February 16, 2017
When Sirid Kellermann thinks back to her high school years, she reminisces about how fun it was to be part of one of the first graduating classes. “We were participating in a living experiment, helping to shape this new school,” she said.
MPA fostered an early sense of activism, and Sirid recalls participating in student-led campaigns that ranged from trivial (such as tirelessly lobbying that black jeans were NOT jeans and therefore didn’t violate dress code) to impactful (such as the successful “Buckle-Up” seatbelt safety campaign). She and her classmates were inspired to see that even as young people, they could affect change in the world.
Sirid pursued her passion for science after graduation, going on to earn a Ph.D. as well as an MBA in sustainable business management. After working in biotechnology for 14 years in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sirid brought her Californian husband and twin girls back to Minnesota just in time to dig out of the great snowstorm of December 2010—without a snowblower. “My husband stuck around in spite of that, so I guess it is true love,” she commented.
For the past four years, she has run her own consulting firm out of her Stillwater office, where her favorite desk adornment is her “Sherlock” action figure. Sirid’s clients are mainly young biotechnology companies and research institutions, and she relies heavily on her scientific expertise as well as her writing, communication, analytical, and strategic thinking skills.
Sirid is also a professional grant writer, and is particularly motivated by grant applications that seek to bring more women and other underrepresented groups into the STEM disciplines. As a mother to 10-year-old daughters, “This is work that resonates most with me,” she said.
When she’s not working, Sirid is doing her best to raise her children to be brave, curious, and kind—activists too. She is working toward her second-degree black belt in karate and also enjoys trying out new food recipes on her family.
