Dr. Melissa Wheeles joined Auburn University College of Nursing in January 2025 as an Assistant Clinical Professor. She teaches in both undergraduate and graduate nursing programs, including the Family Nurse Practitioner and Doctor of Nursing Practice programs. Prior to joining Auburn, Dr. Wheeles served as undergraduate nursing faculty at a community college in Alabama. A 2001 graduate of Auburn University’s nursing program, Dr. Wheeles became a nurse practitioner in 2009. Her clinical background includes emergency nursing, trauma nursing at a Level I trauma center, flight nursing, medical-surgical and intensive care nursing clinical associate, cardiology, urgent care, and primary care. She maintains active clinical practice as a nurse practitioner in the local emergency department across three locations. Dr. Wheeles holds national certification through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and is a member of the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF). She is actively involved in community outreach through AUCON, providing primary care services as a nurse practitioner on East Alabama Health’s Mobile Health Bus in Lee County, Alabama, and at the Community Center in Chambers County, Alabama. Her service interests include healthcare access and nursing policy. She is a member of Nurse Practitioners on the Plains (NPOP), and she serves on the Graduate Evaluation Committee at AUCON. Dr. Wheeles’ Doctor of Nursing Practice research, titled “Differences in Student Perceptions with Virtual Clinical Simulation,” examined changes in nursing education and clinical skills instruction resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Her research interests include clinical simulation, diabetes management, and coronary artery disease.