Foundation Staff

Melanie Colclough serves as the Senior Program Officer for Human Services and Arts & Culture, with a focus on aiding the most vulnerable residents in our service area by ensuring access to basic needs and safety net supports through the work of community organizations. Additionally, she works to advance the artistic and cultural landscape throughout East Texas.

Melanie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of South Carolina and a Master of Public Administration degree from the City University of New York as a National Urban Fellow. She spent over two decades leading non-profit organizations, serving as a consultant, and learning through programs like Duke University’s Nonprofit Management Program and Leadership South Carolina.

Prior to joining the foundation, Melanie served as the Executive Director of the SC Arts Alliance. Working in direct partnership with the state arts agency, she advocated at the SC General Assembly for the support, expansion, and vitality of the creative industry there. She was appointed to the SC Governor’s Arts Awards judge’s panel and as a grant reviewer for the National Endowment of the Arts. She also earned a seat in the inaugural cohort of South Arts’ Emerging Leaders of Color.

She has a passion for community building and foster/adoption advocacy and is an avid volunteer in those spaces. She is married to her childhood friend, David, and they share six beautiful children.