Packaging Alumni Association

Travis B. Key is a two-time graduate of the School of Packaging at Michigan State University, earning a B.S. in 2007 and a M.S. in 2012. In 2004, Key earned an athletic scholarship after joining the Michigan State University football team as a walk-on his freshman year. As a student-athlete he was named to four consecutive academic All-Big-Ten teams, named honorable mention All-Big-Ten, and served as team captain during his senior campaign. Key went on to have a two-and-a-half-year professional football career that included stints with the National Football League’s Minnesota, Cleveland, Detroit, San Diego, and Indianapolis organizations as well as the Canadian Football League’s Montreal organization. 

After retiring from professional football in 2010, Key began his career as a Project Engineer with Fellows Incorporated in Itasca, IL. Key then transitioned to work for the Kellogg Company in Battle Creek, MI as a Packaging Engineer, focusing on cost optimization and innovation. In these roles he gained experience in cross functional team management, product development and design, prototype creation, cost analysis, distribution dynamics, and procurement. Key currently works for WestRock as a Senior Director in their commercial sales organization. In this role, Key is responsible for driving WestRock’s commercial strategy throughout the organization.  

Key is also the co-founder a non-profit, 501(c)(3), organization called APEX Academy Inc. APEX was founded to guarantee that an individual’s current circumstances DO NOT indicate their future circumstances. With a focus on three core pillars (Personal Development, Academic Development, and Professional Development), APEX enforce a culture that continues to challenge the status quo by ensuring student-athletes from under resourced communities have the opportunity to see the full scope of their personal and professional potential. Upon graduation from the program and high school, their aspiration is that each APEX student-athlete enters a post-secondary academic or trade program and has the tools and skills needed to succeed professionally and in life. 

Key is the co-author of a book titled: Beyond the Gridiron: How to Successfully Transition into Collegiate Football. The focus of his book is to equip student-athletes with the tools to overcome the academic, mental, physical, and social challenges of collegiate athletics in order to position them for success on and off the field.  

Key has a passion for influencing and developing people to defeat life’s challenges and break through the negative cycles of hate, crime, sickness, poverty, illiteracy, and inequity. In his mind, it all starts with our youth and that is where his focus tends to be. A devoted Christian, husband, and father, Key resides in Portage, MI with his wife and three children. He also serves as Co-President of the board of directors for MSU’s Varsity S Club.