Melvin grew up in the small town of Albany in south Georgia. His incoming freshman high school class contained over 250 students. By the time he graduated, there were only 68 students remaining. This ignited his passion for finding a way to empower students to take their futures into their own hands through higher education.After graduating from the University of Georgia, Melvin received a JD/MBA from Duke University where he started a law forum for social and educational equality. Afterwards, he became a law professor at North Carolina Central University.