Kelly Klein is the Director of Youth Leadership for Leadership Stark County. She is a lifelong NE Ohio native, passionate about education, community development, and seeing the neighborhoods and communities Mister Rogers and MLK dreamed were possible come to life.
Kelly grew up in Hartville, Ohio, before moving to Southeast Canton after graduating from Malone University with a degree in Communication, specializing in Public Relations. For ten years, Kelly served as the Director of Development and Communication at the Lighthouse, a local nonprofit that provides year-round education and mentorship programming for children in grades K-12 living in the southeast neighborhood.
Kelly is a Twenty Under 40! award recipient, a graduate of the 34th Signature Class of Leadership Stark County, a founding committee member of Stark SOUP, and is currently honored to serve on the boards of She Elevates, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering girls ages 8-14 through mentorship and business building programs, and Camp Luz, a nonprofit located in Kidron, Ohio.
Kelly’s absolute favorite thing to do on the planet is to spend time with her foster daughter traveling (they just got back from England!), going to concerts, and kayaking and tubing together on the river. Kelly also loves being the official photographer for the Canton Symphony Orchestra and the Downtown Canton Partnerships, helping care for the chickens, bees, and fish that live next door in the Lighthouse’s Outdoor Classroom and Garden, and spending time with the good folks at First Mennonite Church of Canton.