Carol Keirstead, Ph.D.

Carol Keirstead, Ph.D. is a lifelong Lowell resident and educator whose career has been dedicated to advancing equity in education and uplifting immigrant and refugee communities. A founding board member of Angkor Dance Troupe, Carol has spent decades supporting cultural preservation and youth empowerment through education and community service.

In the 1980s, she served as Director of the Indochinese Refugee Foundation and played a key role in developing Southeast Asian curriculum for Lowell Public Schools. Her work later extended to Middlesex Community College, where she led the Resource Center for Refugee and Immigrant Students, and to the Philippine Refugee Program, where she supported Khmer, Vietnamese, and Amerasian youth preparing for life in the United States.

Carol holds a doctorate in Leadership in Schooling from UMass Lowell and has led national initiatives to improve outcomes in underperforming schools and build a more diverse educator workforce. She is also the proud mother of two adopted children—one from Cambodia and one from the U.S. foster care system. Through every chapter of her work, Carol remains committed to cultural preservation, educational justice, and creating opportunity for all young people.