Wooster man named to Kiwanis International Board of Trustees
Kip Crain, currently superintendent at the Wayne County Schools Career Center, was recently elected to the Kiwanis International Board of Trustees.
Kip Crain of Wooster was elected to the board of trustees of Kiwanis International during a July special meeting held in lieu of the 2020 Kiwanis International Convention. This year’s convention, which had been set for Indianapolis, Indiana — home to the Kiwanis International Office — was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kiwanis International members worldwide are dedicated to serving the children of the world. Members meet the needs of children in their communities by providing necessities such as food and clothing and enrichment programs that help children thrive, prosper and grow.
“When I served as governor of the Ohio District, I knew I wanted to run for trustee,” Crain said. “I have devoted my adult life to making a difference for children and helping them prepare for successful futures.”
Crain is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Wooster and has served with distinction as secretary, vice president, president and director. He also served the Kiwanis Ohio District as governor and lieutenant governor. As a committee chair, board member and officer, he started several youth programs and clubs and raised money for the Kiwanis Children’s Fund.
Within Kiwanis International, Crain has received the George F. Hixon and Walter Zeller awards. He also is a member of the Ohio Kiwanis District Hall of Fame.
Crain became a Kiwanis member for life after attending a club meeting with a mentor.
“The club purchased (Toledo) Mud Hens baseball tickets from a Maumee Kiwanian who worked for the team, and the club donated them to the school where I taught,” Crain said. “Several students with special needs, along with their parents and caregivers, attended the game with Kiwanians. This was a first for them, and they were so excited they shook with tears of joy.”
Crain is a school superintendent who has received multiple awards including 2017 Ohio Superintendent of the Year from the Ohio School Boards Association Northeast Region and 2019 Ohio Administrator of the Year from the Ohio Association for Career and Technical Education. He is the past president of Ohio Career Technical Administrators, the Ohio Association of Career-Technical Superintendents, and the Ohio Association for Career and Technical Education Administration Division.
Crain is a member of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators, the BASA Career and Technical Education Advisory Committee, and the BASA Ohio Report Card Committee. He has been secretary and executive council member of the board of directors of Goodwill Industries of Wayne and Holmes counties.
Crain holds a Bachelor of Science degree in education (Summa Cum Laude) and a Master of Arts in supervision and administration from the Ohio State University. He received his doctorate in leadership studies from Bowling Green State University.
Crain also is a member of the Ohio Department of Education Carl D. Perkins V advisory committee and the Wayne County and Wooster City tax abatement committees. He has served as a Sunday school teacher, youth advisor, school teacher, director, principal and superintendent for the past 16 years for Wayne County Schools Career Center.
Crain and his wife, Becky, who also is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Wooster, have three adult daughters (Mandy, Tiffany and Kelly) and seven grandsons (Drew, Dylan, Eli, Isaac, Adam, Nathaniel and Coen).