Kelli is a member of the University of Georgia’s Graduate Faculty in the College of Public Health, Health Promotion and Management, Institute for Disaster Management. As part of this role, Kelli serves as the professor of record for two graduate-level courses (Disaster Management for Public Health Professionals and Public Health Crises and Disaster Management) and one undergraduate course (Surviving Disasters, a First Year Odyssey course for incoming college freshmen). In addition to her faculty teaching appointment, Kelli serves as an Executive Team Member for the Southern Regional Disaster Response System (Region 4 RDHRS Site), teaches emergency preparedness exercise design, development, and execution within IDM’s various grant projects, and conducts emergency preparedness exercises for healthcare facilities, healthcare coalitions, state entities, and federal partners.Kelli continues to guest lecture in DMAN courses covering various topics from current event emergency preparedness exercises, GIS in emergency management, and incident command principles. She also teaches portions of the National Disaster Life Support Foundation’s (NDLSF) Basic Disaster Life Support and Advanced Disaster Life Support courses in DMAN classes and throughout Georgia to coalition partners. Kelli also presents emergency management principles, project findings, and research interests at various conferences in Georgia, the United States, and internationally.

Kelli serves as a faculty advisor for Disaster Dogs, a student-led organization within the College of Public Health’s Institute for Disaster Management. This group is composed of undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of degrees and backgrounds. They meet monthly to discuss current and past disasters to learn from and better prepare for future events and learn and practice hands-on skills. They also collaborate with various partners, within the campus, local community, and beyond, to explore various roles within the disaster and emergency management field and facilitate professional relationships.Kelli founded this student group in January 2021 with a few of her graduate students at the time. Since then, the student group continues to increase membership and collaborate with other student groups across campus.

As a MickeyTravels agent, Kelli assists families in booking their Disney vacations across various Disney destinations - Walt Disney World; DisneyLand; Disney Cruise Line; Adventures by Disney; and Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa in Ko Olina, Hawai'i. Being completely dedicated to Disney travel arrangements, Kelli is able to provide in-depth, first hand knowledge of various Disney properties and help make each client's vacation magical. DisneyTravels, LLC is a Diamond-Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner - one of a few Disney Travel Agencies to earn this coveted, highest-level EarMarked Program status.

Kelli managed the Georgia Healthcare Coalition Assistance Program and the HHS Region IV Operation Wesley Ebola Exercise Program. The Georgia Healthcare Coalition Assistance Program (GHCAP) serves as the fiduciary agent for Georgia’s fourteen healthcare coalitions and aids coalitions in the procurement of goods and services to enhance the coalition’s emergency preparedness programs. Kelli serves as the Project Manager for the GHCAP project and manages an Administrative Assistant assigned to the project to ensure efficient, effective completion of coalition requests. The HHS Region IV Operation Wesley Exercise Program is a multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional exercise program focusing on HHS Region IV facilities and associated response partners' ability to respond to patients presenting at various facilities with Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) and suspect travel history. As project manager, Kelli has coordinated logistics for various planning meetings, a tabletop exercise, and the week-long full scale exercise; developed and presented exercise materials to exercise participants from varying levels of government; and served as the Exercise Director for the full scale exercise in November. At the time of the exercise, the HHS Region IV Operation Wesley Full Scale Exercise was the largest multi-state EVD exercise conducted in the United States.

Kelli's focus was on the continuation of the Georgia Healthcare Community Regional Emergency Preparedness Exercise Program. Additionally, Kelli worked with the UGA IDM team to develop the curriculum for the Georgia Infectious Disease Transportation Network’s Awareness, Operations, and Technician-level courses. Kelli has also worked to assist in the curriculum development of the Long Term Care Emergency Preparedness Education Program’s Basic and Advanced Course – courses she also teaches with the IDM team to certified long term care facilities across the state.

As the Healthcare Liaison, Kelli was charged with working closely with the Region M Healthcare Coalition’s Regional Coordinating Hospital’s representative to manage the coalition’s resources, provide training and education opportunities for coalition members, and to increase coalition membership through establishing relationships throughout the region. While in this role, Kelli gained valuable insight of local public health roles and responsibilities while working in tandem with the District’s Emergency Preparedness Team.

Kelli was dedicated to delivering exceptional customer service and ensuring the smooth functioning of the Southeast Health District's front desk operations. Greeting visitors warmly, managing incoming calls, and providing accurate information were integral aspects of her responsibilities. She meticulously scheduled appointments, maintained organized records, and addressed customer concerns promptly. Proficient in multitasking, she efficiently handled various administrative duties, such as data entry and collaborating with different departments across the district. Additionally, she contributed to maintaining a secure environment by monitoring access and issuing visitor badges. Through her effective communication skills and commitment to resolving challenges, she consistently contributed to a positive and welcoming atmosphere at the front desk.

Kelli's primary responsibilities focused on the continued development and execution of the Georgia Healthcare Community Regional Emergency Preparedness Exercise Program. Working closely with state partners, Kelli assisted in the development of various training materials and worksheets that aided in the development of regional, multi-disciplinary emergency preparedness exercises. In addition, she participated in several exercises as a Lead Controller/Evaluator and wrote numerous technical after action reports. Kelli also served as a guest lecturer for several DMAN courses providing instruction on Incident Command principles, GIS in Emergency Management, and assisting with various class exercises. She also presented on emergency preparedness activities and initiatives for federally qualified health centers at the annual Georgia Association for Primary Health Care Conference.

During her tenure at Dewberry, Kelli worked on various projects ranging from site suitability analysis for a residential construction company to providing map analysis for the State of Maryland 2011 Hazard Mitigation Plan to conducting field work in North Carolina following the landfall of Hurricane Irene. Most notably, Kelli served as Team Leader for the storm water map analysis project for a major metropolitan area. As Team Leader, Kelli was responsible for the creation of project documentation and training materials, providing training for local GIS Analysts and the project’s international subcontractor, and working closely with the Project Manager and client to ensure timely completion of project deliverables. Kelli was deployed back to Gwinnett County during the summer of 2012 to manage the impervious surface mapping project where she provided on-site project management for the project team.

Kelli was hired on as an intern for Dewberry’s Atlanta-based office where her tasks were focused on impervious surface mapping for Gwinnett County, Georgia. Throughout the three-month project, Kelli provided on-site client support for the Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources.