Kelly Collins, Ph.D.

Kelly Collins, PhD, is the Director of Education at the University of Minnesota's Office for Equity and Diversity. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota’s Organizational Leadership and Policy Development doctoral program. Kelly began her career as an advisor for first-generation, low-income college students in the TRIO programs at the University of Iowa, where she also received a master's degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs and served on the Native American Staff and Faculty Council. Kelly has served as the Associate Director of Racial and Social Justice Education at the University of Minnesota and as the Native American Student Success Coordinator and Community Faculty in Ethnic Studies at Metropolitan State University. Kelly currently serves as a steering committee member of the University of Minnesota's First Generation Institute. She is a proud first-generation alumni and professional, community activist, intergenerational caregiver, traditional beadworker, and access and equity scholar and practitioner.