Kelly James-Penot is the Assistant to the Director for the School of Performing and Visual Arts and the Theatre Costume Shop Supervisor at The University of Southern Mississippi. Her Costume Design and Technology work has taken her to opera houses, ballet companies, and regional theatres across the nation. She has assisted many Broadway and International designers supervised union wardrobe crews and constructed garments for many diverse productions.

Kelly holds an M.F.A. from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and a B.F.A. in Theatre with an emphasis in Music from William Carey University.