Melissa King

Biography

Early in high school, Melissa began volunteering at St. Mary’s Child Center, an Indianapolis-based early childhood education center focused on uplifting children with various social challenges, such as involvement in the foster care system and parental incarceration. There she observed the power of approaching all children with assumptions of best intentions, competence, and centering the relationship rather than directing behavior.

During her undergraduate studies, Melissa gained skills in general nursing through her formal clinicals and work experience in a nursing home, hospital post-surgical floor, and outpatient offices. She also had the opportunity to work as a summer camp nurse, further growing her passion for working with children and families.

Melissa studied pediatric primary care during her MSN.  Through engagement with faculty and varied practice opportunities, she was able to focus on child development and mental healthcare upon graduation.

Since 2013, Melissa earned a pediatric focused mental health certification and has worked in community mental health and a specialty neurodevelopmental clinic, growing to understand the need for a family-based framework to promote positive mental health, as well as experiencing many of the challenges of rural mental healthcare delivery and provider shortages firsthand. She has been a preceptor for Purdue’s MSN programs for many years, and in August 2021, joined the undergraduate faculty, teaching nursing clinicals in mental health.

Melissa’s favorite thing about teaching is getting to know her students and encourage them in their own mental wellness and self care practices as a powerful means of reducing and preventing burnout in the nursing field. She lives in West Lafayette with her partner and six year old daughter, and enjoys being outdoors, yoga, and meditation.

Education

• MSN, 2013, Purdue University
• BSN, 2011, Purdue University
• CPNP-PC, PMHS

Areas of Expertise

• Psychopharmacology
• Child Developmental, Behavioral, and Mental Health
• Mental Healthcare Delivery in Rural Populations

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

• Implicit Bias: What's Hidden Within, Indianapolis Peace Learning Center, August 2020