Kelly Eitzen Smith, PhD is an applied sociologist and Assessment Coordinator for the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning, and a research associate for the Native Peoples Technical Assistance Office. Smith received her PhD in sociology from the University of Arizona in 1999. Prior to joining CAPLA and NPTAO, she taught in the University of Arizona’s sociology department and was the Associate Director of the Center for Applied Sociology. She is co-author of Social Problems (14th edition, with D. Stanley Eitzen and Maxine Baca Zinn), In Conflict and Order, Understanding Society (14th edition, with D. Stanley Eitzen and Maxine Baca Zinn), and Experiencing Poverty: Voices from the Bottom (Second Edition, with D. Stanley Eitzen). Dr. Smith assists the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning with all aspects of accreditation including data collection, surveys, annual reports, program assessment, and self-study reports. She also conducts research and provides assistance to the Native Peoples Technical Assistance Office at the university.

Smith's research interests include housing and transportation affordability, poverty, urban social problems, tribal communities, community and neighborhood planning, and transit oriented development.