Executive Director
After years of educating elementary school children through her nationally recognized K-12 after school program about the alternatives to a traditional career in architecture, Melody Harclerode, FAIA decided to apply her words into action. As much as she enjoyed civic projects such as her Fulton County Aviation Cultural Center project, she could better serve communities as a nonprofit leader. These days, Melody loves to connect the public with wondrous places, as an award-winning architect, author, newspaper columnist, civic leader, and Executive Director of Blue Heron Nature Preserve in Atlanta. Recognized as a 2018 AIA Fellow, she leverages her community engagement and communications skills, passion for education, and civic advocacy to strengthen awareness, appreciation, and stewardship of one of the most beautiful sites in the city and to lead innovative initiatives, including a trailblazing partnership between her nonprofit organization, the Atlanta Public Schools, and the largest Black-owned fine arts gallery in the Southeastern United States. Melody is excited to work with this dynamic team to benefit diverse communities of nature lovers locally and across the country.
