LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Kelly Forehand was nominated by a colleague, Kristina Malburg.

"Kelly Forehand is a LifeChanger because she has worked from the ground up to create one of the highest-performing charter schools in Florida. What started as an idea written down on a napkin during a coffee meet at a Starbucks has become the only school I want my child to attend. Kelly has come full circle from serving as a member on the Board of Directors to transitioning back into the classroom to teach the K/1 loop for several years, to now serving her first year as our principal," said Malburg.

"No one works harder and cares as deeply as Kelly Forehand. She knows most of the students and is always working to implement the best for both students and teachers. On top of all she does as principal of one of the most successful schools, she has accepted the request of one of her committees to read the book The Five Languages of Appreciation to know her faculty better. She works to ensure they know how much she values them. She has also invested much time and funding in implementing the Ron Clark House System. Again, this started as a request from her teachers, and like everything else she does, she was all in and committed," said Malburg.

"Kelly is an administrator who listens to the needs of her students, as well as the needs of her staff. I am proud to say that I have worked under the stewardship of Kelly Forehand and am grateful for her impact on our community because I know it has changed my life for the better. More importantly, it has changed my daughter's life by allowing her to attend a school where I know she is safe and nurtured and receives the best instruction you can receive. I am forever grateful to her," said Malburg.