Kohl-Arenas was previously on the Nonprofit Management faculty at the Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy at The New School where she received tenure in May 2017. Kohl-Arenas is a scholar of philanthropy and social movements and is the 2016 Outstanding University Teaching Award recipient and 2014 recipient of the Outstanding Achievements in Diversity and Social Justice Teaching at The New School. Kohl-Arenas earned her PhD from the Social and Cultural Studies in Education program at the University of California, Berkeley (2010), an MS in Community Development from the University of California, Davis (1999), and a BA in Sociology from Reed College (1991).