Biography
Kelly joined Sussex from King's College London, where she was Vice Dean (Education) at the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy from September 2017. She was also a Reader in Higher Education, School of Education, Communication and Society. Prior to this Kelly was Director of the King's Learning Institute and Senior Lecturer in Higher Education at the university from 2013 - 2017.
Prior to Kings, Kelly was Lecturer in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education at National University of Ireland, Galway from 2007 - 2013, where she also spent two years as Vice Dean (Graduate Studies). She joined NUI Galway from the UCL Institute of Education where she held research and teaching roles, including as a founding programme team member of the MBA in Higher Education Management.
Kelly's academic careers includes serving on the Editorial Boards of Teaching in Higher Education, Higher Education Research and Development, and the Journal of Education Policy. She was on the Governing Council of the Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE), and was a founding co-convener of the SRHE Network 'The Digital University'.
Her research and publications over the past 20 years have been on various aspects of higher education; particularly the curriculum, internationalisation, and women's academic careers. Her latest research (with Camille Kandiko Howson) is on Senior Professional Leaders in UK HE.
Kelly is now also a Professor of Higher Education in the School of Education and Social Work, and Co-Director (with Louise Morley) of the Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research (CHEER).