Biography

Chelsia Ivee Douglas, MPA, is a Public Policy and Administration doctoral student in the Joseph R. Biden Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration at the University of Delaware. She serves as the Whittington Fellow of the Biden Institute and co-chair of the University-wide nonpartisan Student Voting and Civic Engagement Committee where she works across the UD community to increase voter registration rates and promote ideological inclusivity. During Spring 2024, Chelsia presented her research, “The Ageless Citizen: Cultivating a Civically Engaged Community Through the Use of Service-Learning Collaborations” at the National Forum for Black Public Administrators Annual conference, winning first place in poster presentations and receiving a scholarship.  

Chelsia’s doctoral studies have centered on higher education policy and administration at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, specifically focusing on critically examining paternalistic governance. She has presented her dissertation research, “Construction for Societal Success: A Critical Examination of Paternalism at a Mid-Atlantic Historically Black University” at the Association for the Study of Higher Education’s Annual Conference, and the College of Education and Human Development’s Steele Symposium. 

Chelsia is member of the UD Chapter of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and UD Chapter of International City/County Management Association.
 

Degrees

• MPA, University of South Alabama, (2021)
• BA, History Minor: Political Science, University of South Alabama (2018)

​PhD Advisor

Dr. Sarah Bruch