A.J. Merlino | Academic Arts Leadership

Leadership

Faculty, students,
and creative work.

I have built and led arts programs where creative practice, faculty work, and professional opportunity meet. That record includes launching a music-industry major that grew 525% in five years, founding Reading Samba School, leading more than 90 faculty through institutional change, and building applied learning with working professionals.

90+

Faculty leadership through change

As HACC’s Interim Chair of Communications, Humanities, and Arts, I worked with more than 90 faculty across five campuses and online during unionization and a presidential transition.

525%

Arts-program building

At Albright College, I launched a music-industry major that grew enrollment by 525% in five years while leading a department of 8 full-time and 12 adjunct faculty.

4,000+

Student opportunity and outcomes

At Albright College, I led career development, experiential learning, student employment, and the 13th Street Educational Partnership. That work created 4,000+ hands-on opportunities, raised positive outcomes from 84% to 91%, and reached a 100% internship-acquisition rate within four years.

2013–19

Community arts leadership

I founded and led Reading Samba School, bringing musicians, local audiences, and cultural organizations together through public performance and partnership.

WGU

Current academic leadership

As Associate Dean and Director for Creative Impact Programs in WGU’s School of Business, I lead program strategy, personalized learning design, and hands-on assessment across a business portfolio.

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Resource development

Funding the work.

I develop proposals, build budgets, and work with partners and grants offices to advance academic, workforce, and community programs.

Grant development lead · 2025

$399,896

SCPa Cyber Defenders

Led the research, budget development, and grants-office coordination for a cybersecurity apprenticeship initiative funded through a $399,896 Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry award to SCPa Works.
Grant development lead · 2024

$750K

E-GROW workforce initiative

Led the research, budget development, and grant-development work for this four-year USDA NIFA-funded workforce and education initiative for controlled-environment agriculture.
Principal Investigator · 2025

$614,917

SIP Pathways to Smart Recovery

Served as Principal Investigator for this U.S. Department of Education Strengthening Institutions Program award to Harrisburg University.

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Design and product leadership

Build, test,
and improve.

Wireframe references to deployed learning systems. Proprietary data and client branding are removed; the core workflows remain.

Product leadership · deployed platform

Thinking
Through AI

A mobile AI learning platform used by more than 300 organizations. I led product work on training pathways and the learner experience.

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Product design · deployed system

AI-Enabled
Design Studio

A wireframe reference to a deployed feedback system that helps learners make a choice, receive guidance, and revise.

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AI quality review · deployed system

Coach Training
ANN

A wireframe reference to a deployed review system for assessing AI-assisted feedback against factual accuracy, source fidelity, teaching value, and clarity.

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Learning analytics · deployed system