Marty McNair is an author, thought leader, motivational speaker, advocate, and founder of The Jordan McNair Foundation. He is the author of Can My Child Play? The Questions We Should Have Asked and The 5th Quarter: A Parent’s Guide to Preparing Student-Athletes for Life Beyond the Game.

Following the preventable death of his son, Jordan McNair, during a University of Maryland football practice, Marty transformed unimaginable loss into a national mission centered on education, prevention, accountability, and empowering people to act before a crisis occurs.

His work began in student-athlete safety but has grown into a broader conversation about leadership, organizational culture, trust, accountability, self-advocacy, and the consequences that occur when small failures are allowed to align. Through powerful storytelling and practical frameworks, Marty challenges audiences to examine the distance between having policies in place and creating cultures where people have the knowledge—and the courage—to act.

As an author and educator, Marty also helps student-athletes and families prepare for life beyond the game, addressing self-advocacy, mental wellness, financial and legal readiness, personal responsibility, and the transition from athletics into adulthood.

Marty’s advocacy and Jordan’s story have received national attention through ESPN, HBO Real Sports, CNN, Good Morning America, NPR, and SportsCenter. Today, through his books, national speaking engagements, training programs, advocacy, and the work of The Jordan McNair Foundation, Marty continues turning lived experience into practical education designed to help individuals, families, leaders, and organizations make better decisions before the consequences become irreversible.