Elena Aguilar

Elena has trained thousands of educators across the United States and abroad in transformational coaching. She is the author of four highly acclaimed books: The Art of Coaching, (2013) and The Art of Coaching Teams, (2016) Onward: Cultivating Emotional Resilience in Educators (2018) and the Onward Workbook (2018). She is a regular contributor to Edutopia and ASCD’s Educational Leadership, and she was a blogger for EdWeek Teacher for many years.

Elena’s expertise derives from twenty five years as a classroom teacher, instructional coach and leadership coach working in diverse school environments. In her role as a consultant, she has partnered with leaders in public and private organizations across the United States and abroad. Elena is also the co-founder of Kenya Big Picture Learning, and she’s on the advisory board of UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center. Elena holds a BA in history and Latin American Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an MA in Anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley. She received her teaching credential from California State University, Hayward, and she also holds an administrative services credential. Elena lives in Oakland, California, with her husband, son, and two cats. When she’s not coaching or writing she enjoys traveling abroad, photographing birds, hiking, drinking coffee and reading fiction.