Kelly E. Skwarcan
Kelly Skwarcan is a leadership educator, speaker, researcher, and author specializing in psychology-driven training for high-performance leadership.
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, she translates academic psychology into engaging, high-impact programs that strengthen decision-making, team cohesion, and organizational resilience in complex environments.
Her interactive case study, "Leadership in Crisis: The Titanic, Carpathia, & Californian," has been adopted as advanced leadership development training by military and academic institutions nationwide and is regularly featured at professional conferences. She is also looking forward to presenting at the U.S. Naval Academy this fall.
Committed to excellence from a young age, Kelly began writing her first nonfiction book, Iron & Ice: The Full Tale of the Titanic, at age 10 and launched her first national speaking tour at 22. Today, she continues to equip leaders across military and civilian sectors with actionable tools for leading effectively with integrity, trust, and resilience—both in crisis and in everyday command.
Iron & Ice: The Full Tale of the Titanic
​​The Titanic arose from the Belfast gantries as the crown jewel of her time, the conqueror of the ocean itself. During her maiden voyage, seasoned first-class personas sparkled, humble third-class immigrants anticipated a fresh start, and stokers sweltered in the bowels of the engine room’s grit and grime. Amidst all this buzz, a competent shipbuilder stood, worrying over the compromises his shrewd superior insisted upon.
Iron & Ice: The Full Tale of the Titanic is sure to captivate both those with no prior knowledge of the ship and long-time enthusiasts. Narrative in nature, character-driven, and tastefully detailed, Iron & Ice is set apart by its exploration of previously-glossed-over topics and its fresh perspective on familiar ones. This book explores the Titanic’s “best-of” narratives, divulges little-known facts, and simplifies pedantic technicalities to render the iconic tale engaging and meaningful to the modern reader.
With Iron & Ice, readers embark on a spellbinding journey that begins before the Titanic’s first sketches and ends over a century later in summer 2023. As one of the first books to connect the eerie parallels between OceanGate’s Titan submersible’s implosion and the Titanic disaster, Iron & Ice forges new ground, enthralling readers all the while.
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Iron & Ice is available on Amazon and in select maritime retailers across the U.S.
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