Sue Ly is an instructional designer who creates eLearning and performance-focused training. Sue describes moving from high school art teaching into a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision.
Sue Ly is most useful for eLearning and performance-focused training design in corporate learning contexts.
Best for
Corporate e-learning projects that turn complex internal processes into engaging, learner-centered training modules.
Not for
General consumer goods or lifestyle campaigns outside education, instructional design, and digital learning.
Key takeaways
Sue compares a farmers-market charcuterie board to eLearning: details should help learners apply what they learn.
They review a Vyond course and share portfolios and software resources for people entering instructional design.
They moved from high school art teaching to Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist at VSP Vision.
Check first: Confirm formal commercial partnership, sponsored content, or official collaboration routes.
Main ideas
Design rooted in holistic experience and intentionality · Advocacy for technical breadth and modern digital tools · Curating and upholding high standards in ID portfolios
Sue Ly is an instructional designer who writes about eLearning, performance-focused training, and the move from teaching into the field.
They describe leaving a high school art-teaching role for a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist position at VSP Vision.
Their posts offer a practical view of the profession: designing around the learner’s experience, developing visual skills such as Vyond animation, and finding examples and tools that can help people entering instructional design.
Follow Sue for reflections on this work and resources for exploring the field.
Sue connects instructional design to concrete choices about clarity, usefulness, and experience.
In one post, a carefully arranged farmers-market charcuterie board prompts a comparison to designing eLearning: details should contribute to an experience that helps learners apply what they learn.
Other posts show a complementary, resource-sharing side: they review a Vyond course and highlight portfolios and software resources for people transitioning into instructional design.
Sue Ly focuses on high-impact corporate learning design, digital creation, and a holistic design philosophy.
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They advocate for moving beyond basic content delivery to create engaging, purpose-driven experiences for learners and customers. Their approach combines strategic work in large organizations, proficiency with tools like Vyond, and a commitment to high creative standards.
Design rooted in holistic experience and intentionality
Sue Ly argues that successful design—whether an eLearning module or a charcuterie board—depends on attention to detail and every element contributing to the experience.
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The goal is not just to convey information, but to make the experience satisfying and useful for learners and users.
At a local farmers market, Sue Ly reflected on how the care behind an aesthetically pleasing food item mirrors instructional design: every ingredient needs a purpose and a place in the overall experience.
Advocacy for technical breadth and modern digital tools
Sue Ly argues that instructional designers need to keep up with technology and software to meet the demands of complex learning and development projects.
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They learn creative tools and share industry resources with their professional network.
They recently completed a '2D Character Animation with Vyond' course, highlighting how animation tools support visual storytelling in modern instruction. They also shared comprehensive lists of '60 Best Instructional Design Software Tools' to support others’ professional development.
Curating and upholding high standards in ID portfolios
Sue Ly advocates for critical evaluation of professional work and highlights instructional designers whose portfolios show finesse.
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They argue that impactful educational content combines pedagogy, technology, and user experience (UX).
They recommend portfolios by designers like Cath Ellis, noting how the creator combines technology and pedagogy to make complex subjects accessible and engaging.
Strategic application within large-scale corporate environments
After moving from high school education into a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision, Sue Ly emphasizes innovative, engaging, purpose-driven training at scale.
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They see corporate L&D as a way to support employees’ growth and contribute to a positive workplace culture.
On their first anniversary at VSP Vision, they described creating engaging, fun training that supports the company's mission to help people see better and lead healthier lives.
Start here to understand Sue Ly’s career path and current role in the corporate health sector, and how they apply curriculum design skills in a corporate setting.
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Sue Ly reflects on moving from high school art teaching to a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision. They describe five core aspects of their current role, including designing engaging training and contributing to a positive company culture.
For brands planning a campaign
For a corporate L&D brief, this establishes professional credibility through experience at VSP Vision and work in a growth-oriented, purpose-driven environment.
This piece illustrates their broader design ethos: an approach grounded in practical observation and real-world experience.
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At a farmers market, Sue Ly reflected on instructional design, writing that effective design—whether in eLearning or a handcrafted product—requires attention to detail, intentionality, and a focus on the learner’s experience.
For brands planning a campaign
This signals a user-centered design philosophy. For clients, it suggests they go beyond content delivery to focus on the learner’s experience (UX), a key consideration in high-impact training.
This post shows their commitment to professional development and to keeping up with the technical and visual tools used in instructional design.
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Sue Ly describes completing a course on 2D Character Animation with Vyond. They highlight its clear structure, engaging instruction, and practical application of tools in visual storytelling.
For brands planning a campaign
This demonstrates their experience with eLearning authoring and animation tools, including Vyond. For projects requiring dynamic or visually rich content, they can apply visual techniques using the tool.
This post shows their engagement with the instructional design community and their understanding of benchmarks for excellence in the field.
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Sue Ly shared a curated list of four instructional designers with outstanding portfolios, highlighting work in technology integration, storytelling, user experience, and visual simplicity.
For brands planning a campaign
This positions them as a thought leader and critical observer in the field. In project discussions, they can draw on these benchmarks to guide decisions about innovation and design quality.
Readers interested in the technology and resources used in modern eLearning will find a useful overview of current industry practices.
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Sue Ly shared iSpring Solutions’ list of “60 Best Instructional Design Software Tools and Resources,” covering authoring, project management, and learning experience creation.
For brands planning a campaign
This indicates familiarity with the technical ecosystem used by professional instructional designers. Ask which tools they have used in client projects to assess fit and onboarding needs.
Sue Ly says the best designs, whether in instructional design or physical crafts, prioritize the user’s complete experience.
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Their approach makes content clear, engaging, and useful enough for learners to apply what they have learned.
For brands planning a campaign
Ideal for brands seeking training or eLearning grounded in user experience, with clear, actionable content that leaves learners with a positive impression.
The creator knows 2D character animation software such as Vyond and keeps up with broader industry resources.
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They share comprehensive lists of instructional design software and tools, from eLearning authoring packages to project management solutions.
For brands planning a campaign
Best suited to projects requiring visually engaging instructional media, such as explainer videos, or complex curricula developed with a diverse, modern technology stack.
After moving from teaching into a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision, Sue Ly has focused on designing engaging, innovative training at scale.
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Their work centers on fostering a positive company culture and creating purpose-driven growth opportunities for employees.
For brands planning a campaign
Suitable for large organizations seeking scalable, high-impact corporate training that aligns professional development with organizational values and career growth pathways.
Benchmarking and Innovation in ID Portfolio Design
The creator highlights instructional designers whose portfolios integrate technology, storytelling, and user experience (UX) principles into learning materials.
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For brands planning a campaign
Relevant when a creator’s innovative aesthetic and distinctive design perspective can elevate a brand’s learning materials.
Sue Ly describes their work as a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist at VSP Vision.
VSP Vision
Employment
Sue says they moved from high school art teaching to a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision and celebrated a year there.
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The post highlights training projects and team collaboration.
Sue Ly's posts offer a working record of a career move into corporate instructional design.
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Their first-anniversary reflection on moving from high school art teaching to a senior curriculum instructional design role at VSP Vision lays out the projects, team, and purpose-driven training work that now occupy much of their attention.
A farmers market post explains the design conviction behind that work: every element should have a reason to be there, and the learner's experience matters more than an information dump.
Two other posts show how they keep their toolkit current—a review of a Vyond 2D character animation course and a share of a 60-tool instructional design software list—while a portfolio roundup points to designers whose technology-plus-pedagogy work they hold up as a standard.
Read the anniversary post for context, the farmers market post for philosophy, and the tool and portfolio posts for practical habits to borrow.
Instructional designeLearningLearning and developmentCurriculum design2D character animationLearner experienceTransitioning teachers
Both work where instructional design meets eLearning production, writing for the people who build courses as well as those who buy them.
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Galena White speaks directly to eLearning developers and instructional designers, arguing that the voice track carries educational content and can make or break learner engagement—a focus that parallels Sue Ly's attention to the parts of a course learners actually experience.
Galena White specializes in British voiceover for K-12, STEM, and corporate narration, focusing on audio performance and narration craft rather than curriculum architecture or tool selection. Sue Ly's posts center on designing and developing training, including work with authoring tools and animation software.
Robbie Christian also came to instructional design from a teaching career and treats learning and development as a human-centered practice.
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Both reflect publicly on what teaching in another setting taught them about designing better training, and both recommend stretching beyond a single specialty to gain a broader perspective.
Robbie Christian began with more than a decade as a scuba diving instructor, and their writing draws on mentorship, community, and the value of returning to teach an unfamiliar course. Sue Ly's writing is more product- and project-oriented, focused on corporate curriculum, animation tools, and portfolio standards.
Staci Lapis, like Sue Ly, moved from classroom teaching into design work and frames the transition around learner access and equity.
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Both are former teachers who now build learning products and consider who benefits from the design.
Staci Lapis works on the UX, visual design, and product side, including the Studywavve student collaboration app, and writes openly about seeking entry-level design roles across UX, AI, and EdTech. Sue Ly works within a corporate L&D function, where curriculum and training delivery are the visible outputs.
Sue Ly's content serves instructional designers and people transitioning into eLearning.
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Their posts offer educators practical advice on design tools and professional development in the learning and development sector, including 2D animation for instruction, course creation, and learning experience design.
Sue Ly's posts focus on their professional milestones, transition from high school art teacher to Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist at VSP Vision, and recommendations for instructional design tools and professional development.
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Ask about formal commercial partnerships, sponsored content, or official collaboration routes.
A corporate e-learning project that redesigns a complex internal process as a visually engaging, character-driven training module. The goal is to turn dry company policies into a user-centric experience learners can confidently apply on the job.
Fit decision
Strong Fit
Reason
Sue Ly is well suited to organizations seeking sophisticated, engaging digital training programs. Their background combines corporate experience as Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist at VSP Vision with technical skills, including mastery of tools like Vyond and industry-standard ID software. Their focus on learner experience (UX) helps make training informative, practical and memorable.
When to choose a specialist
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Campaign angle
A campaign for a general consumer goods company, such as an athletic wear or beverage brand. It would ask them to speak beyond their specialized professional context, risking inauthentic messaging that could alienate their core audience of educators and L&D professionals.
Fit decision
No Fit
Reason
Sue Ly's professional work focuses on education, instructional design and digital learning development, with interests rooted in professional learning and pedagogy. Their expertise lies in the design and delivery of professional learning, not product consumption, making them a poor fit for mass-market consumer endorsements or general lifestyle campaigns.
A worked campaign example
Brief
Client: Fortune 500 Healthcare Firm (Corporate L&D Team). Goal: Develop a 5-minute onboarding module that teaches new managers core compliance protocols and makes the process engaging rather than punitive.
Deliverables
Structured curriculum outline focused on application
Workflow for tool integration, such as how Vyond connects to the LMS
Demonstration of UX principles in content mapping
Strategy
Sue Ly could draw on their knowledge of 2D animation and instructional design to replace a text-heavy compliance course with a learner-centric module. A Vyond-style animated persona would guide users through the compliance steps, framing each point around “What this means for the learner,” rather than simply stating the policy. This approach serves the corporate need for clear communication while supporting high-quality visual storytelling.
Consider Robbie for a role requiring eLearning design and development experience alongside teaching experience.
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In a post about returning to scuba instruction, Robbie reflects on how teaching a course from scratch differs from teaching advanced material—a useful perspective on course sequence and flow.
The available posts do not show a sample eLearning course or the depth of Robbie’s current course-development work. Before choosing between Robbie and Sue Ly, ask to review a relevant course and clarify which parts Robbie designed and built.
Consider Staci if the project is closer to designing a digital learning product than developing a conventional eLearning course.
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Staci describes Studywavve, an education app with resource discovery, student matching, virtual meetups, and assignment feedback—evidence relevant to product features and learner interaction.
The post describes an app concept and its features, not a completed eLearning course or course-development process.
For a standard corporate course-development brief, Sue Ly’s posts provide more directly relevant evidence of instructional design work.
Review Staci’s portfolio before treating the app as proof of production experience.
Five public posts on LinkedIn cover Sue Ly's career transition into a Senior Curriculum Instructional Design Specialist role at VSP Vision, professional standards in instructional design, technical advocacy for creative tools and software, and a design philosophy centered on holistic learner experience and intentionality.
