After more than 25 years in the education world, Kelly Cadman is Lumen’s on-the-ground expert for school founding, improvement and quality, and operations.
She has brought innovation to her work with schools since the very beginning of her career in education as a traditional public-school teacher in Douglasville, Georgia. In that position, she pushed the envelope for school design by piloting the district’s multi-age program and integrating curriculum in meaningful ways to give students opportunities to practically engage in their learning.
Kelly’s expertise in school founding and operation comes from first-hand experience. When charters were new on the scene in Georgia, Kelly and four other educators founded Brighten Academy Charter School which became a Nationally Accredited Expeditionary Learning School. Kelly served as not only the Founding Board President, but as a teacher and curriculum director.
In additional to school-level work, Kelly served at the state level as Director of Education and Training and Vice President of School Services at The Georgia Charter Schools Association. Kelly’s time at the GCSA led her to develop a number of programs supporting the quality of charter school boards and leaders, as well as to facilitate a partnership with Kennesaw University and develop the first charter leadership development program in the State of Georgia and a national model. In addition, she oversaw the development of the first Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy, the first in the state and nation certifying charter school teachers through the Georgia Professional Standards Commission.
Kelly’s passion for students and schools guides her work and her continued commitment to support organizations, schools, and teacher in elevating impact. Kelly holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from Saint Mary’s College at Notre Dame and a Master of Arts degree in Early Childhood Education from Mercer University.
She lives in Villa Rica, Georgia with her husband, Kyle, and two boys, Chandler (21, a student at Wake Forest University) and Sutton (17, a rising senior). Her family enjoys all sorts of travel and nerdy pursuits such as visiting forts, castles, and other historical landmarks. In her spare time Kelly loves to cook – we guarantee she can teach you at least a dozen ways to incorporate more butter into your diet!