Our Staff

matthew hughes - Executive director

Matt returns to Envision Children in October of 2024 as its Executive Director. He served in the same role from 2017 - 2023 and previously served as its Director of Development from 2014-2017.

Matt holds a B.S. in Journalism from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a dual Master’s in Non-Profit Management and Economic Development from Carnegie Mellon University. He has worked in the non-profit field for over 40 years.

Matt rejoined Envision Children to help implement a focused education initiative called Scholastic Super Stars which will be part of the organization’s Catch Every Child program. The initiative spends intensive instruction time on helping kindergarten, first and second grade students in becoming proficient in the building blocks of education - reading and math.

Matt also serves as the Managing Director of the Primo Foundation which supports non-profit organizations and families in the Greater Cincinnati and Middletown areas. He is also active with two additional charities as a Board Member - Bo Farm and Simple Promise Farms.

Shelly Keating, Sr. Instructor

Shelly joined Envision Children in 2020 as a Senior Instructor. She teaches students in our In Class Instruction, Extended Day Program, and Summer Program.

Shelly holds a B.S. in Elementary Education and Reading Recovery certification. For 20+ years she has taught in a variety of settings -- from public schools, where she was both a classroom teacher and a reading specialist, to homeschool and individualized tutoring settings. Shelly was blessed to be able to apply her teaching experience to the home education of her two sons. Her proudest moment was learning that they had both received full-tuition academic-based college scholarships.

Shelly's passion for education, and in particular early literacy, is evident wherever she teaches, as is her ability to establish a positive and fun learning environment without sacrificing high expectations. She meets students at their level of performance and provides the tools they need to build on their strengths. It is her goal to make every child feel -- and be-- confident and successful and inspire them to become life-long learners.

Shelly's personal interests include spiritual growth and development, reading, jogging, cooking from scratch, and listening to the radio. She values family time, so she spends weekends with her parents and her two (young adult) sons.