Kelly Buttermore

Kelly Buttermore is the Chief of Staff. Working closely with the president, vice president, and senior staff, she serves as a strategic thought partner, translating ACLS’s goals and priorities into tangible activities, workflows, and timelines. She is a key resource to the president on internal matters and acts as a critical link both across the organization and between the president’s office and external partners. Kelly also leads ACLS’s administration of the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowships, partnering closely with staff at The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation in this effort.

Prior to assuming this position in January 2020, Kelly worked in a variety of roles at ACLS, most recently as grants officer and budget analyst. In that capacity, she oversaw the Council’s $30 million+ portfolio of foundation grants and managed proposal, reporting, and post-award processes such as budget modifications, rollovers, and no-cost extensions.

She remains especially proud of her work with ACLS’s subsidiary, the Center for Educational Exchange with Vietnam (CEEVN) from 2010 to the program’s conclusion in 2020 and helped to shepherd The Excellent Bridge: The Journey of the ACLS Center for Educational Exchange with Vietnam to publication in 2020. She also values her ongoing work with colleagues at the University of Cambridge on the Darwin Correspondence Project.

Kelly joined the ACLS staff in 2003. She received a BA in history from Mount Holyoke College. When not at 633 Third Avenue, she can be found performing and teaching improvisational comedy in New York and around the country as one-half of the comedy duo From Justin to Kelly.