As a special educator with over thirty five years in the field of education, my passion has always been to help youth lead their best lives. Through my work with marginalized and special needs students, I have consistently researched ways to remove the barriers that impede learning to educate the whole child. My career as a teacher, administrator and senior executive have afforded me the opportunity to design innovative programs that transform the educational experience. Blending best practice from special education, social emotional learning, applied neuroscience, science of learning and child development theory has resulted in leveraging conditions that facilitate a whole child approach.

Kelly currently serves as an Educational Advocate assisting families navigate the special education arena. Kelly has served as Chief Organizational Learning Officer at the Children’s Guild, a non-profit child-serving organization from 1996 until 2021. Under Kelly’s leadership, her school received the Character Education Award twice and recognized by Maryland State Department of Education as an Exemplar School for Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports for seven years. Kelly co-authored the book Jazzing Up Instruction: An Integrated Curriculum for Elementary Students. Most recently, Kelly has partnered with the Cal Ripken Foundation and adapted the STEM curriculum to facilitate ease of implementation with every student.