Melissa Ford Maldonado

Melissa Ford Maldonado is a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, specializing in foreign policy, border security, public safety, drug cartels, and organized crime. Her work has been featured in publications including The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, Newsweek, and The Hill. Before joining the foundation, Melissa served in the White House under President Donald Trump, working in the Office of American Innovation and the Domestic Policy Council. Following her tenure at the White House, she became an executive advisor at the Center for Advancing Opportunity, a research and education initiative in Washington D.C. Melissa is an alumna of the Bill Archer Fellowship in Washington D.C. and Fundación Disenso's 'Jóvenes Líderes de la Iberosfera' program. Born and raised in Cochabamba, Bolivia, she moved to Texas for college, graduating from the University of Texas at Tyler in 2018 with bachelor's degrees in Economics and Political Science.