Doctor of Philosophy
Psychology
The Ohio State University
Master of Arts
Psychology
The Ohio State University
Bachelor of Science
Interdisciplinary Studies
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Kellie McCants-Price didn’t originally intend to become a teacher. She planned to be a therapist. After completing her degrees, she spent several years doing psychological assessments for K-12 schools, rehabilitation hospitals and juvenile detention centers. But she had discovered a love for teaching during graduate school and felt a longing to teach the next generation of educators and health care providers. So she made a career change, like many of her current students are trying to do.
Since coming to AACC in 2014, she has taught a variety of courses on topics such as abnormal psychology, human sexuality and developmental psychology. Her students inspire her to bring her A-game to class every day.
“Teaching at AACC gives me a chance to work with amazing students who are building careers, changing careers and changing their lives,” she said. “My students show me every semester that they're determined, courageous dreamers who are ready to set the world on fire.”
Her students know her as a pop culture junkie who finds ways to incorporate real-life examples into her teaching. She enjoys getting to know what her students do outside the classroom so that she can “figure out how to cheer them on to their biggest successes.”
In addition to teaching, McCants-Price is a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practitioner and social justice warrior. One of her passions is ensuring that all – especially those historically excluded – find a seat and amplify their voices at the table in higher education and community health settings. She was awarded the 2019 AACC IDEAL Faculty Equity Champion and the 2018-2019 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Zeitgeist Award for her efforts to increase opportunities for inclusive excellence at AACC and in the community.
Outside the classroom, McCants-Price enjoys listening to podcasts, cooking, trying new restaurants, gardening and traveling with her husband and two daughters, who she said “will be old enough to attend AACC before I know it.”