Arkansas Tech University’s Pete Kelly is the 2025 SHAPE Arkansas higher education teacher of the year.
He will be honored during the organization’s statewide fall conference in Little Rock Nov. 13-14.
“I am extremely honored,” said Kelly. “Thank you to so many that have been a part of my career. To my students…thanks for playing. I am forever thankful for each of you. Continue to make a difference in your students’ lives. I will be reading about you in the sports pages of our local and state newspaper.”
SHAPE Arkansas states on its website that it is “dedicated to promoting health, physical education and wellness across our state” by supporting “educators, students and communities through high-quality professional development, statewide conferences, wellness initiatives and school-based programs.”
SHAPE stands for the Society of Health and Physical Educators.
A full-time member of the Arkansas Tech faculty since 2011, Kelly holds the rank of senior instructor of health and physical education.
Kelly has mentored more than 100 graduates who are serving in more than 50 Arkansas school districts as physical education teachers and coaches. He helped develop and enact a plan to create new scholarship opportunities for upper-level health and physical education students, and he has served as an executive member of SHAPE Arkansas since 2011.
It was announced in August 2025 that Kelly has accepted an opportunity to serve as director of campus recreation at Arkansas Tech. He is teaching a full class load during the fall 2025 semester and will transition away from the classroom to focus on his director of campus recreation duties on Thursday, Dec. 18.
A native of Ola, Kelly graduated from Arkansas Tech with a Bachelor of Science degree in health and physical education in 1993. He added a Master of Education degree in physical education in 1996, and shortly thereafter, he went to work in student affairs at Tech. Providing oversight for intramural sports was among Kelly’s responsibilities early in his career.
He rose through the ranks to become associate dean of students and director of student life before becoming a full-time member of the ATU faculty in 2011.
Learn more about the ATU Department of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Science at www.atu.edu/ceh/krs/index.php.
