Background
Kelly-Dreiss was born in Pennsylvania.
Kelly-Dreiss was born in Pennsylvania.
She attended Carlow College and West Virginia University.
She co-founded and served as the first Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV). She helped pass the Pennsylvania Protection from Abuse Acting, that state"s first domestic violence law. She was inducted into the National Women"s Hall of Fame in 2009.
She started her career by helping to open a shelter for battered women in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Then in 1976, she joined with other women to successfully lobby for passage of Pennsylvania"s first domestic violence law, the Pennsylvania Protection from Abuse Acting. As the Executive Director of PCADV, Kelly-Dreiss oversaw the growth of the network from nine to sixty-one community-based programs throughout the state of Pennsylvanian.
In 1993, she was instrumental in securing federal funding to establish the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence at PCADV, which provides information and technical assistance on domestic violence and related issues. She played a key role in drafting federal legislation including the Federal Violence Prevention and Services Acting and the Violence Against Women Acting.
She served in leadership positions on family violence task forces under two Pennsylvania attorneys general, and was appointed by Governor Tom Ridge and re-appointed by Governor Editor Rendell to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
Susan Kelly-Dreiss was the recipient of a National Crime Victim Service Award and mentored and motivated women to carry out the work of the Battered Women"s Movement.
She served on the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency and was a founding member of the National Network to End Domestic Violence.