Gustavus Adolphus College

Visiting Assistant Professor
Political Science

B.A. Gustavus Adolphus College; M.A., M.Phil, Ph.D. Columbia University

Dr. Lori Carsen Kelly graduated summa cum laude from Gustavus Adolphus College, earning her B.A. in 1983 with a major in Political Science and a minor in Psychology. She did her graduate studies at Columbia University where she was twice awarded a President's Fellowship. At Columbia University, she earned an M.A. in 1986, an M.Phil in 1988, and a Ph.D. in 1992 in Political Theory with distributionals in American Government and Political Sociology. Her dissertation, "After Religion: Christianity, Politics, and the Search for Objectivity in the Thought of Alasdair MacIntyre" focused on religious influences within communitarian political thought. Among her interests are communitarian theory, virtue ethics, non-violent resistance, and constitutional interpretation. Lori taught at Columbia University, Fordham University, and Queens College (CUNY--Graduate Division) before coming to Gustavus as a Visiting Assistant Professor. At Gustavus, she teaches courses in political and legal thinking, ancient and modern political thought, jurisprudence, and resistance theory. Lori Carsen Kelly lives in Shorewood, MN. with her husband, Thomas Kelly, and their three sons, Christian Thomas, Sean Michael, and Matthew David.