Natalie A. Mello is the Director of Global Operations in the Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Division at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Mello oversees all aspects of the administration and management of WPIs global perspective program, including student recruitment, risk management, health and safety issues, participant orientation and faculty advisor training.  These programs exist in the US, Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia, Africa and the South Pacific and involve more than 600 participants yearly.  Mello has also served as an onsite advisor for WPI students as they have completed degree required projects in Venice, Italy and San José, Costa Rica. WPI was recognized by NAFSA:  Association of International Educators in its Internationalizing the Campus: Profiles of Successin 2003 and received an honorable mention for IIEs Andrew Heiskell Award in 2004.

Mello is involved with national education abroad organizations particularly in the areas of risk management and has become recognized as developing a model for responsible risk management for off-campus experiences.  She currently serves the Chair Elect for NAFSAs Region XI, has served as The Education Abroad Representative for Region XI and was part of NAFSAs Strengthening the Association Working Groups in 2004.  Mello contributed to the 2005 edition on NAFSAs Guide to Education Abroad for Advisers and Administrators . She has also published and presented in the areas of engineering education, education abroad and educational outcomes assessment.  Mello is a member of the NAFSA Trainer Corp, was a mentor in the NAFSA Academy and sits on the Interorganizational Task Force on Health and Safety in Study Abroad.  Recently Mello was elected to the Advisory Council for The Forum on Education Abroad, a global professional association whose exclusive purpose is to serve the field of education abroad.

Her work in creating faculty development workshops was recognized by the TIAA-Crefs Hesburgh Award committee in February 2003.  WPI was one of just four schools awarded a Certificate of Excellence for its enhancement of undergraduate teaching and learning. WPI was commended for equipping its faculty to handle unconventional roles beyond the classroom necessitated by the global program, making sure educators have the skills to help students succeed educationally as well as cope with safety, social, and behavioral issues this training was developed by Mello.

Mello received her BA degree in studio art from Connecticut College in 1984.  After graduation, she served in the Peace Corps in Central America.  Mello lived in Belize and Costa Rica before returning to the US in 1987. She earned a Graduate Certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language in 1990, and completed her Masters of Liberal Arts in 1993 at Clark University. 

Mello taught English as a Second Language at both Clark University and Anna Maria College from 1991 until 1994.  In 1993 she joined the administration at WPI as Program Manager of the Product Realization Consortium.  This Consortium, made up of Cornell University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tuskegee University, North Carolina A&T and WPI, was funded through the Technology Reinvestment Project and made significant changes in the curriculum for undergraduate manufacturing engineers.