About Rev. Melissa Arrant, M.A.
Melissa Arrant is a minister, art historian, and inspirational speaker. Currently, she serves as Spiritual Leader and Lead Prayer Chaplain for Unity Spiritual Center of Panama City, where she has been an active member since 2015. She graduated in May of 2015 from Florida State University with a Master’s in the History and Criticism of Art with a focus on the Visual Cultures of the Americas. She has a passion for education and taught courses at the college level for seven years before moving into ministry. In her free time, she enjoys expressing her creativity through painting, photography, and drawing.
Melissa is a lifelong spiritual seeker with an interest in the intersection of spirituality, meditation, mindfulness, and science. She is open to new ways of understanding and expressing love, oneness, and an awareness of our Divine consciousness. Melissa is an active supporter of both interfaith and New Thought teachings. She believes in the unifying nature of love and compassion on the path of spiritual seeking.
Melissa leads both the spiritual and creative direction of her ministry in her role as Spiritual Leader. Previously, she worked as a Creative Director for Unity Spiritual Center of Panama City and as an Adjunct Instructor and Online Course Designer for Chipola Community College. In 2025, Melissa was accepted to the ministerial program at Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute. In June of 2026, Melissa was recognized as a Licensed Unity Minister, and she is scheduled for graduation and ordination in June of 2027.
In her free time, she enjoys expressing her creativity through painting, photography, and drawing. Melissa’s favorite self-care practices include weekly “reset” days, nature walks, and putting her toes in the warm sand of Florida’s beautiful beaches.
Education
A.A. in Business Administration from Gulf Coast State College
B.A. in the History and Criticism of Art with Honors from Florida State University
M.A. in the History and Criticism of Art from Florida State University
Enrolled in the Ministerial & Religious Studies Program at Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute
Certifications
- Licensed Unity Minister, June 2026 – Current
- Licensed and Certified Prayer Chaplain Program Trainer, Light and Love Ministries, 2022 – Current
- Certified APPQMR Online Facilitator, 2020 – 2022
- Certified INTRO2QM Online Facilitator, 2020 – 2022
- Higher Education Peer Reviewer, 2019 – 2022
- QM Instructional Designers Association, 2021 – 2022
Spiritual Research Interests
Mindfulness, the Science of Prayer and Meditation, and the intersection of Neuroscience and Spirituality
Art Historical Research Interests
Pre-Columbian and Native American Art, Southeastern Iconography, Native American Culture in Modern and Contemporary Popular Media, American Political Cartoons, American Comics, Sequential Art, Gender Studies, and Buddhist Art
Awards and Honors
2015 I. N. Winbury Award, Florida State University
2013 – 2015 Graduate Research Assistantship, Florida State University
2012 Helen J. Beard Undergraduate Scholarship for Excellence in the Major, FSU
2011 Bess H. Ward Honors Thesis Award, Florida State University
2010 – 2011 Returning Student Scholarship, Florida State University
2007 One of three ‘Inspirational Women’ by Kraft Foods, as part of the Wheat Thins Women’s Expressions campaign. As part of this campaign, my image and artwork were featured on the back of select boxes of Wheat Thins, and on the Wheat Thins website in 2007. My image was also featured in advertorials published in the March 2007 editions of House & Garden, Glamour, Self, and Domino.
Unpublished Papers
2015 “Revitalizing Sequoyan: Peoplehood and Identity Negotiation in Cherokee Art”
2015 “Is Sequoyah Really Sequoyah? Ambiguity and Tension in a ‘Reluctant Monument'”
2014 “Primal Impressions: Threefold Primacy of the Lupa Capitolina in Marliani’s 1544 Urbis Romae Topographia”
2014 “Multivalency and Dualism: Bedford Mounds Platform Effigy Pipes as Renewed Social Objects”
2014 “A Valley of Boundaries: Permeability and Accessibility at Glendalough”
2014 “School Begins: Louis Dalrymple’s Mapping of the ‘Pretty Fiction’ of Consent”
2014 “Elusive Identity: Reevaluating the Excavation and Burials at Lake Jackson Mound 3”
2013 “Experiencing the Microcosm of Lascaux Through the Roaring Stag: An Integrated Approach”
2013 “The Monuments of Zazacatla: Recarved Idols in the Caves of the Community Ritual Mountain”
2013 “Apalachee Identity and Recognition: A Study of State Agency Heritage Management and a Call for a Joined-up Approach”
2011 Undergraduate Honors Thesis, Parallel Images: Gender, Complementarity, and Ritual in the Lintels of Yaxchilan
Curated Exhibitions
2016 “Chipola College Student Art Show” at Chipola College, Jointly Curated with Noah Verrier