Odyssey Academy

(Online Education Services, 2026)

Journeying towards a new learning experience

The Odyssey Academy was an ambitious OES project with a tight three-week timeline to develop 24 modules (12 for students and 12 for host managers) along with all necessary evaluation, reflection tools, and supporting resources. The premise of the project was to create an alternative pathway to higher education, allowing students to be paid while they study. Participants commit to 38 hours per week, dedicating two days to study and three days to work in their field of interest, effectively replacing years of entry-level theory with high-impact on-the-job experience. Utilising Claude as our primary content and LMS development tool, our dedicated team, spread across South Africa and Australia, worked around the clock to ideate, test, and build the content. My main responsibilities included developing the host manager content to ensure alignment with student modules and planning the overarching themes for each week. Additionally, I supported our Learning Design Manager with daily planning and operations. 

I was also selected to serve as one of five host managers, to participate in the proof-of-concept trial of the program. During the 12 week program, I mentored and hosted a promising Odyssean by the name of Gisela, who was looking to move into the Learning Design field but had not formal qualifications. Instead, she brought a wealth of experience in Education and UX design.

After her initial onboarding, it became clear to me that she was a highly skilled individual and I tasked her with researching and redesigning our LMS 'shell' (template unit) to better meet the needs of our Federation Online students whilst also aiming to improve our retention statistics.

With support and guidance from myself and the team, Gisela set about researching and designing the necessary changes. The following video showcases the before and after versions of the Shell. These changes were so well received by the broader organisations that a plan has been made to rollout the upgrade for 2027.

As the host manager and Lead Learning Designer for the Federation Online team, I feel this is a great example of how I can utilise resources and opportunities to meet the strategic and commercial demands of my client/partnership and the broader business.