Meet Craig Wingerson, Training Specialist

Craig Wingerson is a training specialist for the Capitol Visitor Center. Craig joined the Visitor Center team in 2021 after 21 years at the Walt Disney World Resort, in various staff learning and development capacities. This past August, Craig’s colleagues recognized his outstanding performance with the agency’s Employee of Excellence award. We spoke with Craig about his role at the CVC, and his interesting career journey.

1.???? What do you do as a training specialist for the Capitol Visitor Center?

I help lead all training initiatives for staff. Our team plans and executes all kinds of training programs, but my central focus is onboarding new staff. All newly hired staff attend a week-long orientation program called Foundations. I helped lead the design and implementation of this program, which combines required training with content to help new staff feel prepared and comfortable in their new roles. The program includes an introduction to our organization’s mission, vision, and operating standards, so new staff can immediately be immersed in working at the Capitol.

2.???? When did your passion for training begin?

I always wanted to be a teacher when I was a kid, but I wasn’t exactly sure what kind or where. I didn’t even know that the field of adult education and training existed! My first experience with training was in the resort hotels and Walt Disney World. Watching people grasp concepts and tasks —and then using those skills to create memorable experiences for guests and visitors—was very rewarding to me.

In school, I learned the process and technique behind adult learning, and how to combine my passion for people with the education and research behind it. Now I get to create and deliver those training experiences to Visitor Center staff at one of the most recognized buildings in the world: the U.S. Capitol. I love being a part of making that come alive for people.

3.???? What is your training philosophy?

“Make them want to come back tomorrow!”

We can design the greatest training program in the world to equip staff members with the knowledge, skills and tools to do their jobs, but my philosophy also includes instilling the passion around this. I want training to prepare people, but also to create a culture of connectedness and value.

People-centered training can establish an environment where it’s safe to ask questions, safe to be unsure, and safe to explore new paths. Although it’s incredibly important to train necessary job skills, at the end of the day I want people to feel excited to come back.

I like to say that when my participants finish their training and their loved ones ask, “how did it go?” I want them to say, “I made the right decision to work here, and I can’t wait to go back tomorrow!”

4.???? What are you most proud of?

I’m most proud of my participants. Seeing other people learn and excel fills me with joy. I’ve trained individuals who eventually become promoted to positions above me. I can sit back and think that maybe, just maybe, I was a small part of that. It is a true privilege to watch that happen.

5.???? Do you have any advice for someone interested in a career in training and development?

Training is a role where you put others first. Anyone interested in this as a career should be ready to pour energy into helping others succeed.

There is plenty of literature and research to learn the science behind adult learning. I would encourage someone to do that. But it’s more than experts like Knowles, Maslow, and Bloom (educators and learning theorists who contributed to the field of training). It is a passion for people. And it’s exciting to take a back-seat role when those you’ve trained begin to fly on their own, you get to sit in the audience and watch them succeed!

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