Kelly joined Voices for Children as President and CEO in October 2019. A native San Diegan, Kelly spent her earlier career working in San Diego’s legal and nonprofit higher education communities. Kelly served as the General Counsel of the University of San Diego from 2005-2019, where she oversaw all of the university’s legal affairs and was the chief legal advisor to the Board of Trustees.  Before joining USD, Kelly was a partner at Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps LLP (now Dentons) where she represented organizations and facilitated the proactive management and resolution of a wide range of employment-related matters.  Kelly received a law degree with high honors from the Duke University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Stanford University.

Kelly currently serves on the board of directors of the National Conflict Resolution Center and Goodwill Industries of San Diego County.  While working at USD, she served on the board and in other leadership roles with the National Association of College and University Attorneys, the nation’s largest bar association for higher education lawyers.