Keri D. Ingraham

Senior Fellow and Director, American Center for Transforming Education

Dr. Keri D. Ingraham is a Senior Fellow of Discovery Institute and Director of the Institute’s American Center for Transforming Education. She is also a Senior Fellow at Independent Women’s Forum. Dr. Ingraham has been a guest on Fox News multiple times. Her articles have been published by The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, The Federalist, Real Clear Education, The Washington Times, The Epoch Times, Washington Examiner, National Review, The American Spectator, Daily Caller, The Daily Wire, The Seattle Times, Puget Sound Business Journal, The Daily Signal, and a host of other media outlets. Fox News has featured her work.

Prior to joining Discovery Institute, Dr. Ingraham spent nearly two decades leading within the field of education as a national consultant, requested conference speaker, head of school, virtual and hybrid academy director, administrator, classroom teacher, and athletic coach. Her areas of education expertise include innovation, thought leadership, research, online learning best practices, customized hybrid program development, business model creation, operations effectiveness, and strategic planning for sustainability and scaling.

She holds a Doctor of Education degree and a Master of Education degree from Regent University. Her undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree was awarded from George Fox University, where she was named an Academic All-American and was a four-year athletic team member. In addition, Dr. Ingraham earned an Innovation and Entrepreneurship Professional Certificate from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and the Stanford University School of Engineering.

She authored multiple chapters for the book, Sketching a New Conservative Education Agenda, published in 2022. Also, in 2022, her article “Teacher Certification & Uniform Salary Schedules Hinder Career Technical Education Staffing” won first place nationally in the Thomas B. Fordham Institute’s Wonkathon for her innovative education reform policy ideas. In 2019, she was invited as a contributing author for the book, MindShift: Catalyzing Change in Christian Education and co-authored “From Gutenberg to 5G.” As a result of her national conference speaking and noteworthy forward-thinking school leadership, Dr. Ingraham received an invitation to join the MindShift think tank team in 2018. As a part of MindShift, she traveled nationally and internationally identifying outliers of excellence and innovation within the field of education.

Dr. Ingraham was awarded the George W. Selig Doctoral Fellowship in 2013. The following year she received the “World Changer in the Field of Education” award from Regent University. In 2008, she was selected as a “Teacher of Excellence.” Early in her career, she was a state championship winning coach and five-time recipient of “Coach of the Year” honors. Dr. Ingraham is passionate about education preparing students to live, work, and thrive in tomorrow’s world, which will require tremendous and large-scale education transformation.

Archives

The Majority of Kids Would Outgrow Gender Disorders if They Don’t Transition

Keri D. Ingraham
September 9, 2024
On August 26, a federal appeals court ruled 2-1, allowing Florida the ability to enforce a ban on puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and sex reassignment surgeries on minor-age children. The May 2023 law had previously been deemed unconstitutional in June 2024 by a federal district court. Gov. Ron DeSantis’s administration appealed the ruling, which has now resulted in victory.

Smartphones Are Killing Kids’ Ability to Concentrate

Keri D. Ingraham and Peter Biles
September 6, 2024
With K-12 schools back in session across the nation, millions of students are adjusting to a new learning environment — a cellphone-free classroom or, in some cases, a phone-free school day. Lawmakers in several states are pushing for such restrictions.

Democrats Are Pro-Choice — But Not When It Comes to Schools

Keri D. Ingraham
August 26, 2024
Clearly, the Democratic Party is all about the right to choose — to be clear, to choose an abortion that ends the life of an unborn child. However, when it comes to the right for parents to choose K-12 education for a child, that is not a freedom the party's leaders care about — even those who attended a private school themselves or sent their children to a private school.

How College Wrecked Productivity and How to Fix It

Keri D. Ingraham, EJ Antoni
August 2, 2024
New survey results reveal that Americans' satisfaction with their customer experiences today has fallen to the lowest level in at least a decade. This decline can be traced to two things: a stagnating level of worker productivity, and an education system failing to impart practical skills to the workforce.

Families With Schoolchildren Should Flee California

Keri D. Ingraham
July 24, 2024
Last week, Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 1955, which blocks schools from requiring faculty and staff to notify parents and legal guardians when their minor child attempts to change his or her "gender identity" from that of their born biological sex.

How to Navigate Your Child’s Education

Keri D. Ingraham
July 19, 2024
Recently, I was asked by my alma mater, Regent University, to provide guidance for parents as they navigate their child’s academic journey. As parents, it is your responsibility to protect the heart and mind of your child. You are ultimately responsible for your son’s or daughter’s education. Here is what I shared as originally published in IMPACT.

Louisiana to Become 12th State to Adopt Universal School Choice

Keri D. Ingraham
June 6, 2024
The Louisiana Senate and House have passed a sweeping school choice bill that will reach all families statewide by 2025. The bill will become law with the signature of Gov. Jeff Landry (R-LA), a longtime school choice advocate. With his soon-coming signature, Landry will make good on his promise by delivering education freedom to all Louisianans during his inaugural year in office.

Greg Abbott Went to War for School Choice — He Appears to Have Won

Keri D. Ingraham
June 5, 2024
Texas voters made their voices heard at the ballot box last week by ousting from the state House of Representatives Republicans who had voted with Democrats to block school choice for families in the Lone Star State. The Texas House is now positioned to successfully pass a sweeping school-choice bill on behalf of Texas families in the 2025 legislative session.

More Public Charter Schools Are Needed Nationwide

Keri D. Ingraham
May 16, 2024
Parents, children, and supporters of school choice have cause to celebrate this National Charter Schools Week. Charter schools earned the top two spots on a list of the best high schools in America. Yet these tuition-free public schools open to all students are far too few nationwide.

Protests Will Cost Universities in the Long Term

Keri D. Ingraham
May 10, 2024
The campuses of many of America’s once distinguished institutions of higher education have been dominating the news in the past few weeks as pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel, and antisemitic protesters scream, chant, incite violence, refuse to vacate their tent cities, and make demands of school administrations. This damaging higher education exposure comes on the heels of the K-12 education “great parent awakening."

College Campus Protests Are a Byproduct of K-12 Education

Keri D. Ingraham
May 7, 2024
Tent encampments, violent protests, and defiant students are taking over the campuses of many of America’s most prestigious higher education institutions. In some cases, Jewish students have been forced to leave mid-semester, classes have been canceled or moved to remote only, and buildings have been barricaded by pro-Palestinian protesters.

Students Soar at Innovative West Michigan Aviation Academy

Keri D. Ingraham
April 4, 2024
The average American annual salary is under $60,000, whereas the average annual salary of pilots is over $188,000 — $128,000 higher. Yet there is a pilot shortage. These positions do not require a college degree but instead specialized training, and the training need not wait until students complete high school.

A Proven High School Model to Replicate

Keri D. Ingraham
April 3, 2024
In 2010, the doors opened to a new type of tuition-free public charter high school in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Located adjacent to the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, West Michigan Aviation Academy has been turning out more than just future pilots for the past 13 school years.

Let’s Align High School to Workforce Needs

Keri D. Ingraham
April 1, 2024
The perceived value of higher education has been plummeting for years, yet tuition prices continue to rise at levels outpacing the increased career earning power in several fields. Combine the financial cost and the misalignment of college courses with the labor markets, and it’s no surprise that traditional higher education is on the decline.

K-12 Hybrid Schooling Is in High Demand

Keri D. Ingraham
March 21, 2024
Polling data reveals that 49% of parents would prefer their child learn from home at least one day a week. While 10% want full-time homeschooling, the remaining 39% of parents desire their child to learn at home one to four days a week, with the remaining days attending school on-campus.

Major Growth Generators of K-12 Classical Education

Keri D. Ingraham
March 7, 2024
K-12 classical education has emerged as a quickly growing, sought-after educational option by parents for their children over the past four years. The COVID-19-induced school closures, with remote sessions, triggered a 'great parent awakening' around their children's education.