Kerns is probably best known to viewers for her role as Ellen Powell on Charles in Charge. She was a regular cast member when the show initially went into first-run syndication in January 1987. However, in the final two seasons, she abruptly left the show and only made three more appearances (once in Season Four and twice in Season Five). She last acted in 1993, but appeared as herself in an episode of E! True Hollywood Story in 2006.