He is also an instructor in such courses as the history of biology and the history of philosophy at Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora, Illinois. Kiely has also delivered many lectures at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, Illinois. He received his PhD from Northwestern University, where he studied the history of ideas and the history of science. His awards include a National Science Foundation Research Grant, an Outstanding Teaching Award from Northwestern University, and the Faculty of the Year Award from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.