Kelly Richards is the Government Practice Leader at Notre Internationale and leads our growing Government Solutions team. She is responsible for bringing Notre’s unique brand of HXM and DEI consulting, leadership development, executive coaching, and team building to Federal, State, and Local Government agencies by applying her career of 20 years working for the State of Illinois. Kelly brings to Notre an extensive background in supporting government entities through training, policy implementation, and leadership development.
A 20-year veteran of the State of Illinois, Kelly Richards has dedicated much of her professional career to improving the lives of underserved, disconnected and disenfranchised Illinoisans. Kelly worked for the Department of Human Services from 1999 to 2018. At the Department of Human Services, she worked for Family Community Services from 1999 to 2016. She served as an Assistant Local Office Administrator at the South Suburban Family Community Resources Center. Kelly was the Local Office Administrator at the Lower North, Woodlawn and South Suburban Family Community Resource Centers. She then became the Regional Administrator of eight Family Community Resource Centers on the South Side of Chicago and South Suburbs.
From 2016 to 2018, Kelly worked for the Department of Developmental Disabilities as the Center Director for the Elisabeth Ludeman Center. The Ludeman Center is a residential facility for Intellectually/Developmentally Disabled Individuals. In 2018, she came to the Department on Aging and served as the Illinois Deputy State Long Term Care Ombudsman.
In May of 2019, Kelly was appointed as the State Long Term Care Ombudsman. In her capacity as the Illinois State Ombudsman, she monitors the Regional Ombudsman Programs, conducts various trainings and provides technical assistance when issues arise with regards to residents’ rights and the treatment and care of residents who reside in long-term care facilities. She also speaks before legislators and provides testimony, to alert them of the issues and challenges that residents face on a daily basis.
Kelly is also the Government Liaison for Notre Internationale, a Human Experience Management (HXM) consulting company. At Notre, she heads the growing Government Solutions team. Kelly brings Notre her extensive background in supporting government entities through training, policy implementation, and leadership development.