Kyle Francis Kennedy, granddaughter of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, dies at 42

Kyle Francis Kennedy, granddaughter of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, has died at age 42 in Westwood, Massachusetts, where she lived. Her death occurred on Sept. 21, with no cause immediately announced. Kennedy was an advocate for education reform and disability rights, having worked as a teacher in New York City through Teach for America before becoming an education advocate with technology companies. She suffered a severe spinal cord injury in 2020 causing long-term paralysis and later testified before the Massachusetts legislature on health care discrimination against people with disabilities. She was the niece of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and ran the Boston Marathon in 2019. Her father, Michael Kennedy, died in a 1997 skiing accident, and her grandfather was assassinated in 1968.