As a writer and educator, Kelsey focuses on Indigenous rights, immigration policy, and social justice. She is the author of the book No Option but North: The Migrant World and the Perilous Path Across the Border, which won the Colorado Book Award for creative nonfiction and was a finalist for the Oregon Book Award in general nonfiction. She has spoken and interviewed across the country on immigration policy. When she is not writing, Kelsey works in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at Central Oregon Community College, where she runs a college-readiness program for Native American high school students. She holds a BA in Government and Legal Studies with high honors from Bowdoin College.