photo by: Contributed

Patrick Kelly

The Lawrence school district’s chief academic officer will retire at the end of June.

Superintendent Anthony Lewis announced Patrick Kelly’s pending departure in a news release Friday.

Kelly, who is also a Douglas County commissioner, is completing his fourth year in the chief academic officer role, his 25th year with the Lawrence district and his 31st year in public education in Kansas.

“Patrick has expertly guided our team in advancing our teaching and learning mission toward a comprehensive and cohesive curriculum and effective data driven and standards-based instruction to support the diverse needs of our scholars,” Lewis said in the release. “His development of the College and Career Center through school, business, and industry partnerships promoting career and technical education serves as a model for other communities.”

Lewis also said that Kelly had played “an integral role in the implementation of our district’s first comprehensive strategic plan in two decades and the alignment of all school improvement plans to our district’s strategic plan and to Kansas Education Systems Accreditation.”

Kelly joined the district in 1999, teaching instrumental music and directing bands for seven years at West Junior High, Free State High and Hillcrest Elementary. He served as a district curriculum specialist of fine arts and career and technical education for six years, then as associate principal at Free State during the 2012-2013 school year. He was selected to guide the planning of the Lawrence College and Career Center in 2012. After community approval of a $92.5 million bond issue in 2013, the center opened in 2015.

Kelly returned to lead the district’s Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Department as executive director in 2020, and as chief academic officer since 2021.

Kelly’s prior experience includes six years as a band and choir director in Topeka. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Kansas.

“It has been a privilege to work with so many talented and dedicated colleagues and community members to help our scholars achieve more than they ever imagined,” Kelly said in the release. “I am immensely grateful to USD 497 for the opportunities to grow as an educator and leader within this organization.”