach, and promotion efforts.
➕ Help youth access opportunities such as job shadows, internships, and mentorships.

Our team is high-energy, supportive, passionate, and driven to help local students and youth succeed. Do we sound like your dream team? Join us!

See the full posting below or visit the Lane ESD website to apply. Connected Lane County is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under the umbrella of Lane Education Service District (Lane ESD).