Meet Melody!
Coming up from modest means, I was fortunate to be able to see my family's transition from low to middle-income. My family’s financial background provided me with strong saving and budgeting skills, but still I had less exposure to other financial topics like investing or insurance. It was my personal desire to accumulate wealth that drove me to a career in finance. Still, after working in several facets of the finance industry, I realized that people are ill-prepared to enter adulthood and manage their finances. I then decided to take a preventative educational approach, through the founding of a nonprofit, to engage the community in financial education.
Experience &
Education
2011-Present
North Starr Consulting
2013-Present
Portland State University
Adjunct Professor
2023-Present
Investopedia
2005-2022
Financial Beginnings
Founder and CEO
Advise nonprofit, for-profit, and governmental entities. Projects include strategic planning, fundraising, program development, and financial systems.
Develop content and teach in several different modalities including, traditional in-person, online, and virtual. Courses taught include:
-
200 Level Personal Finance
-
300 Level Business Finance
Advise on Investopedia's financial literacy strategy. Review for accuracy and provide updates on content to the editorial team.
Founded and grew from a small local direct-service nonprofit to a nationally recognized organization with local affiliates.
Ed.D
Doctorate in Educational Leadership
MBA
Masters of
Business Administration:
Finance and Public Administration
BS
Bachelors of Science:
Business Administration:
Finance
RECOGNITION
40 UNDER 40
Portland Business Journal
2020
INAGURAL
FINANCIAL EDUCATION
CHAMPION
Oregon Bankers Association
2018
ADJUNCT PROFESSOR
OF THE YEAR
Portland State University
School of Business Administration
2016
DREAM ACHIEVER
State Farm
and
WME's Live Together
2016