ABOUT KELLY CROY

Educator.
Author.
Ambassador
of Awesome.

Thirty-Five years of transforming teaching and learning — from rural Ohio classrooms to stages on four continents. Twenty-six years in the classroom as an English teacher and nine years as Director of Innovation & Instruction supporting and serving all staff, Kelly Croy is an educator who has grown his classroom to help people level-up and make a greater difference in the lives of others.

Cute black kitten sitting with a white background

From the Classroom
to the World Stage

Kelly Croy is a globally recognized speaker, author, and host of the Wired Educator Podcast, where he interviews the world's most influential educators, leaders and innovators.

He taught English for 26 years at both secondary and college levels, and now serves Port Clinton City Schools as Director of Innovation and Instruction — bringing the same passion for transformation to district leadership that he brought to every classroom.

"I love to speak and inspire. Every stage is an opportunity to help someone unlock what they didn't know was possible."

With four published works and an international speaking schedule spanning London, Moscow, Mexico, Iceland, the Philippines, and beyond — Kelly is relentlessly dedicated to helping educators and leaders unlock their full potential.

CURRENT ROLE

Director of Innovation & Instruction

Port Clinton City Schools

PODCAST

The Wired Educator

260+ Episodes

A man in a suit speaking at a conference with a large screen behind him displaying a quote and animal silhouettes. The quote reads, "Educators are my favorite species" attributed to Kelly Croy.

RECOGNITION

Honored by the Best

  • Apple logo in black and orange.

    Apple Distinguished Educator

    Recognized by Apple for innovative use of technology to transform teaching and learning — a select global community of educators who are leaders in educational innovation.

  • A black letter G inside an orange circle.

    Google Certified Innovator

    Awarded Google's highest educator honor, recognizing Kelly's commitment to using technology to reimagine education and drive meaningful change in schools.

  • An orange circular play button icon with a black triangle in the center pointing to the right.

    PBS Digital Innovator

    Selected as a PBS Digital Innovator for outstanding contributions to digital learning and technology integration in public education across the country.


INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES

A Global Voice
for Education

From London to the Philippines, from Iceland to Berlin — Kelly has delivered keynotes on four continents, bringing his message of creative leadership to educators around the world.

  1. 2025 Jeffrey Powell Mobile Learning Conference, July 2025 Norhtheast Mississippi Community College. Educators from Around the Globe.

  2. OSIRIS World Education Summit, 2023 (3 Presentations as Featured Speaker), 2021, Conference Speaker, London, England

  3. LearnFest Conference, Mexico, 2021, Keynote Speaker

  4. Keynote Speaker for Moscow School of Economics, Russia, 2021

  5. Keynote Speaker, Iceland, UTIS Edu Conference, 2020

  6. International Learning Networked Conference, 2019, Holy Child College of Davao, Davao City, Philippines

  7. “Start a Podcast, Teach The World” ADE Global Institute, Berlin, Germany 2014

  8. “Challenge Based Learning” ADE Global Institute, Cork, Ireland 2012

A man in a suit speaking into a microphone at a conference with a large audience seated in front of him. The setting appears to be a formal event or seminar in a modern venue.

NATIONAL CONFERENCES

Trusted Across
America

From Houston to Philadelphia, from Wisconsin to Florida — Kelly has been the trusted keynote voice for national education associations, school board organizations, and leadership conferences across the country.

  1. 2025 Eastern Shore of Maryland Educational Consortium Conference (ESMEC) Keynote speaker for all superintendents and their leadership Teams. July 2025, Ocean City Maryland

  2. 2024 Ohio School Board Association (OSBA) Captial Conference, (Superintendents, Treasurers, School Board Members, and Central Office) Columbus, Ohio

  3. 2023 Conference for the Consortium of State School Boards Associations (COSSBA) Tampa, Florida.

  4. 2022 Ohio Association of Elementary & Middle School Administrators (OAESA) 2022 Annual Professional Conference, Keynote Speaker

  5. What Great Educators Do Differently Conference, October 2019, Houston, Texas, Featured Speaker

  6. Keynote Speaker for Wisconsin Wired Conference, August 2019

  7. “Everyone Can Create” Philadelphia, 2019

  8. 100th Anniversary of the Eagle Scout, Keynote Speaker and Emcee, Boy Scouts of America’s, National Eagle Scout Association, 2012 Lansing, Michigan

  9. Keynote Speaker for Iowa Conference: United Methodist Church 2009-2014

NATIONAL CONFERENCES

STATE CONFERENCES

The Go-To Voice
for Ohio Education

Kelly is one of the most sought-after voices in Ohio education. He is the only speaker in OSBA history to ever receive a perfect rating from all attendees.

  1. 2025 Capital Confernce sponsored by Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA) November 2025 to superintendents, school board members, educational leaders and teachers.

  2. 2025 Keynote Speaker for the Ohio Assosciation of Administrators for State and Federal Programs (OAASFEP) Fall Conference, Colubus Ohio Easten Center, October 2025

  3. 2025 Showcase for AcceleratED Leadership & Learning hosted by Ohio Leadership Advisory Council and The Ohio Department of Education & Workforce. We were awarded the Outstading District of the Year Award and presented a feature session.

  4. OSBA Capital Conference Speaker on opening day! November 2024 for the Ohio School Board Association (Superintendents, Treasurers, School Board Members and Central Office Staff for the entire state of Ohio.)

  5. Ohio Career Technical Administrators Fall Conference (OCTA) Keynote Speaker, October 2024

  6. Wisconsin’s DC Everest School District, Keynote Speaker for Entire District Staff, February 2024.

  7. North Central Ohio Educational Service Center, Keynote Speaker for Opening Day Administrative Retreat, August 2023

  8. NJECC 2023, Keynote Speaker for New Jersey 37th Annual State Wide Technology Conference at Montclair State University in New Jersey, March 2023

  9. Opening Day Speaker, Fairfield School District, All Staff Kick-off, Fairfield, Ohio, August 2022

  10. Featured Speaker, Ohio Educational Technology Conference, OETC, 2020, Columbus, Ohio, Ohio Department of Education

  11. Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA) featured speaker to all first year superintendents two years in row, 2018, 2019

  12. Ohio School Board Association (OSBA), 2019, 2020

  13. Toledo Islamic Academy, Toledo, Ohio, Four-time keynote speaker, Ohio, 2012-2018

  14. Keynote speaker for Bowling Green State University’s NWO Educational Conference to over 300 first year educators

  15. Ohio School Board Association Presenter, recognized as the only speaker to receive a perfect rating, ever. 2012

  16. Northwest Ohio Excellence in Education Conference, 2012

  17. eTech Ohio Speaker and Presenter, Finalist for eTech Ohio Teacher of the Year, 2009

The Man Behind the Mic

Husband. Father.
Dog Dad. Leader Who Brings Out the Best in Others!

I help leaders build teams where people feel valued and perform at their best.

Kelly is married to his best friend, Lorrain, and together they are raising four incredible daughters. His dog, Jedi, inspired his children’s book Unthink Before Bed, and Kenobi has already joined the creative team.

A lifelong educator and leader, Kelly has spent decades helping schools and organizations build cultures of trust, growth, and excellence. His work blends real-world experience, practical strategies, and a deep belief in people.

DC Everest Schools Created & Shared This Clip of Me Speaking to Their Entire Staff.