He also served as co-chair of the United States Institute of Peace Niger River Task Force, examining water security questions and conflict mitigation.

He served as a professor and as the associate dean at the National Defense University's Africa Center for Strategic Studies until he retired in December 2013.

[2] Kelly received a Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science from Wayne State University, where he was a graduate fellow, specializing in international relations and diplomatic history.

He served on committees with jurisdiction over the judiciary, banking and economic development, health policy, local government and public finance.

As a foreign area officer, he served as a defense attaché on multiple tours of active duty assigned primarily to the Republic of South Africa.

[citation needed] Kelly came to Dayton, Ohio, as an associate professor from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada, where he was a Fulbright Scholar conducting research on comparative federalism.

His academic research has focused on retained sovereignty and policy development of sub-national government, and he has received multiple teaching awards.

[1] Since 2002 Kelly advocated Michigan as a site for the burgeoning digital arts as a cultural medium and created tax incentives for the industry.