I am a passionate and experienced educator, scholar, advocate, and practitioner. I grew up in the predominantly white middle-class suburbs of metro Detroit during the 80’s and 90’s where my upbringing was shaped by the privilege of well-funded public education, competitive women’s sports, and being a queer kid in a fairly conservative community. I found my voice and my desire for self and collective transformation in my twenties, and decided to pursue a career in higher education.
As a faculty member turned equity, inclusion, and student affairs leader, I hold almost two decades of higher education experience. I am the former Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs, Equity, and Inclusion at Champlain College where I also served as the Title IX and Bias Response Coordinator. Prior to that, I directed the Office of Pluralism and Leadership and served as a Deputy Title IX Coordinator at Dartmouth College and taught courses at Dartmouth College, Middlebury College, the University at Albany – SUNY, and the University of Vermont, where I was awarded the LGBTQ+ Faculty Leadership Award.
Being a white, queer, trans man, I am particularly attuned to the impact that institutions and norms have on the well-being of individuals and communities. I have produced research and scholarship on the strategies that trans people employ to navigate interpersonal and institutional discrimination. For this work, I was awarded the nationally renowned Institute for Citizens and Scholars Dissertation Fellowship in Women’s Studies as well as a Dissertation and Post-Doctoral Fellowship from Middlebury College. I have authored pieces on mental health considerations for LGBTQ+ high school and college students, trans identity management, queer theory, and trans-specific microaggressions in healthcare settings, and was featured on the 2018 BBC World News report “What’s the Real Difference Between the Sexes?” and the 2018 Vice article How Trans People are Reclaiming Religious Naming Ceremonies.
Over the years, I have leveraged my expertise to advocate for trans inclusion and to educate healthcare professionals, K-12 teachers, non-profit leaders and staff, and higher education professionals across the United States. From 2018-2019, I served as a founding member and patient advocate on the Gynecology Trans Healthcare Pathway project for the Department of Gynecology at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (Lebanon, NH) where I worked with doctors, nurses, interns, and administrative staff to identify address gaps in care for trans men and assigned female at birth (AFAB) non-binary patients.
At a fundamental level, I consider community one of my core values. It’s important to me to nourish a sense of belonging and ensure that marginalized voices are heard. I currently serve as a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of Outright Vermont and I am the founder and primary administrator of the Transgender Vermont Facebook Group. I am a past Co-Chair of the St. Albans City Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and, while living in the Upper Valley of VT, I co-facilitated a bi-weekly peer support group for trans and non-binary adults. From 2009-2014, I served as a co-chair of the National Women’s Studies Association Trans/Gender Variant Caucus. And, when I lived in Albany, NY, I supported the work of the Pride Center of the Capitol Region (Albany, NY) as a participant on the programming committee, grants committee, and then as a member of the Board of Directors.
I earned my doctorate and master’s degrees in Sociology from the University at Albany, State University of New York and my bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Colby College. Additionally, I am a certified Restorative Justice Facilitator and graduate of Harvard Institute of Education’s Management Development Program. I am a Board Certified Massage Therapist and a certified yoga and meditation teacher and social-emotional learning facilitator.
I founded Embodied Values, LLC, to be able to provide contemporary, people-centered services that help individuals and organizations embody their values.
~ Reese
Video Interview: “[Trans]lating Justice: Reese Kelly”
Certifications:
- Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator (SEL*F) Certification, Breathe for Change, March 2022.
- 200-hour Yoga & Meditation Teacher Certification (CYT-200), Breathe for Change, March 2022.
- Title IX Certificate, NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, 2020.
- Social Justice Training Institute, Long Beach, CA, 2019.
- Title IX: Bias and Cultural Competency Training, ATIXA – Association of Title IX Administrators, 2019.
- ADA/504 Coordinator Certificate, ATIXA – Association of Title IX Administrators, 2019.
- Restorative Justice Facilitator, Restorative Justice Program at Skidmore College, 2017.
- Title IX Coordinator Certificate, National Association of College and University Attorneys, 2016.
- Motivational Interviewing, Dartmouth College, 2016.
- Management Development Program, Harvard Institutes for Higher Education, Cambridge, MA, 2014.
Get In Touch
Reese.C.Kelly@gmail.com
Embodied Values Consulting 