Mei Kelly is an adoptee advocate, post-adoption coordinator for The Beat website – Beginning to Explore Adoption Together, as well as a language teacher. Born in China but raised in the Chicagoland area in a small adoption community, she recently graduated from San Francisco State University with an undergraduate degree in Chinese language. She also holds a Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) certificate.
In 2014, Mei created a film project called “Adoption & Identity Intertwined” that focused on adoptees’ thoughts on their identity development and adoption story. The film was produced to serve as an educational tool and a conversation starter for adoptees, families and educators. The film won an award in the Asian South East Short Film Festival’s Longer Short category. During this same time, Mei became the lead coordinator for The Cradle adoption agency’s post-adoption website for teen adoptees called The BEAT. Mei’s film project is hosted on the site as well as other resources for adoptees to begin exploring their identity and adoption community.