Mrs. Melanie Ford is an associate teaching professor in Computer Science and Software Engineering at Penn State Behrend. Ford also serves as the Director of Youth Education Outreach and the Engineering K-12 Outreach Centers. Her passion for outreach focuses on career exploration for kids of all ages particularly in the STEM to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) fields. Through her work with the outreach centers, the team engages over 25,000+ youth and educators a year across the STEAM fields.

Mrs. Ford won the 2010 Penn State Women in the Sciences and Engineering (WISE) Institute Faculty Recognition Award for her work in helping women and girls excel in engineering and the sciences. In an interview following the award Mrs. Ford was quoted as saying: “Our goal for K-12 outreach is to interest all students in the different careers of engineering. Research shows that many kids, including girls and minorities, do not pursue engineering as a career because they do not know what engineers do, or how they can help people. We want to keep students engaged in learning, as well as pique their interest in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields.” She has been an active supporter of Women in Engineering, Math Options, and other engineering outreach programs for many years. 

Mrs. Ford was the recipient of the Penn State Behrend Council of Fellows Excellence in Outreach Award in 2011, the School of Engineering Excellence in Outreach in 2009, 2016 and again in 2023 as well as the 2013 Math Options Vision and Passion Award. She received the B.A. in Computer Science and Mathematics from the State University of New York at Potsdam and her M. Ed. in Educational Leadership from Penn State University. She has years of industry experience at Day-Timers Inc., Chronologic Corporation and Caldor Inc. prior to her hire at Penn State Behrend.