Melody Musgrove, EdD, served as director of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in the U.S. Department of Education from 2010 until 2016. Under her leadership, OSEP made historic revisions to the accountability framework to include student learning outcomes as part of determining states’ effectiveness in serving students with disabilities.
Musgrove worked as an educator at the classroom, school, district, and state levels. She served as Mississippi’s director of special education before being selected by the White House to lead the country’s special education program.
Musgrove was known for a strong emphasis on data-driven decisions as well as for her collaborative, inclusive, and practical leadership. She was co-director of the Graduate Center for the Study of Early Learning and an associate professor of special education at the University of Mississippi.