A DEDICATED AND TRUSTED LEADER
Dr. Diane Kelley
MEET DIANE
Dr. Diane Kelley is a recognized instructional leader with more than 37 years of classroom and administrative leadership at both the school and district levels. She is certified in six areas and has served in all of them. She has worked in grade levels K-12, and has also taught graduate level courses.
She has served the Okaloosa County School District as a teacher and media specialist at Laurel Hill School, Richbourg Junior High/Middle School, and at Davidson Middle School. She served as principal at Laurel Hill School, Bruner Middle School, and Destin Middle School. She has served at the district level as Director of Technology & Media Services; Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment; and as Director of Principal Evaluation, Training & Support. In all positions, she has had a singular focus: to increase student achievement.
Since her retirement, Diane has formed her own educational consulting company through which she continues her passion for improving student achievement through strong instructional leadership. She has served several surrounding districts by training their leaders in instructional strategies, and works with UWF’s Teacher Ready program in Pensacola (an affiliate of Studer Education).
A dedicated and trusted leader, she has the innate ability to sense the conditions needed to improve leaders’, teachers’ and students’ opportunities for success. She ardently believes in “Stronger Schools, Stronger Communities”.
A PROVEN LEADER
Dr. Kelley's Accomplishments
CAREER CAPSTONE INITIATIVES
• Refined the principal evaluation tool (including the creation of training modules)
• Creation of evaluation tool for district level leaders (including training modules)
• Creation of the Principals’ Resource webpages
• Writer and recipient of FLDOE’s Leadership grant, 2014-15 and 2015-16 ($80,000 and $75,000, respectively)
• Commissioner’s Leadership Academy 2014-2015
• Creator of the district’s Level II/School Principal Preparation program (resulting in aspiring administrators becoming certified in School Principal)
• Coordinated the first franchise agreement with Florida Virtual School (Okaloosa Online), hired and trained the first faculty for that program and ran it for 2.5 years
• Principle creator of district’s original website---OkaloosaSchools.com (since then it has been revised numerous times)
• Author of the district’s original Instructional Television Plan
• Lead author of the district’s first Technology Plan
• Author of the district’s Principal Leadership Plan
• Previous author of the district’s K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan
• Previous author of E2T2 Grant
• Author of BRIDGES I and BRIDGES II grants
• Author of and recipient of Project HEART grant
• Lead role in creation of the Central Training Rooms
• Lead role in the first 5-Year SACS District Accreditation
• Instituted the district’s first portable laptop lab
• Initiated quarterly meetings with feeder pattern schools to improve instruction and student achievement
• Served as a Commissioner in the City of Valparaiso
MAJOR HONORS AND AWARDS
• Commissioner’s Leadership Academy (2014-2015)
• Honorary Commander of 36 th EWS, EAFB (2010-2011)
• Outstanding Rotary Service for Speaker’s Chair (2011-2012)
• University of West Florida “Focus on Forty” Honoree (2007)
• Okaloosa County Women’s Wall of Fame Honoree (2008)
• Who’s Who Executive & Professional Registry (2006)
• Teacher of the Year, Richbourg Middle School (1995)
• Who’s Who Among American Students of Universities & Colleges, UWF (1997)
• Videographer and writer of “Schooling Down Under” (a case study of delivering education to children in the Australian Outback) for the University of Virginia (2001)
• Outstanding Graduate Student, UWF Dept. of Curriculum &
Instruction (1994)
• Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers (1992)
• FAME Awards (1992, 1993, 1994)
• Cable Television Award for Creative Use of Instructional Television (1992)
• Northwest Florida Press Club Award, 1st Place, Overall, Middle School Yearbook (1990)
SERVICE IN EDUCATION
• Principal of Laurel Hill K-12 School, Principal of Bruner Middle School, and as Principal of Destin Middle School at Regatta Bay
• District Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment
• Coordinator of Principal Leadership Programs
• District Coordinator of Technology & Media Services (including Courier Services)
• District Director of Distance Learning
• Regional Director of Odyssey of the Mind
• Frequent Invited/Accepted speaker for professional conferences (FAME, FETC, Technology & All that Jazz, SACS-CASI)
• Frequent adjunct and guest lecturer for the University of West Florida (Foundations & Technology and Curriculum & Instruction) and Northwest Florida State College
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
• Niceville Chamber of Commerce
• Destin Rotary Club (5 years)
• Phi Kappa Phi
• Delta Kappa Gamma
• FAME Region I coordinator (4 years)
• PAEC Workgroup Committee
• NEFEC consultant
• Pianist, First Baptist Church of Laurel Hill ( 5 years)
• Pianist, First Baptist Church of Magnolia (many years!)
• Member, First Baptist Church of Niceville
• Past Member, Women’s Auxiliary, Gideons International