Melissa Hope Garber | Greater New York Area | 215-630-9928 | melissahopegarber@gmail.com
Education
New York University Masters of Arts in Digital Media Design for Learning | GPA 3.9 | May 2017
University of Massachusetts Amherst Bachelors of Arts in Journalism | GPA 3.5 | May 2009 | Cum Laude
Scholarship
NYU Steinhardt AmeriCorps Alumni Scholarship
UX Certification
Nielsen Norman Group Coursework: Usability Testing, Journey Mapping to Understand Customer Needs, Facilitating UX Workshops, Engaging Stakeholders to Build Buy-In, Design Tradeoffs and UX Decision Frameworks, User Research Methods, Navigation Design, Web Page UX Design
Skills and Interests
User Research, Design thinking, Usability testing, Human-computer interaction, Persuasive design, A/B testing, Collaborative design, Qualitative and quantitative research, Experiment design, Ideation and Product Development, Adobe Creative Suite, WordPress CMS, JIRA, UX Design, Database Management, p5.js, HTML, Learning Management System Administration, Totara, InVision App, Elucidat, Human-Centered Design, Video Editing, Cognitive Science, Vendor Management, Behavior Design
Hicleo.com | New York, NY
Mixed Methods UX Researcher | November 2021 - Present
Established the UX Research practice at Cleo, created scalable processes for recruitment, methodology selection and analysis as well as creating and maintaining a searchable research repository
Evangelized the importance of user research cross-functionally. Used mixed method research (qualitative interviews, usability testing, longitudinal surveys, user analytics) to listen to members and clients, directly shaping business decisions including:
Expansion to two new product lines: Cleo Teens and Adult Care
Introduction of new programs: Mental Health, Neurodivergent, College and Future Planning
Usability and intuitiveness of the product
Led survey design and analysis across Marketing, Clinical and Product teams
Indeed.com | New York, NY
UX Strategist | April 2020 - October 2020
Learning Experience Technologist | April 2018 - April 2020
Instructional Design Coordinator | June 2017 – April 2018
Developed and executed on all research-related tasks in the research lifecycle including: user interviews, cognitive mapping, ethnographic field research, journey-mapping, participatory design workshops, card-sorting sessions, usability testing, facilitating design sprints and stakeholder prioritization workshops to inform strategy and product roadmaps for Indeed’s HR team.
Designed and launched a company-wide (10k users) open source learning platform.
Facilitated design sprints for learning and development teams and for an HR innovation lab.
Presented user research and strategy for the development of an internal learning platform at the ATD National Conference.
Won a Totara Best Business Services Project of 2018 for the case study presented at ATD.
Developed a documentation structure and support portal for internal learning platform including: How-to’s for end users and system admins, canned support ticket responses and customer journey flows to create a self-service learning platform.
Consulted and executed on user research strategies for a company-wide intranet and the redesign of an employee engagement survey.
New York University School of Medicine | New York, NY
Institute for Innovation in Medical Education (IIME) Instructional Design Intern | September 2016 – December 2016
Proofread, designed and published e-Books using iBooks Author and iBooks Producer.
Storyboarded and built learning modules using a proprietary learning management system
Used instructional design principles to assist with faculty consultations on course design and technology integration.
QA tested and updated iBooks and learning modules.
Harlem Heat Project | New York, NY
Consultant | July 2016 – October 2016
Consultant on the structure of a design thinking inspired workshop put on by WYNC and AdaptNY for community members, journalists and local politicians around climate change and its impact on Northern Manhattan.
Designed materials for the workshop that provided structure for subsequent community led workshops.
Touro Synagogue | New Orleans, LA
Programming and Education Coordinator | November 2013 – January 2015
Marketing and Communications Coordinator | January 2015 – July 2015
Editor and designer of a 20-page monthly bulletin. Proofread articles, designed ads and laid out content using Adobe InDesign and Photoshop.
Designed and produced digital and print marketing. Improved e-newsletter readership by 20 percent.
Managed social media accounts using HootSuite (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram). More than doubled Facebook followers.
Designed and developed a new WordPress website. Updated online payment processing from PayPal to Stripe, facilitated stakeholder input on sitemapping and content strategy and overall improved the functionality of the website
Managed the administration of a 120 student religious school. Developed a learning management system in excel to track attendance, community service hours and grades.
Neighborhood Partnership Network | New Orleans, LA
Editor-in-Chief The Trumpet | August 2012 – June 2013
Managed a 32-page bimonthly community focused tabloid with a print circulation of 5000. Led content strategy, facilitated a volunteer Editorial Board, secured advertisers, managed printer and distribution vendors, recruited and assigned volunteer contributors, edited and proofread articles using AP style and collaborated on layout with an external graphic designer.
Planned and executed bimonthly release parties for the Trumpet, identified sponsors, secured in kind donations, entertainment and raffle prizes. Regular attendance of 50 people, including local nonprofits, city officials, and writers.
Covenant House New Orleans | New Orleans, LA
Development Assistant, Volunteer Coordinator | August 2011 – August 2012
Maintained all aspects of donor relations: managed Team Approach donor database and Microsoft Access database, managed Authorize.net account, Matching Gift accounts, ran queries, produced reports, updated contacts, oversaw donor mail process and produced all mailings through Microsoft Word mail merges. Developed a user manual for the process.
Led website design. Primary contact with technology group on design and layout, produced all content and media assets.
Developed a volunteer and internship program. Produced all onboarding and marketing materials (one-pager, application, reference forms, job descriptions). Sole lead on recruitment, training and retention efforts.
HandsOn New Orleans | New Orleans, LA
Gulf Response AmeriCorps*VISTA | September 2010 – August 2011
Wrote and received a $35k UPS Disaster Grant to share best practices, build capacity and empower regional nonprofits in the wake of the BP Oil Spill.
Updated the HandsOn New Orleans disaster preparedness plans, revamped the Continuation of Operation Plan (COOP), and maintained vital partnerships with local disaster relief agencies.
City Year Louisiana | Baton Rouge, LA
AmeriCorps, Learning Coordinator | September 2009 – June 2010
Developed lesson plans for an English Language Arts class and Read 180 Intervention class.
Tutored and mentored 20 students at Broadmoor Middle School.
Developed and maintained an excel database for all students tutored by my team of 10 corps members