Steven Kelts

Dr. Steven Kelts is a Lecturer in Politics and the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University. He was formerly the Director of the Politics & Values Program at George Washington University. He has also taught in the Brady Program in Ethics and Civic Life at Northwestern, as well as the Ethics in Society Program at Stanford.

Dr. Kelts received his PhD from Stanford University in 2002 and has been teaching for the 19 years since. He has won five teaching awards, including the Bender Teaching Award and the Nashman Award for Faculty Member of the Year and was inducted into the George Washington University Academy of Distinguished Teachers.

At Princeton, Dr. Kelts teaches both large lecture courses and in-depth seminars -- his classes include “Ethics and Public Policy,” “Property, Wealth, and Equality,” and “Ways of Knowing.” He has also worked on several committees responsible for developing parts of Princeton's writing program.

In 2020, Dr. Kelts founded Kalos Academy, a near-peer mentoring group that aims to support first-generation and low-income college students in navigating the social, institutional, and academic transition to college. This builds upon his experience in Princeton's Freshman Scholars Institute.