Dr. Toby A. Travis
Leadership Strategist for School Improvement · Developer of TrustED®
"A school can only go as far as the trust its leaders have built."
Toby A. Travis, Ed.D.
Meet Dr. Travis
Helping Leaders Build Better Schools
Dr. Toby A. Travis is a school leader, executive coach, consultant, speaker, and author whose work has served K–12 private, international, Christian, and charter schools in more than 20 countries. He holds an Ed.D. in School Administration and currently serves as Head of School at Intermountain Christian School in Salt Lake City, Utah's premier authentic Christian school.
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Dr. Travis is the developer of the TrustED® framework, creator of the TrustED® School Leader 360, author of the award-winning book TrustED: The Bridge to School Improvement. He was named a Top 10 Most Impactful Education Leader by Elite Education Magazine in 2025 and has been featured in Forbes, K12Digest, eSchool News, and other national outlets.
Early in his career, Dr. Travis served in a school community experiencing significant organizational strain. Challenges in trust, communication, and alignment among administration, board, and faculty made it difficult for even strong improvement strategies to take root. That experience shaped his conviction that sustainable school improvement begins with trusted leadership.
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Finding few practical tools that treated trust as a measurable and actionable foundation for school improvement, he made that need the focus of his life’s work. Since then, his work with schools around the world has affirmed the same truth: when trust is intentionally strengthened, communication improves, innovation grows, faculty are more likely to stay, and communities unite more fully around their mission.
"Trusted leadership is not peripheral to school improvement. It is foundational to it."
Dr. Toby Travis
30+
Years in education and organizational leadership
Countries
served
20+
#1
Amazon ranking
Partners & Affiliations
Educational & Organizational Leadership Experience
Dr. Toby A. Travis is the founder of TrustED®, author of TrustED®: The Bridge to School Improvement, and an Executive Consultant with the Global School Consulting Group. He serves as Head of School at Intermountain Christian School and works closely with SchoolRIGHT, LLC, which administers the TrustED® assessment tools including the School Leader 360. His credentials span trusted leadership, governance, accreditation, and organizational health, with specialized training through cognia, the Principals' Training Center, the Trust Edge Leadership Institute, FaithSearch International, and the Child Safety & Protection Network. He serves on the Advisory Board of the SELIN Club, a K-12 focused educational leadership network, and contributes to higher education through Louisiana Baptist University and Gracelyn University.
ACSI Certified
cognia Evaluator
Trust Edge Facilitator
FaithSearch Presenter
Why Dr. Travis
What Makes Working with Dr. Travis Different
He leads a school himself
Having served for many years as a Head of School, Dr. Travis understands school leadership from the inside, bringing lived experience rather than detached observation.
Every engagement is customized
Dr. Travis takes the time to understand your school’s unique context, ensuring each session is relevant, practical, and tailored to your community.
The framework is measurable
The TrustED® assessments and training deliver clear, actionable data, and a personalized plan to ensure your school moves from insight to meaningful improvement.
Faith-integrated when appropriate
For Christian schools, TrustED® integrates the spiritual and relational dimensions of trust throughout the experience, rather than adding them as an afterthought.
How Dr. Travis Works with Schools
Four Offerings. One Foundation. Measurable Results.
Keynote Speaking
Inspire trust. Equip leaders. Strengthen school culture.
Consulting & Coaching
Personalized guidance to build trust and lead change.
Training & Workshops
Build trust. Strengthen culture. Improve schools.
TrustED® School Leader 360
Measure trust. Reveal insights. Guide meaningful improvement.
From Other Leaders
In Their Own Words
"Toby is a dynamic, engaging, and highly resourceful speaker who brings both depth and practical insight to his presentations. His ability to connect with audiences, communicate clearly, and provide immediately applicable strategies makes his work especially valuable for school leaders and educators. His TrustED course is outstanding, thoughtfully designed, relevant, and impactful. It is an experience every leader committed to building trust and strengthening school culture should have."
Wayne Lynch
President, Gift of Hope USA Foundation, Fountain Hills, AZ
"I first learned about Dr. Travis and experienced his training through the University of Pennsylvania’s professional development program for school leaders. Dr. Travis brings a remarkable depth of knowledge and experience to his work. He skillfully integrates multiple learning modalities into an engaging, interactive experience. In my twenty years as an educator, his instruction ranks among the very best I have experienced."
Jennifer Ozgur
Social Emotional and Change Management Consultant, West Chester, PA
Reviews & endorsements
Voices From the Field
School leaders, teachers, and conference organizers share their experience working with Dr. Travis and the TrustED® framework.
Speaking & Keynotes
"Dr. Travis uses a suspension bridge to build the perfect framework that schools can follow on their journey toward improvement and stronger leadership. He supports his work with multiple research data points that validate his framework... it is TRUST that makes the difference in school leadership.
From robust financial stability to greater stakeholder commitment and improved student achievement, schools benefit from trustworthy leadership. Dr. Travis provides ample evidence of the correlation between effective leadership and quality education."
Sofia Amador
Accreditation Review Lead Evaluator | cognia | San Isidro, Heredia, Costa Rica
From school leaders across 20+ countries and 4 engagement types
Speaking & Keynotes
"Schools flourish when TRUST is the bedrock of its ethos. Dr. Travis has adeptly used the model of a bridge to bring a clear, concise picture of how each part from the foundation to the deck represents the various values, beliefs, relationships, and cultural norms that are essential components in building a successful school. As an educational leader, I am confident that you will find this book to be instructive if your desire is to be effective in building a community of TRUST where students, teachers,
and parents thrive."
Dr. Philip M. Renicks
Chair and Co-Founder; retired Vice President - Global | Open Schools Worldwide; Association of Christian
Schools International
TrustED®: The Bridge to School Improvement
The research-informed, practice-based book behind the framework. Dr. Travis lays out the six components of trusted school leadership with clarity, depth, and practical application. Featured in Forbes, eSchool News, and on NPR. Used by school leaders in over 20 countries.
"Dr. Toby Travis has written a masterpiece for leaders in education. TrustED provides a practical and research-based approach to building the culture and climate necessary for school success. This is a must-read for every school administrator."
Dr. David A. Hoag
President, Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, Washington, DC
Dr. Toby A. Travis’ TrustED – The Bridge to School Improvement is the definitive roadmap for school improvement and will remain relevant for many years to come.
Jason Hillenburg
Goodreads
Amazon #1 · Educational Leadership
Recognition & media
Featured Across Leading Education Publications
Dr. Travis's work on trusted school leadership has been recognized by leading education media, researchers, and organizations worldwide.