Melvin Washington II

Melvin Washington is the manager of strategic initiatives and planning for Presidential Initiatives. He is a key partner to colleagues across the Foundation and instrumental in shaping, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating grantmaking efforts originating in the President’s office.

Previously, Melvin was the Program Manager for Citigroup's Financial Inclusion and Racial Equity initiative, with a focus on technology and the racial wealth gap. He also spent three years at the Vera Institute of Justice collaborating with government, non-profit, and advocacy partners to develop equitable approaches to safety and justice that reduce reliance on jail incarceration. Before Vera, Melvin served at the U.S. Department of Agriculture coordinating rural economic development and agricultural science policy initiatives.

Melvin holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Wake Forest University and a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. He is an alum of the Ford School’s Science and Technology Public Policy Program (STPP) and serves on the STPP alumni board.