Melissa Ramirez

she/her

Teaching Professor

Director for Undergraduate Programs, Genetics & Genomics Academy

Department of Biological Sciences

Thomas Hall 1567A

mvramire@ncsu.edu Website

Bio

Dr. Melissa Ramirez earned her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Virginia Tech, followed by postdoctoral research on antibiotic resistance in tuberculosis at the CDC and Colorado State University. Joining the NC State faculty in 2014, she now serves as a Teaching Professor and the Director of Undergraduate Programs for the Genetics & Genomics Academy (GGA). Her work has shifted toward large-scale interdisciplinary education, most notably as a lead instructor for the “Wicked Problems, Wolfpack Solutions” initiative, where she designs high-impact learning experiences for thousands of incoming students. An inaugural winner of the Warwick A. Arden Interdisciplinary Teaching Excellence Award, Dr. Ramirez focuses her scholarship on inclusive pedagogy and the power of interdisciplinary frameworks to help students recognize the deep interconnectivity between science and society. She remains deeply passionate about showing students how microbiology and genetics are vital tools for solving complex global challenges.

Awards

2025, Warwick A. Arden Interdisciplinary Teaching Excellence Award
2025, Online Learning Consortium Award for Excellence in Digital Learning Innovation
2025, DELTA Grant Recipient
2023, Gertrude Cox Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching and Learning with Technology
2021, Outstanding Teacher Award
2021, Accessibility Champion Award
2018-2020, DELTA Faculty Fellow
2017, DELTA Grant Recipient