Gary Marx

Gary Marx, CAE, APR, is a noted author, futurist, education and leadership counsel, social observer, public intellectual, seasoned executive, and international speaker. His latest book, Twenty-One Trends for the 21st Century: Out of the Trenches and into the Future, is a go-to guide for anyone who hopes to stay in touch with the demands of a fast-changing world. It is a classic environmental scan and intelligence briefing that should be considered basic in planning for the future. In this classic book, Marx probes far-reaching trends and their implications for organizations, communities, and countries. He gives special attention to how these societal forces might impact education.

Marx is president of the Center for Public Outreach, with headquarters in Vienna, Virginia. CPO is an organization he founded in 1998, which provides counsel on future-oriented leadership, communication, education, community, and democracy. Marx has been called an "intellectual entrepreneur, who is always pursuing ideas" and a "deep generalist."

As an international speaker, workshop leader, and consultant, Marx has worked with educators, business people, and other community and government leaders in all 50 of the United States, across Canada, and on six continents. He has visited 80 countries.

As a futurist, Marx has directed a number of futures studies and has been author or co-author of numerous other books and an array of articles. Those books include Sixteen Trends...Their Profound Impact on Our Future, Future Focused Leadership...Preparing Schools, Students, and Communities for Tomorrow's Realities, and Ten Trends...Educating Children for a Profoundly Different Future. Marx has spearheaded studies such as Preparing Students for the 21st Century and Preparing Schools and School Systems for the 21st Century.

Books Gary Marx has written open a window on massive trends that impact every person and institution. For many, they are a good read...a way to get and stay in touch with a fast-changing world. His books are frequently used as texts for courses ranging from leadership and education to strategy development and futures studies. Marx's trends analysis and processes that he suggests are used in environmental scanning, planning, and in stimulating discussion about the implications of persistent or emerging forces in society for people, organizations, communities, and countries. Marx shares techniques for envisioning alternative futures, stimulating discussion and even decisions about "what we should become" in light of a 24/7/365 world in constant motion. Considering the broader landscape, he observes that some institutions and societies need to consider anything from subtle changes to complete resets.

His international assignments have taken him from the northern Andean region of Peru and desert areas of Jordan to the Pacific coast of Russia, communities across Senegal, numerous cities and towns in several parts of Argentina, and speaking platforms and conference rooms in Europe and Asia. Marx frequently works with students who are developing civic education projects to improve life in their communities and countries. He is an on-the-ground communicator who attempts to understand people and issues and offer counsel, in many settings and at all levels.

Prior to starting his own firm, Marx spent nearly 20 years as a senior executive for the American Association of School Administrators (AASA). He was a television and radio "on-air" broadcaster and station owner before moving into education, serving as a school administrator for the then 10,000-student Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Nebraska, and the then 82,000-student Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado. That is in metropolitan Denver. Marx returned to Jefferson County to advise on strategy in the wake of the 1999 tragedy at Columbine High School.

Marx has been a frequent source for local, national, and international news media on issues affecting education and society. He has appeared as a guest on numerous television and radio talk shows. For nearly two decades, he served as a member of the National Teacher of the Year Selection Committee, and is a founder of the National Superintendent of the Year program. He is 2014 president of the honorary Horace Mann League. Marx is a professional member of the World Future Society. He served on national advisory boards to commemorate the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution and restoration of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

In his native South Dakota, he has been a member of the Boards of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society and the Harvey Dunn Society. Marx also worked with members of the community to create the Manchester Monument, in commemoration of his home town, which was destroyed by a 2003 tornado.

Marx was presented the coveted President's Award by the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) in 1999 and the Distinguished Service Award by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) in 2000. He is accredited by NSPRA, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE).