Megan Forrest

Megan Forrest is a higher education professional with more than eight years of experience in fiscal operations and business support at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Currently serving in a senior financial services role within the College of Education and Human Development, she oversees account management, reconciliation, and consultant payments while supporting the broader needs of faculty, staff, and students across professional development and travel logistics. Over her nine years with the university, Forrest has built a reputation for strong organizational skills, cross-departmental collaboration, and dependable fiscal stewardship in both traditional and hybrid work environments. She completed her Bachelor of Visual Arts in Fine/Studio Arts at the University of Missouri while working full-time, graduating with honors and a 3.8 GPA, following an Associate of Arts from Moberly Area Community College.

Beyond her administrative career, Forrest is an accomplished visual artist and documentary photographer whose work centers on faith and redemption. Her signature project, "Faith Behind Bars," documents the spiritual journeys of incarcerated individuals through written testimony and portraiture, with much of her work rooted in Jefferson City Correctional Center, where inmates can pursue biblical studies degrees through a partnership program. She has spoken about how that program has helped transform the facility from one of the state's most dangerous into one of its safest. Her photography has earned recognition, including a scholarship nomination, and she continues to explore how conceptual and documentary art can carry deep spiritual meaning even within academic settings that don't always embrace that lens.

Forrest attributes her drive to a strong sense of divine purpose, describing her work as an extension of a calling she feels responsible to fulfill. She hopes to use her career and creative pursuits to break generational cycles within her family and to bring honor to those who raised her. In recognition of her professional achievements and her faith-driven creative work, she has been selected for feature in Influential Women's 2026 publication, highlighting her as a woman making a meaningful impact in both higher education and the community she serves through prison ministry.