Dr. Dan Kelley

Dan Kelley serves as the director of the Ohio State Battelle Center for Science, Technology, and Public Policy in the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. He previously held the position of dean of the School of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics at Owens Community College and dean of the School of Natural Resources at Hocking College. He was a faculty member and director of the geology field camp program at Louisiana State University. He was then on the faculty at Bowling Green State University, where he earned tenure through work on field-based experiential education. He is an affiliate faculty member in Ohio State’s School of Earth Sciences.

His service toward international conservation efforts includes annual review coordination of aspiring UNESCO Global Geoparks through the International Union of Geological Sciences Commission on Geoheritage as well as review of aspiring UNESCO world heritage sites. In 2021, he contributed to development of new policy in marine spatial planning and protection of open water ecosystem for the Galapagos Marine Reserve, which was adopted by the government of Ecuador. The Natural History Museum of London and the Marsh Christian Trust named his book, “In the Footsteps of Darwin: Geoheritage, Geotourism, and Conservation in the Galapagos Islands” (Springer), the Best Earth Science Book of 2019.

His publication record includes contributions related to volcanic petrology, field-based geoscience education, as well as geoheritage and conservation. He has developed, led or facilitated many field courses and trips to Iceland, Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands, the western U.S., the Bahamas, and Canada. These programs include opportunities for general education science students, senior and graduate level students, as well as professional development opportunities for K-12 educators.

He has facilitated many experiential learning partnerships between higher education programs and public agencies and developed revenue-generating live learning operations within academic programs serving public community interests.

He earned his BS, MS and PhD degrees from the School of Earth Sciences at The Ohio State University.