Commissioner Flax Wilt

Melanie Flax Wilt is a public servant, entrepreneur, mother, wife and business owner with more than 20 years of experience in public administration and science communication. Melanie is a lifelong resident of Clark County and grew up on a 4th generation farm in South Charleston. She’s a 2nd generation Clark County Commissioner serving in the same seat her grandfather held from 1988-1995. 

As a Commissioner, she is leading a county wide Food & Agribusiness Working Group to connect networks and position the county for growth in the sector. Clark County is the Birthplace of 4-H and has a strong tradition of innovation in agricultural manufacturing. Today, that is demonstrated by the Global Impact STEM Academy which focuses on an ag bioscience curriculum to prepare the industry’s future workforce and leadership. She is also involved in economic development activities such as the reopening of Myers Market as Co-Hatch, supporting the Local Foods Council, the Community Improvement Corporation (CIC), and the Clark County Land Reutilization Corporation. 

Melanie has spent the bulk of her career in agricultural communication as a communication manager and director for AmericanHort, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and her own agency Shift•ology Communication. She is a 1998 summa cum laude graduate of The Ohio State University where she earned her B.S. in Agriculture. 

Wilt was named “40 Under 40” by the Dayton Business Journal and received the Young Professional Achievement Award from the Ohio State University’s College of Food, Ag, and Environmental Sciences. Her business, Shift•ology Communication, was named Small Business of the Year by the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce and has won numerous awards for its work by the Public Relations Society of America and the National Agri-Marketing Association. 

She and her husband, Gabe Kelly, are the parents of CJ and Addie Wilt and Joshua Kelly and live on a small farm in South Charleston.