Lisa Duty, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Leadership Ohio

As Executive Director of Leadership Ohio (LO), Dr. Lisa Duty leads a network of distinguished changemakers who are on the leading edge of solutions for a future-driven Ohio.

Duty assumed the role of Executive Director of a struggling Leadership Ohio in 2019, determined to make a lasting impact. As chief visionary and architect, Duty initiated a comprehensive turnaround strategy that revitalized the organization's mission and operations.

Now at the helm of the organization's growth and acceleration phase, she continues to expand Leadership Ohio’s reach and impact that sees its graduates occupy positions of influence in leading companies, government agencies, elected offices, and Ohio’s boardrooms.

Duty’s dedication to the betterment of Ohio’s democratic society has seen the organization emerge as a leading advocate for Ohio’s Civic Health. The organization has implemented innovative programs and partnerships aimed at promoting civic participation and encouraging civil and catalytic dialogue across a diversity of people and ideological perspectives. Through her commitment to these initiatives, Duty is contributing to the vitality and resilience of Ohio's democratic landscape - inspiring lasting, positive change throughout the state.

In addition to her leading role with LO, Duty is the Founder of Innovation Partners America, a national education and nonprofit consultancy that enables organizations to create new outcomes through collaboration and the incubation of new ideas. Duty has helped launch game-changing nonprofits like Imagine Worldwide, counseled global start-ups like Teach the World Foundation, and consulted with organizations like the Center for Innovation in Brazilian Education, Omidyar Network, and Lemann Foundation. In 2022 Duty’s portfolio grew to include her role as Executive Vice President of career-tech start-up Core Learning Exchange.

Prior to Innovation Partners, Duty was a Founding Partner at The Learning Accelerator, Senior Director of Innovation and chief lobbyist at KnowledgeWorks, and an adjunct faculty member at The Ohio State University (OSU) College of Education and Human Ecology. Duty has served as a Civic Education Consultant with the Mershon Center for International Security Studies in Poland, Ukraine, and South Africa; as a Delegate to World Congresses on Citizenship in both Jordan and Argentina, and as a Delegate to the World Innovation Summit on Education in Qatar.

Duty is a member of the National Civic League, Heterodox Academy, Women in Government, and currently serves on the board of directors for the Ohio Victim Witness Association (OVWA) where she is focused on public policy in the area of sex trafficking. In May 2024 Duty was appointed by Governor Mike DeWine to the Ohio Commission on Service and Volunteerism.

Dr. Duty holds a Ph.D. in Global Education from OSU with cognates in Democratization and Education Transformation.