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Opening Day Speaker for Educational Service Center

Honored and Privileged to Kickoff the School Year with Educational Leaders in Ohio

I was the keynote speaker to kickoff the 2023-2024 School Year for The North Central Ohio Educational Service Center Administrative Retreat 2023. Wow! What a fantastic group of leaders and phenomenal organization!

It was an honor to speak at The North Central Ohio Educational Service Center Administrative Retreat 2023 in Tiffin, Ohio this August to kickoff the school year with these amazing educational leaders. As an educator I always felt the praise from students and families for my work in the classroom; I am not certain that is quite the same for administrators. They work long hours and the messages they receive are too often urgent and not always as positive. Still, without a doubt, educational leaders such as principals, assistant principals, superintendents and all of the various Director roles are 100% needed and positively impact the lives of everyone in the district. If they are doing their job well, they aren’t getting the spotlight and their positions are probably misunderstood because they are intentionally directing the recognition to teachers and others. In many ways our educational leadership teams are the unsung heroes.

It is for those reasons and many more, that it is such an honor to be a keynote speaker to them. To give them the praise, recognition and acknowledgment they really do need, but do not seek. In my presentation, I try to get them to laugh and have some lighthearted look at the zaniness but importance of their work, and to keep them aligned to their true calling: to make a difference in the lives of children. Educational leaders clear roadblock for teachers, so teaches can do their best work. They create learning environments so everyone can do their best work.

It was a privilege to speak to these leaders to kickoff their year, acknowledge their work, inspire and help set the stage for their best year yet.

Educational Service Center kickoffs  are particularly inspiring because of the opportunity for people across the area to meet, share, inspire and network solutions to our greatest challenges. Sometimes they don’t get to see each other in person very often.

This conference was memorable because I got to see some familiar faces I have not seen in a long time. Wow, does time fly. So many amazing leaders. I even had lunch with a team from Richwood Schools.

Everyone at this Administrative Retreat was able to choose one of my two books to take home with them for free. I signed a lot of copies of Along Came a Leader and Unthink Before Bed. That was really fun. I also got to meet BASA’s spokesman on legislative updates.

I also learned a great deal from breakout sessions on a variety of initiatives schools across the region are implementing. It is great to hear about the most innovative implementations from schools in Ohio. I am leaving very inspired and with lots of ideas to share with my colleagues.

Even though I missed my district’s own North Point Educational Service Center Administrative Retreat this year, it was fun to represent my district and my region and keynote this event. Both NPESC and NCOESC do incredible work. We need our ESCs. They are important.

I am blessed and thankful for opportunities to learn and to speak and share! I am always hopeful for more.

Prioritize this takeaway: I believe there is no moat between teachers and administrators and that we are all on one team. Every interaction widens or narrows that moat. (You know, like moats around a castle.) No more moats! We need everyone! Our educational teams need to expand and grow. We need to talk more about how we all work together for the common goal to impact lives. Respect each other’s role. Take time to care, listen and connect. I love education. I was so impressed with all I met and their passion for education.

Always forward,

Kelly

I am a professional speaker, and I would like to speak at your event.

Order Kelly’s books, Along Came a Leader and Unthink Before Bed: A Children’s Book on Mindfulness for your personal library.

Educator, Author, Keynote Speaker
Twitter: @kellycroy
Instagram: @kcroy
Website: kellycroy.com and wirededucator.com
Podcast: The Wired Educator Podcast
and of course: Facebook.

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My Secret Board of Directors

A Collection of Amazing People Who Unknowingly Guide Many of My Decisions

I have a secret board of directors. They unknowingly guide many of my decisions. They are without a doubt the greatest assembly of mind, virtue and practice ever collected. I kid you not.

I assembled them years ago after being inspired by the writings of Dale Carnegie, Brian Tracy and Andy Andrews.

Just imagine if you had access to the sharpest minds in the world, or in all of history, to offer you advice in the areas of finance, health, relationships, professional success or whatever decision you are currently facing. Well, you do.

These board members I assembled were at first were just people I admired and whose point of view and values I would apply to major decisions I was facing. Some of them from history, long since deceased, and others so famous and successful that I would be unable to gain actual access to them. Still, I could study their lives. Their work. I could learn from their lessons, and I could apply their success and failures to my own life. And… I have.

This idea of a secret board of directors began to take on new iterations over time. I wondered, “What if I could ask them real questions and get immediate feedback?” I studied my friend circle and the connections I had made over the years and started categorizing acquaintances in particular categories that I admired. I would send them scenarios or questions and they readily shared their thoughts. I then shared their ideas with others in the same category of brilliance to gauge their response and development of the ideas.

 

In deep reflection, I would pose a questions to my diverse board. Perhaps I was making an expensive purchase for the family, what would my assembled board say, and how would they vote. These are big life questions, not grocery shopping mind you. I would journal the names of my ‘acting’ board. Pose the question. (Applying for a job, buying a home, etc,) I’d jot down notes of different perspectives, and tally the votes. Maybe this sounds crazy, but it works. You can’t consider every perspective or you’d remain indecisive.

My secret board of directors has served me well. Perhaps you are on mine. Seriously. You wouldn’t know. Click to Read More

 

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Along Came a Leader: My Zoom Visit with Fairview Park City School District’s Book Club

Last week I had the honor of being invited by the Fairview Park City Schools book club to discuss my book, Along Came a Leader: A Personal and Professional Guide to Leadership. I was thrilled to connect with fellow educators who share my passion for leadership and education. Our virtual discussion on the Zoom platform was a rewarding experience, and I was grateful for the chance to share my insights and learn from others.

During our conversation, we delved into the challenges educators face and how leadership can help overcome these obstacles while inspiring students. I drew from my experiences in coaching, teaching, and writing to offer practical strategies and techniques for fostering positive and productive cultures and promote the six tenets of leadership from my book.

As a speaker and educator, I am passionate about inspiring others to become better leaders. I firmly believe that everyone has the potential to be a great leader, and my goal is to empower individuals and organizations to achieve their full potential. By sharing my insights, I hope to help others unlock their leadership potential and create a lasting impact on their communities.

The book club, comprised of educators, administrators and staff members asked some incredible questions. One teacher asked me what my biggest struggle with leadership was. My answer was  ‘accountability’ and I explained my challenges of holding myself personally accountable and helping to maintain accountability within an organization without coming across as a jerk. Everyone seemed to appreciate my candor and sense of humor. I was also asked about how I addressed loyalty in the book. One teacher really appreciate that I highlighted the difference and importance of placing loyalty in virtues about people. People change. We have a duty to be loyal to virtues. We can love people even when they make mistakes, but when those mistakes hurt others, our loyalty must always stay with the virtue. Now, loyalty in relationships is different and a mark of integrity. Don’t confuse personal and professional loyalties. They are not the same. They should not be intertwined. We need virtuous leaders of the highest level of integrity to have the courage to identify a wrong as wrong and work collaboratively to correct it, without allowing friendships to interfere.

I really enjoyed talking to the large group and it is always an honor when someone reads your book and wants to talk to you about how it impacted them. Wow! I am never taking that for granted. What a great afternoon! Click to Read More

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Speaker at the COSSBA Conference in Tampa!

Honored to Speak at The National Conference for the Consortium of State School Boards Associations, Tampa, Florida

It was an honor to speak at The National Conference for the Consortium of State School Boards Associations last weekend in Tampa, Florida.

National Conferences are particularly inspiring because of the opportunity for people across the nation to share, inspire and network solutions to our greatest challenges.

This conference was memorable because I co-presented with my superintendent, Pat Adkins. Our presentation highlighted the great work our district’s staff is doing at Port Clinton Schools. Pat led the presentation and absolutely inspired our audience with the amazing initiatives happening in our district. Our title was “Safe, Healthy and Learning! How Leaders Can Prioritize and Implement Solutions to Improve the Safety and Wellness of Students, Staff and Family as a Crucial Component of On-Going Learning.” Click to Read More

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Don’t Just Talk About Leadership, Teach It

Recent Speaking Event, Two Books to Recommend, and a Shout-Out to Colleagues and Student-Leaders!

This past week, I had the privilege and honor to be one of the speakers at the Sandusky Bay Conference Leadership Summit for Youth Leaders, along with my superintendent, Pat Adkins, and other experts from our region. We led sessions to help student-leaders understand that leadership is more than a title, taught them what sportsmanship really is, and offered alternatives and direction when adversity arrives.

The student-leaders were amazing! We really need to give young adults more praise and opportunity. I was incredibly impressed with their attentiveness, appreciation, ideas, and leadership. The students shared some poignant challenges: too much drama in their sport, unruly fans, unsupportive family, poor role models and more! They also shared solutions and ideas that made me leave with great hope that we are in good hands with these future leaders.

Too often, I believe, parents, teachers, coaches, advisors, and community leaders have expectations from students on leadership but rarely take the time to teach and train them on ways to deliver. Everybody values leadership, but they are hoping, or expecting, someone else to take care of it. That’s why I think a day like this Sandusky Bay Conference Leadership Summit for Youth Leaders is so important. The leaders of the SBC, like our awesome Athletic Director, Rick Dominick,  believe leadership and sportsmanship are important enough to schedule it, plan it, and offer it to schools in our region. Kudos to all who accepted and participated. I believe over 400 students attended. The students now have a lot of great leadership tools to take back to their teams and district to not only apply in their lives, but to teach other.

What a great day! I wish that I could have attended the other sessions as well and learned from the other speakers.

One of the reasons I wrote my first book, Along Came a Leader, Click to Read More

 

 

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3 Ways to Get Better Mileage Out of Your Attitude

Your attitude is important, a choice, and malleable.

Attitude is king.

There are thousands of areas in your life in which you could improve, but I firmly believe the most important area everyone must focus on first is their attitude. In fact, I believe that you could master all of the other qualities, yet maintain a bad attitude and you will fail as a leader and at life. Your attitude is that important!

Conversely, I believe, you could fail at all of the other qualities, yet keep a great attitude, and you will rise to levels of success.

Attitude is king.

You already possess an attitude. How is it working for you? Are you self aware? Are you able to take a step back and reflect on whether your attitude is helping you or hindering you?

Here are three ways to get more mileage out of your attitude just like a car: Click to Read More

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I’m Keynoting NJECC, The 37th Annual New Jersey State Wide Educational Technology Conference

I am excited to share that I will be the keynote speaker for the NJECC, 37th Annual State Wide Educational Technology Conference this March. This is an in-person conference at Montclair State University in New Jersey. I am proud to share my message and represent my state and school district. This will be a great event. I know other Apple Distinguished Educators have spoken at this conference in the past.

I have prepared a new presentation to share with this audience, with a touch of the fun from some earlier presentations, and I am absolutely excited to bring some energy and fun to an amazing group of educators, essential staff, and leaders! Looking forward to New Jersey. Thankful and humbled for this opportunity.

NJECC’s Theme: Leading, Inspiring and Transforming Education through Technology

NJECC’s mission is to Click to Read More

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Eleven Life-Changing Hacks Learned from Blockbuster Movies

Number 2 Will Impact Your Life immediately.

I love movies, and I am dedicated to learning ways to improve my life. I had some fun in this post examining how elements of blockbuster movies may be applied to our lives for our own personal betterment and everyone around us.

Movie studios spend ten-of-millions of dollars to deliver an out-of-this-world experience for their audiences. They know the secrets to design an experience like no other, that gets the most out of the time you are in your seat. Well, many of those secret tricks can be applied to our lives to help us design a more dynamic life and improve each day.

Here are eleven life-changing hacks I learned from blockbuster movies to design a more dynamic life: Click to Read More