Kim Bearden is the cofounder, executive director, and language arts teacher at the highly acclaimed Ron Clark Academy, an innovative middle school and educator-training facility in Atlanta. Over 85,000 educators from around the world have visited Kim's classroom and have attended her workshops to learn better ways to engage students, build relationships, foster academic excellence, enhance communication, and create a climate and culture for success.

In 2016, Kim was honored at the White House for being inducted into to the National Teachers Hall of Fame. She was selected from over 70,000 nominations to be honored as the Disney American Teacher Awards Outstanding Humanities Teacher, and the Milken Family Foundation selected her to receive the Award for Excellence in Education. She is the winner of the InfluencHer Award, the University of Georgia Outstanding Educator Award, and the Turknett Character Award for Servant Leadership. Mercedes-Benz recognized her in their Greatness Lives Here campaign, and Women Works Media Group has named her one of Georgia's Most Powerful and Influential Women.

Kim has spoken at hundreds of in-person events across the country as well as in South Africa, London, and China. Additionally, she is a sought-after virtual speaker and trainer. Her newest virtual course is available through Premiere University.

Over the past thirty-four years, Kim has been a teacher, instructional lead teacher, curriculum director, school-board member, staff-development trainer, and middle-school principal. Kim is a bestselling author of three books: Crash Course: The Life Lessons My Students Taught Me; Talk to Me: Find the Right Words to Inspire, Encourage, and Get Things Done; and her newest book, Fight Song: Six Steps to Passion, Power, Peace, and Purpose.