Menu
Photo of Kelly Ryan

Kelly A. Ryan Ph.D.


Univ. Center South 150
Phone: (812) 941-2208
ryanka@iu.edu

Biography

Kelly A. Ryan is Interim Chancellor of IU Southeast. 

Prior to serving as Interim Chancellor, she was the Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs and a Professor of history. As the chief academic officer for IU Southeast, she was responsible for the quality, development, coordination and promotion of all academic and non-credit programs and courses. She oversaw the IU Southeast academic units and programs, library, Office of the Registrar, Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Honors Program, Applied Research and Education Center, Academic Advising, Disability Services, First Year Programs, 21st Century Scholars Program, Institute for Learning and Teaching Excellence, International Programs and the Student Development Center. Executive Vice Chancellor Ryan earned her Ph.D. from University of Maryland, College Park. She earned her Master of Arts at Boston College and her Bachelor of Arts from George Mason University.

Her teaching and research specializes in race, gender, sexuality and violence in early United States history, and teaches courses on United States history prior to 1865. Professor Ryan also teaches specialized courses on gender and sexuality, as well as historical methods and senior seminars. She has won several teaching awards, including four Trustees Teaching Awards.

Professor Ryan's first book Regulating Passion: Sexuality and Patriarchal Rule in Massachusetts, 1700-1830 (Oxford, 2014) studied sexual trends in Massachusetts between 1700 and 1830 to discover changes in early American hierarchies of gender, race and class. For information on Regulating Passion, see the link below.

Professor Ryan's second book, Everyday Crimes:  Sexual Violence and Civil Rights in Early America, examines intimate violence between masters and slaves, husbands and wives and within families to discover changing notions of citizenship and power in early North American history.  In 2015, she was awarded a New Frontiers research grant from Indiana University to work on this project.  She has other book chapters and articles on violence and sexuality in Early America. 

Academic Background

  • Doctorate

    • University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States
    • Doctor of Philosophy in History, Major in Sexuality, Women’s and Gender History, Minor in Early Modern Europe
  • Masters

    • Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, United States
    • Master of Arts in History, Major in US History to 1900, Minor in African American History
  • Bachelors

    • George Mason Univeristy, Fairfax, VA, United States
    • Bachelor of Arts, Major in History

Professional Interests

Teaching

Early American history; US women’s and gender history; US history of sexuality

Research

Professor Ryan is interested in the way power operates in society, and much of research has been on the role of sexuality and violence in structuring society.  She writes and researches intersectional histories, which use the lenses of race, class, gender, and sexuality to uncover interlocking hierarchies.

Publications

Journal Articles

  • Kelly A. Ryan. (2015). 'The Spirit of Contradiction:' Wife Abuse in New England, 1780-1830. Early American Studies, 13 (3), 586-625.
  • Kelly A. Ryan. (2019). "Women and Patriarchy in Early America, 1600-1800". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History, ed. John Butler (Online Publication:), 10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.013.584.

Books

  • Kelly A. Ryan. (2014). Regulating Passion: Sexuality and Patriarchal Rule in Massachusetts, 1700-1830. New York: Oxford University Press.
  • Kelly A. Ryan. (2019). Everyday Crimes: Social Violence and Civil Rights in Early America. New York: New York University Press.

Campus Events

Sustainability Club Meeting

Sustainability Club Meeting

November 12th, 2024

2:45 PM - 3:45 PM

Spectrum Fall 2024 Meetings

Spectrum Fall 2024 Meetings

November 12th, 2024

5:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Celebrating Our Diversity

Celebrating Our Diversity

November 12th, 2024

5:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Men’s Bible Studies

Men’s Bible Studies

November 12th, 2024

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Awkward Family Photos

Awkward Family Photos

November 13th, 2024

11:30 AM - 1:30 PM

SGA Meeting

SGA Meeting

November 13th, 2024

5:30 PM - 6:30 PM

Riders In The Sky

Riders In The Sky

November 13th, 2024

7:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Wendell Berry Reading Group

Wendell Berry Reading Group

November 14th, 2024

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

CSF Pre-Connect

CSF Pre-Connect

November 14th, 2024

6:15 PM - 7:15 PM

See All Events » Submit an Event »

Indiana University Southeast

4201 Grant Line Rd.
New Albany, IN 47150
(812) 941-2333

View the website in Español