State of the University | Inaugural Address

Robert O. Kelley Marcia Bell Kelley Dr. Robert O. Kelley assumed duties as the 11th President in UND’s 125-year history on July 1, 2008. He came to UND from the University of Wyoming, where he had served as Dean of the College of Health Sciences and professor of medical education and public health since 1999. Before that, he was Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Executive Associate Dean of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and professor of biological sciences at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and professor of anatomy and cell biology at the College of Medicine, both at the University of Illinois at Chicago. At the University of New Mexico, he served as chair of anatomy and Senior Executive Associate Dean, as well as other faculty capacities. He has also taught at the University of California, Berkeley.

Kelley earned his bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry from Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas, in 1965, and his master’s degree in 1966 and doctorate in 1969, both in cell and developmental biology from the University of California, Berkeley.

UND’s First Lady, Marcia Bell Kelley, was a senior lecturer in the University of Wyoming Department of Communication Disorders and supervisor of clinical services in speech-language pathology. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Loretto Heights College and her master’s degree at the University of New Mexico. She spent much of her childhood in northern Minnesota.

Bob and Marcia Kelley have four grown children and two grandchildren.

They are outdoor enthusiasts who count skiing, camping, hiking, sailing, kayaking, and scuba diving among their hobbies.