Biography

Kelsey is a PhD student in Public Policy at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Her research interests are political advocacy, intersectionality, and LGBTQ+ policies. She is particularly interested in how the rise of anti-trans rhetoric and policies have impacted transgender youth.

Kelsey is passionate about political advocacy. She previously served as her local school board chair, has provided both written an oral testimony to the Minnesota legislature, served on the board of OutFront MN, and currently serves as the president of AAUW-MN. While on a recent leave of absence from the PhD program, Kelsey began working for the State of Minnesota as the Research and Policy Specialist for the Council on LGBTQIA2S+ Minnesotans where she was responsible for designing, analyzing, and reporting a statewide LGBTQ+ community needs assessment. She will continue to hold this position in tandem with her PhD studies.

In her free time, Kelsey runs a small farm with alpacas and angora rabbits (to name a few), spins yarn, knits, crochets, and runs a non-profit that supports LGBTQ+ youth.

Kelsey holds a BA in Psychology from Wellesley College, an MS in Statistics from University of Connecticut, and an MPP from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs.

Education

BA in Psychology (Wellesley College, 2008)

MS in Statistics (University of Connecticut, 2012)

MPP (Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, 2020)