Melissa (Lissa) Kiser P’01

Melissa (Lissa) Kiser P’01 is a beloved former faculty member, proud parent of “lifer” David Mesrobian ’01, and a loyal Pennington Fund donor. Kiser became a member of the Francis Harvey Green Society in 2014 when she included The Pennington School in her estate plan, a decision that was motivated by seeing the important role Pennington played in the lives of its students.

She says, “During my years as a teacher and a parent, I saw how Pennington’s small size and opportunities for individual work with faculty enabled students to surprise themselves with their success—not only by thriving academically but also through playing a sport they loved or exploring the arts in ways they had never before imagined.”

Kiser joined the Pennington faculty in 1983 and retired after 37 years in 2020. During those years she taught English—in the Edmund V. Cervone Center for Learning and in the English Department—including teaching AP English Literature for the last five years of her tenure. Beginning in 1998, she also handled communications work for the School, writing and editing various print and online publications. Kiser currently lives in Florida and enjoys writing, choral singing, traveling (including visits back to Pennington), and spending time with her son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter.