About
Introduction
Melanie (Kadlic) Meren is a champion for communities! Melanie’s vision is that communities thrive.
Melanie is a public policy professional, working since 2002 to increase people’s quality of life and the success of public services. She approaches her work as a joyful instigator who welcomes collaborators.
After obtaining an excellent public education while growing up on Long Island in New York, Melanie became the first in her family to earn a college degree. She also earned a high school diploma from the National Guild of Piano Teachers, validating her training as a classical pianist. Melanie attended the State University of New York at Albany, accruing loans to pay for her Bachelor’s degree. From there she earned a scholarship to attend the Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University, where she completed her Master’s degree in 2002.
Melanie formally launched her career in public service at the US Department of Education in 2002. This move brought her to the nation’s capital area, and to Fairfax particularly in 2005 where she’s resided since. Employed as a civil servant, her work included travelling nationwide to monitor allowable activities under federal funding, and elevate best practices to grow the positive impacts of public education.
How it Started: Leading Neighbors to Protect Local Funding
In 2015, Melanie’s daughter began Kindergarten in Fairfax County Public Schools. Just two months into the school year, a budget cut to FCPS of up to $75 million was proposed. Melanie’s response: “Not on my watch.”
Melanie began co-leading the #IamFCPS grassroots campaign to fully fund the budget.
That effort was a significant part of reducing what began as a $67.8 million funding shortfall, to just over $15 million (source: Washington Post).
After this advocacy effort, Melanie saw how her experiences as a policy and program professional, communicator and connector, parent, and grassroots advocate uniquely prepared her to serve on the Fairfax County School Board. Melanie completed the prestigious Sorensen Institute Political Leaders Program at UVA in 2018, after exploring public policy issues across Virginia for a year.
Melanie won two contested elections in 2019 – a Democratic party caucus for endorsement and an official general election – to become the Hunter Mill representative on the Fairfax County School Board. She assumed office in 2020, and won two additional elections in 2023 (party caucus and general election), to remain on the Board for two, four-year terms.
How it’s Going: Advocate and Connector, Doing the Work
During Melanie’s tenure on the Fairfax County School Board since 2020, she has earned community trust through her hallmark of informative updates, transparency about her work and that of the Board, and a public policy professional who is prepared to do her job.
Melanie fights for FCPS workers to earn competitive compensation, and knows that retaining staff makes a stable workforce in Fairfax County. She has analyzes and advocates for upkeep of over 200 public school facility assets that are used by residents seven days a week. Melanie is known elsewhere in Virginia as a collaborative and knowledgeable legislative advocate who leads the charge to “get the money” for public school funding in the Commonwealth.
Melanie is often found in the county supporting students at school events, participating in community meetings, shopping at small businesses, and enjoying public events – especially when live music and dancing are happening!
She encourages all people to “show up and speak up” for what they want to see in the Fairfax Community.
As a School Board member of the 9th largest school division in America, Melanie is responsible for $4 Billion in annual public spending to deliver excellent public education to about 175,000 children. Her work includes oversight for systems supporting 25,000 full time employees, and for stewarding $9 Billion in public facility assets.
In addition to expert education policy and program experience spanning PreK-12, Melanie has a breadth of knowledge about public services, local government management, and the legislative process. Areas of knowledge include: funding and maintenance of public facilities; annual budget development and on-going financial oversight; auditing; data management and security; procurement; compliance with state and federal laws; legal matters; and public safety and transportation.
Furthermore, she understands the necessity of Fairfax’s fire and emergency services, parks and recreation offerings, libraries, the public arts, and public health programs. She sees exciting opportunities for economic development, recreation, tourism, and more to grow in Fairfax County. As the hub of economic activity in Northern Virginia and the entire Commonwealth, Melanie recognizes the responsibilities – and possibilities – for Fairfax County’s future.
She works to empower the public to be stewards, proponents, and protectors of the people in our community. Melanie aims to bring joy and build collaboration with her public service.
With her husband, Drew Meren, she’s a parent to two secondary grade level students in FCPS, in the South Lakes pyramid. The Merens live in Reston, with their beloved toy poodle, Lola.
Learn more about Melanie’s career on LinkedIn.
