Melissa Hester-Layton distinctly recalls the moment she resolved to change her life.
She was used to visiting her doctor. After all, when she was 19, she was diagnosed with a thyroid condition. At her lowest point, she took over 25 pills a day to manage her blood pressure, diabetes, and other ailments.
But this appointment was different. Through the years, Melissa had put on a significant amount of weight, and she worried it would prevent her from pursuing her desired life paths.
Her doctor confirmed that fear.
“It got to the point where the doctor was like, ‘Melissa, you're not going to be here in five years if you don't take drastic measures,’” she says.
That was all Melissa needed to hear.
In 2022, she made the decision to have a gastric sleeve procedure and implemented extreme changes to her lifestyle.
The last three years have proven transformative. Since then, Melissa has lost 220 pounds and continues to maintain her weight successfully. She also was able to eliminate her medications and has improved her diet and exercise.
I pursued so much in the last couple years that now I feel like I'm kind of reinventing myself. I definitely am not the same person I was when I started at UAGC.
All the while, she also pursued her bachelor’s degree at the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC), which she completed in 2025.
“I'm at the healthiest point I could ever be for someone who's 46,” she says, “so it's changed my outlook on life completely.”
These triumphs support her gumption to pursue other paths, and now this health care professional is setting her sights even higher. From career moves to different extracurriculars that encourage a stronger sense of self, Melissa continues to evolve.
Today, she is taking back her life in spectacular fashion.
“I pursued so much in the last couple years that now I feel like I'm kind of reinventing myself,” she says. “I definitely am not the same person I was when I started at UAGC.”
Decades of Dedication
Growing up in a blue-collar family in Charlestown, Indiana, her large family had always prioritized working and has done so throughout generations.
“My grandfather and my grandmother are both one of 12,” she says. “Back when they were young, they were very lucky if they made it past eighth grade — not because they weren't intelligent, but because most of the time, by then, you were working on the farm. My grandparents both graduated from high school, but pushing education wasn't prevalent.”
Like much of her family, most of the jobs Melissa encountered at an early age also involved farming. Melissa graduated high school, but she also had her first child at age 17. Though she made several attempts to complete her undergraduate degree, as a young parent with health problems, she struggled.
I would love to continue moving up the ladder and breaking the glass ceiling. As far as women in business, I would love to continue to move my career up. But, at a certain point with my company, I definitely would not be able to continue moving up if I didn't have a degree.
Eventually, she made her way from the farm to health care, where her strong character and administrative skills helped her move forward in her career.
Melissa’s health care career spans over 30 years, and she now works in health care technology as a senior manager for Gainwell Technologies, after holding similar managerial roles across her curriculum vitae.
Although she credited her career thus far to her strong work ethic and organization skills, she says she recognized there were limitations to where she could go next.
“I’ve got to get my education in check so I can be able to progress in my career,” she told herself.
That’s when she discovered UAGC.
The UAGC Connection
Once Melissa committed to her overall health and well-being, her education became one of her other top priorities. When she discovered her company partnered with UAGC to offer tuition assistance, she took advantage of the opportunity to pursue her degree at a lower cost.
Now that she has completed her bachelor’s degree, Melissa has no plans to halt her education. Her degree in leadership from UAGC sets the stage for a master’s program in business leadership or a subject related to information technology.
“I would love to get to VP level,” she says. “I would love to continue moving up the ladder and breaking the glass ceiling. As far as women in business, I would love to continue to move my career up. But, at a certain point with my company, I definitely would not be able to continue moving up if I didn't have a degree.”
While Melissa weighs her next steps with her education, she plans to stay involved with UAGC as a member of the Golden Key International Honour Society. Outside of school, she also intends to continue her volunteer work at her organization through a department called the Champion Team, which hosts engaging activities to create a richer company culture.
Looking Ahead
Amid every other major life milestone, Melissa recently went through a divorce. She notes that she is currently pursuing brand-new passions as a means of networking. Kayaking is high on her list of adventures to try, as well as hunting. She views these pursuits as a testament to bravery and notes that making the decision to change for the better outweighs any fears.
“I think people are afraid of failure,” she says. “Everybody's afraid to raise their hand to ask the question because of fear of what other people will think. Don't worry about other people's opinions and judgments. My life is altered because I've made a choice to change, and a lot of people are just afraid to do that.”
Above all else, Melissa hopes her story motivates others to take action in their own lives.
“I've learned a lot about myself in the last couple years, and the biggest one I'm still learning is not to worry about other people's opinions,” she says. “If I affected somebody else to be motivated to go to school or motivated to make a healthier choice, or stand up for themselves, then I did what I needed to do.”