Melissa Lewis has nearly thirty years of experience supporting individuals with Developmental Disabilities and their families. She is guided by the mission to support, empower, and advocate for the Disability community, both in programmatic and legislative forums. Her focus is on creating exceptional and adaptive service delivery, with a lens on quality and person-centered outcomes. She embraces the philosophy that the people we support and their families are at the core of driving services forward. She advocates for the staff that work in the human services sector and focuses on creating opportunities and a career path for the dedicated workforce.
Melissa came to work at Advocates in April 2024 through the organization’s merger with HMEA, where she spent five years as Senior Vice President of Adult and Family Services. Prior to working at Advocates and HMEA, she spent ten years working at the Mentor Network as the Massachusetts State Director of IDD Services/Medically Complex. Throughout her career, Melissa has worked in many programs and overseen services including Residential, Day, Employment, Shared Living, Adult Family Care, Family Services, Brain Injury Services, and Autism Centers. Melissa also focuses her work on the expansion and growth of services and community integration. She has a particular interest in both health equity and DEI initiatives, and her vision for her work going forward is to create an inclusive work environment focused on supporting people through the continuum of care.
Melissa holds both a master’s degree in social work and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Boston University. Her other professional interests include volunteering at Sturdy Hospital Health Equity – Community Outreach events and advocating for victims of domestic violence in community-based settings.
Melissa lives in Attleboro with her husband and two daughters. Though she values her work and career, her most important role is as a guide and anchor to her two daughters as they navigate life as young women. She also has three dogs that keep her busy. She loves art, nature, and traveling to new places and is a passionate Boston sports fan.
