Brandi Kelly, EdD

Affiliate Consultant | ​Educational Leadership Consultant | Founder, Spark HOPE Edu
LEAD COMPETENCIES: Leadership Development & Organizational Consulting, Trauma-Informed Systems & Mental Health in Education, Strategic Planning & Program Development.
Location: North America

Dr. Brandi Kelly
Affiliate Consultant

Dr. Brandi Kelly is an accomplished educator, district leader, licensed clinical social worker, and leadership consultant with more than two decades of service in K–12 education. She is the Founder & CEO of Spark HOPE Edu, an organizational consulting and leadership development firm dedicated to helping schools build resilient, hope-centered cultures. With experience spanning superintendent, principal, and school social worker roles, she brings a rare blend of instructional leadership, mental health expertise, and strategic systems thinking to schools and organizations across the United States.

Dr. Kelly earned her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from Saint Louis University, an Educational Specialist degree and multiple endorsements from Eastern Illinois University, a Master of Social Work from Saint Louis University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Greenville College. She is also a Maxwell Certified Coach and a two-time Principal of the Year, recognized for her excellence in school leadership and culture transformation.

Throughout her career, Dr. Kelly has made it her mission to empower leaders to build systems that foster self-efficacy, collective resilience, and sustainable growth. She is the creator of the System of H.O.P.E.—Habits, Optimistic Outlook, Purpose, and Excellence—a research-aligned leadership framework used to strengthen mindsets, align teams, and elevate performance. Her work includes facilitating strategic planning, coaching school and district leaders, designing trauma-informed SEL systems, and leading professional development on resilient leadership, mental health in education, and culture redesign.

Her leadership competencies include strategic planning; continuous improvement; data-informed decision-making; SEL and MTSS implementation; instructional leadership; staff supervision and retention; leadership coaching; community partnership development; and Board of Education governance coaching. She is also a skilled facilitator who helps schools build collaborative cultures, strengthen communication systems, and align mission, vision, and practices.
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Dr. Kelly is the author of Lead with H.O.P.E.: Building a System of Self-Efficacy and host of the Lead with HOPE podcast.

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Brandi’s ability to foster connection through her lived experiences encouraged meaningful dialogue amongst educators, making every session feel personal and empowering. Teachers commented that they left her breakouts inspired, equipped with strategies, and full of HOPE!
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Ryan Wamser, Professional Development Director ROE #40

Brandi Kelly's keynote at the 2nd Annual Stressed Leaders Summit was nothing short of transformational. Her message, which is rooted in her book Lead with Hope, met every leader in the room exactly where they were: overwhelmed, overextended, but still yearning to make an impact.

Dan Stecken, Superintendent, Stressed Leaders Retreat
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"Brandi’s message of HOPE is exactly what today’s leaders need. Her story of turning adversity into growth and resilience proves
that hope isn’t passive, it’s a powerful, actionable strategy. Brandi leads by example, uplifting others and inspiring them
​to believe in what’s possible."
- Dan W. Cox, Founder, Endurance Edge