BIOGRAPHY
Melissa Woo, Ph.D., is the executive vice president for administration, providing leadership for enterprise-wide administrative services including University Infrastructure planning and facilities, human resources, procurement & logistics, and sustainability. Additionally, Melissa serves as MSU’s chief information officer, and as president of the MSU Foundation.
Throughout her career, and since originally joining MSU in 2019 as senior vice president for information technology and chief information officer, Melissa has proven herself as a skilled administrator of large, complex units with a keen ability to refine cross organizational synergies. She is a strong collaborator with academic units to optimize institutional effectiveness and align administrative services with the university’s mission.
Dr. Woo served as senior vice president for information technology and enterprise chief information officer for Stony Brook University. She has also held IT leadership roles at the University of Oregon, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign where she earned her Ph.D. in biophysics. Melissa received her bachelor’s degree in biophysics from the University of California, Berkeley.
Melissa was named to EdTech Magazine’s, “The 2020 Dean’s List: 30 Higher ED IT Influencers Worth a Follow.” In 2019, she won the inaugural EDUCAUSE DEI Leadership Award for her actions leading to improved diversity, equity, and inclusion in the higher education IT community, as well as the 2012 EDUCAUSE Rising Star Award, recognizing her as an emerging leader in higher education IT.
She remains actively engaged with higher education professional organizations and is passionate in her support of aspiring leaders from diverse backgrounds. She currently serves in an assortment of capacities, such as the chair of the Merit Network board of directors, co-chair of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE), Modernizing Talent Management Working Group, an advisory committee member of The NSF Cybersecurity Center of Excellence and on the policy advisory committee with EDUCAUSE. Additionally, Melissa was appointed to serve on the EDUCAUSE board of Directors.