Melanie Harmon is Vice president for Advancement and serves as the chief fundraising officer at Manchester University. Harmon oversees development, alumni relations, and advancement services. She joined Manchester University in 2011 as Executive Director of Development and helped lead the successful $100 Million Students First! Campaign for Manchester.



Harmon has 30 years of higher education experience with a concentration in donor development, capital campaigns, and alumni relations. Prior to joining Manchester, she served as Associate Vice President for Development at Trine University. In her 19 years of service, she held a number of leadership positions all with increasing responsibility.

Melanie has been active in the profession, serving 14 years with the Council for Advancement and Support of Education in leadership roles at the state, district, and national levels. Her journey began with CASE Indiana working to bring regional programming and networking to advancement professionals across the state of Indiana.  She went on to serve as program chair, operations chair, and conference chair for previous CASE District V Conferences.  Melanie served on the CASE V District Board of Directors for ten years and as a member of the CASE National Board of Trustees from 2017-2019 where she played a pivotal role in shaping the OneCASE model.  She was named a CASE Laureate in 2019 and continues to volunteer as a presenter at conferences. Harmon also gives back in her community and has served on multiple not-for-profit boards. Currently, she is a member of the Fort Wayne Community Harvest Food Bank Board of Directors where she chairs the philanthropy committee.



Melanie earned her Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Indiana University and later received a certificate in fundraising management from Indiana University Center on Philanthropy Fundraising School. She continued her education at IU, earning her master's degree in Philanthropic Studies. Harmon is also a member of the CIC Senior Leadership Academy class of 2012-2013. 



Melanie resides in Fort Wayne with her husband Rob. She has two children, Taylor and Quinn.