Personnel Profile

Name: Melanie Harmon

Title: Vice President, Work Programs

Responsibilities:
The Vice President of Work Programs is responsible for the operation and management of Dunn Employment Services, Dunn Diversified Industries, and Dunn Document Destruction.

Experience:
Melanie has worked since 1990 for Dunn Diversified Industries, first as Plant Manager then as General Manager. In 2006, she was promoted to Vice President of Michael Dunn Center Work Programs. Before moving to Tennessee in 1989, she worked ten years for the Montgomery Board of Mental Retardation in Dayton, Ohio, first as Behavioral Consultant, next as Business Officer then as Contract Specialist.

Education:
Bachelor of Arts (Majors: Behavioral Psychology, History. Grade Point Average 3.96) in 1977 from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan. All requirements except thesis completed for Master of Arts (Applied Behavioral Science – Human Factors Engineering. Grade Point Average 3.88) from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio.

Goals for your department or the agency in general:
Provide employment opportunities to individuals with disabilities and disadvantages.

Accomplishments/ Successes regarding serving individuals with disabilities:

• Reversed near bankruptcy status of Dunn Diversified Industries to consistent profit by quadrupling customer base, increasing productivity and efficiency, and reducing expenditures.
  
• Coordinated and expedited production for 650 employees with disabilities in two buildings, each with two shifts, for the Montgomery County Board of Mental Retardation.
  
• For the same company, worked with an interdisciplinary team to develop a training model resulting in a presentation at the fourth annual convention of the Association of Behavior Analysis in Chicago, Illinois and a publication entitled "Towards community employment: a comprehensive data base training system for mentally retarded adults." in the Career Development for Exceptional Individuals.
  

Any other information you would like to provide:
Melanie and her husband live on Watts Bar Lake and enjoy the many recreational activities this area has to offer. Melanie's hobbies include traveling, motorcycling, bird watching, hiking, bicycling, reading, and wine making. She is also a licensed single engine private pilot and scuba diver.