About Us
Why We Started Connected Pathways:
Connected Pathways was founded out of real experience inside schools.
Across classrooms, student services offices, and district leadership roles, we saw the same challenge repeated again and again:
Schools had dedicated people, multiple initiatives, and strong intentions—but those systems weren’t always connected.
Behavior supports lived separately from relationship-building.
Safety processes lived separately from student support.
Staff were expected to respond to complex situations without clear alignment or shared language.
The result was often reactivity, inconsistency, and burnout, not because schools weren’t trying hard enough, but because the systems weren’t designed to work together.
Connected Pathways was created to change that.
Our work focuses on alignment over addition, clarity over confusion, and helping schools connect behavior systems, support structures, and safety practices into one cohesive framework that is practical, proactive, and sustainable.
OUR TEAM
Cyndi Weitzel is an experienced educational leader with more than two decades of service supporting students, families, educators, and school systems at the classroom, school, and district levels.
Her professional background includes experience with Exceptional Student Education (ESE), Autism, Emotional Behavioral Disability (EBD), gifted education, behavior intervention, MTSS implementation, staff training, and district-wide behavior leadership. Cyndi currently serves in district leadership, where she supports behavior systems, coaches school-based teams, and serves as a Deputy District Threat Management Coordinator.
Throughout her career, Cyndi has been deeply committed to students with complex needs, bringing together structure, compassion, and data-informed decision-making to improve outcomes while maintaining dignity and care.
Cyndi co-founded Connected Pathways with the belief that strong systems create calm schools, and that safety and support are not competing priorities, but interconnected responsibilities.
Cyndi Weitzel
Co-Founder | Educator
Ryan Chase is a nationally recognized school leader currently serving as the Principal of Sarasota High School. He was recognized as the 2026 NASSP Florida High School Principal of the Year and 2025 Sarasota County Principal of the Year, reflecting his commitment to student success, inclusive school culture, and systems-driven leadership.
Ryan’s leadership experience spans middle and high school administration, with a strong focus on graduation outcomes, behavior systems, mentoring initiatives, and community partnerships. Under his leadership, schools have achieved historic gains in graduation rates, school culture, and student engagement.
As both an educational leader and a parent of a child with a disability, Ryan brings a unique dual perspective to Connected Pathways, grounding the work in empathy, accountability, and the belief that schools must work for every student.
Ryan co-founded Connected Pathways to help schools build aligned systems that support students, empower staff, and strengthen trust across school communities.
Ryan Chase
Co-Founder | Educator
When systems are connected, people thrive.
At Connected Pathways, we believe:
All behavior is is a form of communication
Relationships reduce risk
Clear systems support confident decisions
Prevention is built through connection, not fear
Schools don’t need more programs—they need stronger alignment
We partner with schools ready to move forward with intention, clarity, and care.