Kelly Linkowski serves as the President of Caption First, a leader in providing CART  and captioning services. In her role, Kelly oversees all facets of the organization,  including recruiting top talent and driving the company’s strategic vision in collaboration with Founder and CEO Pat Graves.
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Kelly is deeply committed to communication accessibility, advocating for captions as a critical component of universal design for meetings, big and small, to events,  conferences, and entertainment. She champions the perspective that captions are not merely accommodations but essential tools for ensuring equal access.
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As a certified CART Captioner, Kelly holds multiple realtime certifications from the  National Court Reporters Association (NCRA). She has been an active NCRA  member since 1993 and currently serves on its Board of Directors. Her leadership roles include six years on the NCRA CART Captioning Committee, with two years as chair. As a subject-matter expert on the CART Captioning Certification Committee,  Kelly has helped develop certification tests and educational materials to uphold best practices in the captioning profession.
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Kelly has also contributed significantly to the Ohio Court Reporters Association  (OCRA), serving on its board in all positions from 2012 through 2022, culminating in her tenure as Past-President. In 2019, she was honored with OCRA’s  Distinguished Service Award. Additionally, she serves on the Advisory Committees for Stark State College and Clark State College, helping shape educational programs in the field.
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Beyond her leadership roles, Kelly is an experienced educator and speaker. She has taught extensively at local and national levels, educating both court reporters and consumers about CART and captioning. A writer and speaker, Kelly has published widely and presented at numerous conferences, promoting the use of CART and captioning to bridge communication gaps for individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or non-native English speakers.