Hedden Name Tri-Valley Opportunity Council CEO

(Crookston, Minn.) – Melody Hedden has been named the next Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Tri-Valley Opportunity Council in Crookston, Minn.

Hedden has dedicated her career to the human services field for the past 26 years. After graduating from high school in small town Franklin, N.C in 1994 she began working for the local Head Start program as a Family Service Advocate. After 11 years of serving in that role, she was promoted to Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment and Attendance (ERSEA) Specialist.

After three years in the role, while earning an associate degree in human services from Southwestern Community College, she relocated her family to Crookston to accept a position with Tri-Valley Opportunity Council as its Head Start Family & Community Services Manager.

“This position provided me with the opportunity to share my vision for intentional and meaningful family service delivery while I earned my bachelor's degree in human services from Walden University in Minneapolis,” Hedden said.

After five years with the program, she was promoted to Assistant Director of Program Services. During this time, she earned her master’s degree in human services. She spent four years in this position before transitioning to Head Start Director for Western Kentucky University.

“The director position has been great, but I missed being up north and quite honestly my co-workers at Tri-Valley,” Hedden said. “I am thrilled at the opportunity to serve as Tri-Valley Opportunity Council’s Chief Executive Officer and plan to continue the mission of ensuring services are intentional and meaningful. Personally, my family growing up was dependent on community action agencies to meet our basic needs. I was sensitive to the fact my parents were struggling and the burden that placed on them. As I began to have children of my own those feelings resurfaced because I too struggled to provide basic needs for my children. I can recall the moment I decided the grips of poverty would not hold me down and I would break the cycle. I strategically studied, relocated and worked hard to ensure others were provided with opportunities to break generational poverty. I am thrilled about this new chapter of my life and am excited about the team I will be working with.”

Hedden began her new role as CEO on Dec. 1.