Melanie is responsible for leading the support, curriculum, enrollment and marketing staff and evaluating the USG eCore program, In addition to her role as Dean of eCore, she is also the executive director for UWG's Continuing Education, Off-Campus Programs (Newnan), and UWG Online. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Studies from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, a Specialist in Educational Leadership, a Master's in Public Administration from the University of West Georgia, and a Bachelor's in Journalism from The Ohio State University. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of the Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, and the founder of the annual Distance Learning Administration Conference and the Conference on Meaningful Living in a Digital World. She lives in Carrollton with her husband Matthew and their two sons and two cats. She enjoys camping, reading, cooking, and looking for sand dollars on the beach.