Kelly Wesener Michael, Ed.D.

Practitioner-Scholar in Residence

Department

Counseling and Higher Education (CAHE)

Kelly Wesener Michael, Ed.D., joined the Higher Education and Student Affairs faculty in Summer 2020, embracing the opportunity to bring her years of experience as a Student Affairs practitioner to the classroom. She teaches courses on higher education administration; access to post-secondary education; and college student characteristics and patterns of participation.

Wesener Michael began her career in Student Affairs as a housing professional and stepped into senior level administration at Northern Illinois University in 2009 as the assistant vice president for Student Affairs. She was promoted into the chief student affairs officer role at NIU in January 2017.

Over the years as a senior administrator, her portfolio has included a wide variety of student services and auxiliaries. As the chief student affairs officer, she provided visionary leadership as NIU completed an organizational restructuring of the Division of Student Affairs. She also completed other large-scale initiatives, including a multi-million-dollar renovation of Holmes Student Center, the development of a robust auxiliary portfolio and the creation and implementation of a strategic plan for campus dining service. Additionally, she established the Dean of Students role on NIU’s campus and launched the Center for Student Assistance, which works to meet students’ needs in a “one stop shop” model.   

Wesener Michael consistently participated in professional organizations on the national level, most recently serving on the Executive Team for the APLU's Council on Student Affairs.

Education

• Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Indiana University
• M.S., College Student Personnel, Western Illinois University
• B.A., Communication, University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point

Contact