The Waunakee Community School District Board of Education has unanimously approved the hire of Dr. Monica Kelsey-Brown as its next superintendent.
Kelsey-Brown is currently superintendent of schools in Brown Deer, Wisconsin, where she was appointed in 2020. She served as Director of Teaching and Learning in Brown Deer for five years before being appointed as Assistant District Administrator in 2018.
“We are thrilled to announce Dr. Kelsey-Brown as the next superintendent of the Waunakee Community School District. Her passion for education, innovative leadership, and commitment to fostering a collaborative learning environment stood out during the selection process. We believe her vision will further enhance our school district’s mission, and we look forward to a bright future under her guidance. We are confident that her leadership will not only build on our achievements but also inspire positive growth and progress throughout the entire Waunakee community,” Board of Education President Joan Ensign said in a statement..
According to the Brown Deer School District website, Dr. Kelsey-Brown earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education and a Master of Science in Curriculum and Instruction from UW-Whitewater. She went on to earn a doctoral degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a minor in Educational Policy and an emphasis in Multicultural Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Dr. Kelsey-Brown worked at UW-Whitewater between1990 and 2001. She served as a counselor for the Educational Opportunity Program, coordinator of state summer academic camps, director of the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program and Director of Academic Support Services where she supervised staff, managed budgets and ensured overall implementation of the aforementioned programs.
From 2002-2015, she served as a second grade teacher at Thoreau Elementary, curriculum generalist and a student achievement supervisor with Milwaukee Public Schools. She has taught graduate-level courses for the UW-Milwaukee, Cardinal Stritch University and Bryant and Stratton.
Dr. Kelsey-Brown is a member of Christ the King Baptist Church, Metropolitan Milwaukee Alliance of Black School Educators and is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.-Upsilon Mu Omega Chapter. Recently, Dr. Kelsey-Brown directed the first African-American Female Institute (AAFI) as part of the Closing the Achievement Gap Consortium hosted at Concordia University in Mequon. This college readiness program supports young women of African American descent to aspire towards higher levels of academic performance in their communities.
She will begin her new role July 1, 2024. She will replace Randy Guttenberg, who is retiring after 16 years leading the Waunakee Community School District.
