Ms. Kennickell is a native of Clemson, South Carolina. She graduated, summa cum laude, from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies and a concentration in American Studies. She is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society and the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

In 2002, Ms. Kennickell received her J.D., cum laude, from the University of Georgia School of Law. She passed the Georgia Bar Examination in that same year. While attending Georgia law school, Ms. Kennickell was a member of the Georgia Moot Court Team and both competed and coached the ABA Moot Court Team.

Ms. Kennickell is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, the Savannah Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. She is admitted in all Georgia courts, as well as the United States District Court for the Southern and Middle Districts of Georgia and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Kennickell has been an instructor of law at Armstrong Atlantic State University Continuing Education program. She is involved in Junior League of Savannah and is a volunteer for various organizations, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation.