Melissa Neelakantan

Experience

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  Brigham Young University

  Jan 2010 - Aug 2010

  Facilitator, India Field Study Program

  - Provided both classroom and field-based training to help students develop cross-cultural, research, data collection and analysis skills needed to successfully conduct research in India- Independently led and mentored students while in India- Assessed and monitored student progress- Integrated diverse materials into classroom teaching including: historical and government documents, interviews with global leaders, primary source materials, podcasts of area experts, debates over specific policies and situations, and current events- Facilitated workshops on research, writing, qualitative data collection and analysis, and cross-cultural skills Show less

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  International Rescue Committee

  May 2012 - Aug 2012

  Intern

  - Taught citizenship, cultural orientation, and adult ESL classes - Consulted with adult refugee students and helped them develop reasonable educational goals- Evaluated and conducted assessments of refugees’ eligibility and progress in educational programs

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  Whitehead Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University

  Sept 2012 - May 2013

  Associate Editor

  - Fact-checked, edited and revised academic articles for publication

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  Global Nomads Group

  Jun 2013 - Aug 2013

  Program Curriculum Development Intern

  - Researched and designed three program curricula for a youth virtual exchange program that fosters dialogue and understanding among the world's youth- Topics included international affairs, government policies, human trafficking, international laws and treaties, international organizations - Proposed and developed a curriculum template for future staff

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  Seton Hall University

  Oct 2013 - Nov 2014

  Research Assistant

  - Conducted research on global leaders that lead to publishing 4 leader profiles and an essay on project’s website- Planned and participated in outreach events and activities.

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  Rosov Consulting

  Jul 2015 - Jan 2017

  Evaluation Project Associate

  Conducted evaluations of non-profit educational programs. Collected, cleaned, and analyzed data using SPSS and Excel.• Designed surveys and interview protocols, conducted interviews, and analyzed quantitative data.• Prepared reports and presentations based on data analysis.• Coached program providers on building program’s evaluation capacity.

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  Various Nonprofit Organizations

  Apr 2017 - Aug 2017

  Evaluation Data Consultant

  - Consult with organizational leaders about how to improve their organization’s evaluation capacity- Review existing datasets and evaluation tools- Design survey and interview protocols

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  Student Conservation Association

  Oct 2017 - Jun 2020

  Evaluation Data Manager

  Promoted to full-time position after serving as temporary employee after proving abilities and taking on more and wider range of organization and strategic planning projects. Provided expertise with large data sets, cleaning and analyzing youth development outcomes, and strategic planning initiatives, and assisted organization in understanding its strengths and challenges through data. • Worked with Director of Evaluation on number of evaluation and reporting projects and cross-departmental teams, including project managers running field programs. • Led 2 teams to handle cross-departmental projects. • Designed and led data projects from initial planning stage to final reporting, while managing and analyzing large quantitative and qualitative data sets using SPSS and Excel. • Redesigned impact metric tools by prioritizing important metrics and creating user-friendly data collection process to collect more accurate data.• Facilitated conversations and synthesized complex data to share with staff, during organization’s visioning process. • Worked with team, including Harvard University professional, to develop vision and plan to position organization as leader in social and emotional development for young people. • Researched projects to discover what was important to organization, and helped organization to understand strengths and areas of importance better, reported company strengths to internal and external participants to illustrate a better understanding, and utilized data as part of strategic planning process.• Created evaluation project to assist departments and cross-functional teams to identify problems and solutions on working more cohesively. Show less

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  Children's Scholarship Fund Philadelphia

  May 2021 - now

  Senior Manager of Organizational Learning & Evaluation

  • Working directly with the CEO and CPO, researched and evaluated key program data to make major changes to the scholarship program and setting ambitious, data-driven goals for the organization’s 5-year campaign.• Define and continuously refine an organization-wide evaluation strategy, including overseeing and managing the processes for collecting, analyzing, organizing, and reporting on key program data.• Design and lead evaluation projects from planning phase to reporting, while collecting, managing and analyzing large quantitative and qualitative data sets from more than 1,400 survey responses annually.• Design and disseminate data-collection tools to capture feedback from program participants and partners.• Partner with development and communication teams to ensure that accurate and reliable data is integrated into grant proposals, marketing, and other essential external-facing communications.• Facilitate meetings with program staff to discuss program data and findings and develop strategies to improve program delivery.• Support staff in evaluation and data capacity building through both one-on-one meetings, groups meetings and presentations.• Oversee research and evaluation consultants on research and evaluation projects. Show less