Hi, I’m Lisa, but a whole lot of people know me as Miss Moe.
Teacher · Keynote Speaker · Learning Innovation Strategist
Lead with people. Innovate with purpose.
High-energy keynotes and hands-on professional learning, built from real classrooms and one sentence: Yes YOU Can!
★ 2026 Riverside County Teacher of the Year
★ Featured on CBS’s Mission: Unstoppable, NBC Nightly News & GMA
★ Keynotes at CALIE (3,000+ educators), ISTE, FETC & IDEAcon
★ SB 1288 California Statewide AI Workgroup
I’m still a teacher. My classroom just got bigger.
My classroom was loud. Kids built things and coded them and argued about whose design was better. Small groups ran without me hovering. Somebody was always becoming the expert on something and then teaching everybody else how to do it, and somebody was always yelling because the thing finally worked. I spent a lot of time wanting to grab another adult in the hallway and say you have to come see this.
Those years taught me a lot about what happens when we make room for people to show us what they can do. They’re where “When we label, we limit” came from. They’re where I said “Yes YOU Can!” more times than I could ever count. They’re also where I learned that sometimes the best response to a new idea is simply, “Okay… what if we tried it?”
Before any of this, I was a UCLA undergrad making GIFs and memes in Conan O’Brien’s digital department, learning the digital and STEM side of entertainment. I wanted Conan’s job. So I took it into the classroom.
Today I’m an Educational Technology & Innovation Teacher on Special Assignment, working across K–12 alongside educators and leaders. I lead professional learning, teach future teachers, keynote, and bring a teacher’s voice into conversations about learning, AI literacy, computer science, STEAM, and digital literacy. I also advise education organizations on what they’re building.
The rooms keep changing, but I haven’t stopped being Miss Moe. I’m still curious. I still want to try the thing. I still get ridiculously excited when somebody figures out something they were sure they couldn’t do. I still believe we need to build with teachers, not around them.
I’m really glad you’re here.
Build with teachers, not around them.
WHEN WE LABEL, WE LIMIT.
One of my students walked into my classroom already carrying labels. Struggling learner. Below grade level. Then there was one that caught me off guard: he’s such a techie. Even that one, which should have been a spark, could work like a ceiling. Techie meant he was good with devices, the kid who could fix something, the one who knew where the setting was. It did not mean anyone looked at him and saw a mathematician, an engineer, a designer, a systems thinker, somebody you might actually build learning around. Computer science gets treated as an extra, a club, something for certain kids, instead of another way for a child to show you how they think.
Then he got his hands on a micro:bit and a Hummingbird. He coded lights, designed circuits, worked through logic, built things, troubleshot them, and he lit up. What stays with me is that the technology did not change him. He had always been that capable. What changed was what he had access to. He had the tools, he had time, he had trust, and he had another way to show us what was already there.
When the traditional assessment came back around, I could watch that spark dim. He experienced test anxiety, which is something I understand personally, and the distance between the kid I knew and what a standardized assessment could say about him became impossible for me to ignore. The assessment gave us information. It could not tell his whole story, and it could not show the kid who could break down a problem, understand a system, debug the thing that wasn’t working, and keep going until he had it.
It also could not show what happened next. Other students started going to him when their code wouldn’t work. Adults sought him out too, for a circuit that wasn’t behaving, a technology problem, a 3D print that refused to cooperate. Not because anyone assigned him the role of tech kid. Because he knew what he was doing, and in that space he knew that what he knew mattered.
This is part of why computer science matters so much to me. It isn’t only about technology careers. Sometimes it hands a kid another language for showing you how their brain works, and once you have seen that, it gets much harder to look at a score and pretend the score is the whole child.
He hadn’t suddenly become capable. He’d been capable the whole time. I was just finally getting to see more of him.
Moments worth watching
A few of the stages and stories, in my own words.
"Bridging Education & Innovation: SGVCUE Keynote"
Watch my SGVCUE 2024 keynote as I challenge labels, ignite creativity, and inspire educators to think beyond traditional teaching.
CBS Mission: Unstoppable
I was honored to be featured on CBS's Mission: Unstoppable as a leading female in STEM, sharing how I inspire students through innovation, equity, and hands-on learning in computer science and technology.
Calling All Angels Toy Drive
The Pay It Forward with Love Toy Drive, in collaboration with our Calling All Angels initiative, helped bring the holidays to families throughout the community. This project goes beyond the classroom, fostering compassion, connection, and the power of giving back.
The Deep End with Ed: Confidence in Students Through STEM
In this episode of The Deep End with Ed, I discuss the importance of building confidence in students through STEM education, fostering innovation, and creating inclusive learning environments.
NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt
On NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, my student Rumari shared how seeing himself represented in learning gave him confidence and purpose.
CUE Boom
In this CUE Boom talk, I challenge educators to rethink labels, embrace innovation, and create learning environments where every student feels seen and empowered. In just three minutes, I share how small shifts can lead to big transformations in the classroom.
A framework that came out of the work
Who was your first yes?
Most people can answer that in about four seconds. A teacher, a coach, an aunt, a neighbor, somebody who believed you could do a thing before you had any evidence to hand them.
For years I was the one saying “Yes YOU Can!” to kids, and I watched what happened when they started believing it. Eventually I started thinking about what comes before that belief has a chance to grow. Who says yes first? Who makes room for the idea? Who answers “what if” with curiosity instead of closing the door?
The Yes Standard
Schools set a standard for nearly everything. Reading, behavior, attendance, devices, curriculum. We almost never set one for the moment somebody brings us an idea that’s new, unfinished, or a little strange. That moment is a standard too.
Being the first yes does not mean saying yes to everything. It means meeting an unfinished idea with curiosity before shutting the door. Instead of that won’t work or we don’t have time, the first thing out of your mouth is let’s find out, or what problem are you trying to solve.
It’s a practice, not a program or an initiative. It came out of my own classroom, where saying yes to a half-formed idea kept turning into kids building things I hadn’t planned for.
Educators can be excited about innovation and still be unsure where it fits inside an already full instructional day. That’s why this starts with instructional purpose instead of tools, so innovation strengthens what teachers already teach rather than landing as one more thing on top.
Featured Work & Recognitions
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Featured Work & Recognitions *
Recognition & Media
2026 Riverside County Teacher of the Year (Watch the video) · 2025 SB 1288 California Statewide AI Workgroup Member · 2025 ASU+GSV AI Innovator · 2024 UCLA Extra Yard for Teachers Award Recipient · 2023–2024 CSTA Equity Fellow (now the CSTA IMPACT Fellowship) · Adobe Creative Educator Innovator · micro:bit Champion · IACUE Blended & Online Educator of the Year · Kami, Brisk, Snorkl & Wayground Certified Educator · Infosys Foundation USA Pathfinders Summer Institute, 2021 & 2022 · 2020 Edwin Carr Fellow
Where you may have seen me
CBS’s Mission: Unstoppable · Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, HLN · California Department of Education AI Series · Authority Magazine: “CSTA’s Lisa Moe on Pushing the Boundaries of AI” · CSTA: “Making a Positive Impact on STEAM with CSTA Equity Fellow Lisa Moe”
Leadership & service
Educator Member, SB 1288 California Statewide AI Workgroup · Instructor, pre-service teacher preparation · Induction coach for new teachers · Steering Committee, CAL-MSCS (California Mathematics, Science & Computer Science) · Co-facilitator, CSTA’s One Voice in CS podcast · Professional learning for Riverside County Office of Education, Alvord, Riverside, and Lennox Unified
What Educators & Leaders Are Saying
“Lisa Moe isn’t just a speaker, she’s an experience.
With a decade of navigating the ups and downs of education, she brings a rare blend of authenticity, passion, and resilience to every stage she steps onto. As a practitioner, she doesn’t just talk about impact, she lives it. Her deep relationships with students and her ability to MOEtivate audiences set her apart, making her message not just inspiring, but deeply relatable. Lisa has a gift for making educators see themselves in her journey, leaving them energized, empowered, and ready to take action. If you want a speaker who truly connects, Lisa Moe is the one.”
- Dr. Sabba Quidwai, CEO Designing Schools
“What truly distinguished her was how deeply she cared about the human element of integrating technology with her students… Lisa is, at her core, a builder of confidence. Her students do not just learn in her classroom—they fall in love with learning.”
– Tim Green, PhD, Professor and Co-Director, MS in Educational Technology, California State University, Fullerton
“In my 20 year journey as the founder of the No Excuses University Network of Schools, I have been impressed with thousands of teachers across this nation. However, none have been more enthusiastic about changing the lives of children more than Lisa Moe. From the use of technology to inspire students, to the passing on best practices to staff members through professional development, Lisa possesses an array of talents deeply needed in our field. Her positive attitude is infectious and her commitment to results makes her a true professional. I’m fortunate to call her a colleague and friend.”
- Damen Lopez, Founder of No Excuses University
NOW BOOKING THE 2026–27 SEASON
Tell me what you're planning
Keynotes, professional learning, workshops, partnerships, panels, and media. I work with conferences, schools, districts, universities, and education organizations.
On product work: I'll review and advise honestly. I don't sell praise, endorsements, or positive reviews.
Yes YOU Can!
I’ve said it to students more times than I could ever count. The best part was watching them start to say it about themselves.
