Melanie Chapman
Melanie Chapman serves as the Chair of the African Immigrant Family Services (AIFS) board of directors while concurrently holding the position of Community Health Program Specialist at the Nebraska Association of Local Health Directors (NALHD). She is a dedicated scholar and public servant currently pursuing her Doctoral degree in Public Administration and Public Policy at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Melanie’s professional journey is marked by impactful roles, including her tenure as a Community Health Planner at Sarpy/Cass Health Department, where she leads initiatives aimed at enhancing the well-being of residents. As an Administrator at Collaboration for Early Childhood, she instrumentally supported program coordination and evaluation to create equitable, nurturing, and interconnected childhood systems. Before moving to the US, Melanie worked as a Research Associate at the Alberta Centre for Health Evidence developing evidence-informed practice and knowledge translation to help inform clinical and policy decisions.
Her research prowess is equally noteworthy, having served as a Graduate Research Assistant at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, contributing to various projects on nonprofit management, social justice, and civic engagement. Melanie’s commitment to global research is evidenced by her involvement in a multi-year project funded by the Canadian Institute for Health Research, focusing on destigmatizing Chinese communities during a global pandemic. Moreover, her dedication to academia as a Primary Instructor reflects her passion for disseminating knowledge and nurturing the next generation of public administration professionals.