Nate Klein, Ed.D.

Vice President- Education
Leadership
Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa

Pronouns: He/him/his

About me
Short Version: Husband - Father - Educator - Servant Leader

Medium Version: Jenny and I met on the dance floor at a wedding in 2007 and this year will be celebrating 12 years of marriage. We have four kiddos, Lily (7), Ellary (6), Tobin (2), and Riggs (8 mos) and they keep us quite busy along with our pup Lincoln the Labradoodle.

I grew up in Shueyville, IA and attended Prairie before Mount Mercy where I studied business, played soccer, and interned at Junior Achievement! After graduating, I moved to Georgia for 5 years to work at Aflac's HQ then to South Carolina for 2 years.

I finished my MBA from Emory University in an evening program in 2012 then completed my EdD (Doctorate of Education in Interdisciplinary Leadership) at Creighton University in 2014. We moved back to Iowa in 2014 to begin the adoption process and be closer to family, which is also when I started teaching at Mount Mercy University eventually becoming the Vice President for Student Success.

I have served on several local not for profits including the Catherine McAuley Center as chair, the United Way, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society State Board, and currently as a board member/coach with the Benton Youth Soccer Association. I am a 2017 grad of the Economic Alliance's Leadership for Five Seasons Program where I have served as the facilitator for leadership development the last five years.

Jenny and I love traveling with (and without) the kids both in and outside of the United States. I have had the good fortune of visiting all of the 7 wonders of the world, went running with the bulls in Pamplona, sky diving out of a hot air balloon on my wedding day, bungee jumping in Victoria Falls, and overall like adventurous things!

Are you a JA alumni?
Yes!

What is your favorite program or event that JAEI does, and why?
The Company Program - Back in 2005, I had the opportunity as a part of the Mount Mercy SIFE (Enactus) team to partner with Metro High School to bring this project to the school.

I will say, the first meeting, myself and our advisor had three students sleeping at the end of our "overview presentation" and at the end of the two years we spent together, I was honored to be named volunteer of the year for Metro and gave their commencement address.

I appreciated the time we spent together, the real-world application I was able to provide the students (and they provided me), and to see their face light up when we opened a physical location to sell their goods, The Heart of Downtown. We sold stock options, we partnered with a local soy candle maker to create Community Candles of Hope, students interviewed for jobs, managed the cash flow, and saw their dreams come true.

Why did you choose to work for JA?
To continue to have a positive impact on the youth of our community through education ... and have fun!

Do you have any "hidden" talents?
I have no cartilage in my nose, so it's fairly squishy.

What's your favorite weekend activity in Eastern Iowa?
Coaching Lillary (Lily + Ellary) soccer with Benton Youth Soccer, Team Goldfish.