W&L Selects Melissa Neal as University Registrar Neal comes from Radford University, where she served as interim registrar for the 2023-24 academic year.

By Brian Laubscher
April 16, 2024

Melissa Neal, interim registrar at Radford University, has been selected as the 12th university registrar at Washington and Lee University.

The Office of the Provost announced Neal’s appointment, which is effective June 4, 2024, following a national search. She succeeds Fred Rodriguez, who has been serving as W&L’s interim registrar since January 2023.

“Melissa Neal is the consummate professional,” said Paul Youngman, associate provost for academic development and operations. “The search committee was impressed by her credentials from the start, and her campus visit sealed the deal. She has the right mix of technical skills, people skills and experience to lead the Office of the Registrar. We are so pleased she will be joining W&L and we look forward to welcoming her to Lexington.”

Neal has spent the entirety of her higher education career at Radford, beginning as a program support technician in 2014. She was promoted to degree audit systems coordinator in 2016, assistant registrar in 2017, senior assistant registrar in 2020, associate registrar in 2022 and interim registrar in 2023. Since 2018, she has also served as an instructor for the university, teaching classes such as “Introduction to Higher Education” and “Achieving Academic Success.”

As interim registrar, Neal led an 11-person staff in the scheduling of courses and classrooms, academic registration and administration of honors and awards. She also handled the processing and reporting of grades and oversaw degree audits and enrollment verifications, certified graduation requirements and the production of diplomas and transcripts.

In addition to her role at Radford, Neal has also served as a chaplain for the Carilion Clinic since 2014, providing pastoral support to patients and families during nights and weekends.

“I am beyond excited to join the Washington and Lee community,” said Neal. “I look forward to working with the world-class faculty and staff to support the work of offering a personal and engaging experience to the university’s students.”

Neal holds a Bachelor of Science in technical management with a specialization in hospitality management from DeVry University, a Master of Arts in theological studies and a Master of Divinity in discipleship ministries from Liberty University.