Melanie’s lived experience has afforded her many opportunities in the advocacy space – to become a better-informed advocate for herself and others and to build her professional knowledge and experience. These opportunities have included the completion of Minnesota’s Partners in Policymaking series, two years of extensive training within the Nebraska UCEDD, and the AUCD leadership academy. Melanie serves as an Advocate Mentor at the Munroe-Meyer Institute. In her role, she helps adults with disabilities build personal advocacy skills and offers assistance in connecting these individuals to resources. Melanie also supports education, policy, and accessibility efforts at MMI.