Kate Kelly is a senior director for the Women’s Initiative at American Progress. In this role, she leads American Progress’ work to fight for reproductive rights and freedom, expand abortion access, and advance policies to ensure all women can participate in the economy and live healthy, productive lives. Kelly is a nationally recognized reproductive rights and constitutional equality advocate. She joins American Progress from the office of Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), where she served as legislative director. She also previously served as counsel for Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, where she helped lead the committee’s investigative and legislative work on gender justice issues. Her legal career includes positions at Equality Now, the Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute, the Women’s Refugee Commission, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and Planned Parenthood. Kelly co-founded the National Coalition to End Child Marriage in the United States and led a successful statewide campaign to add an equal rights amendment to the Nevada Constitution. She is the author of the award-winning book, Ordinary Equality: The Fearless Women and Queer People Who Shaped the U.S. Constitution and the Equal Rights Amendment.
Kelly holds a Juris Doctor from American University Washington College of Law, the only law school in the country founded by and for women, and a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University.