Melissa Arnold Lyon is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy at Rockefeller College at the University at Albany, a former Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Annenberg Institute at Brown University, and a Senior Research Scientist at the Consortium for Policy Research in Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. Her research focuses on the political economy of education with a particular interest in teachers, institutions, and other organized interests. She has published on topics such as teachers' unions, local politics of education, and cross-sector collaborations.
Melissa holds a PhD in Education Policy and Social Analysis from Teachers College, Columbia University and a BA in Political Science from Rice University. Prior to graduate school Melissa taught middle school in Houston, Texas.