M'Ledge Moffett was born in 1892, the only child of William Ledgerwood Moffett and Mary Stoops Moffett. The name M'Ledge was formed from shortened versions of her parents names, Mary and Ledgerwood. She attended the newly-opened State Normal School in Harrisonburg, Virginia (now James Madison University), graduating in 1910 with a Full Degree in Household Arts.From Harrisonburg, Moffett went to Columbia University's Teachers College in New York City. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree from Columbia University in 1913.

From Columbia, she accepted a teaching position at what is now Radford University (then called The State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Radford) when the school was founded in 1913. She was the youngest and only member of the Household Arts department. For the first several years after the college opened, Moffett taught all of the Household Arts courses (Elementary Sewing, Elementary Cooking and Household Management) which met five times a week. During the summers of 1916-1920, Moffett returned to Columbia University and received her Masters Degree in 1921. In 1920, Moffett was appointed Dean of Women and held that position until her retirement in 1962. While at Radford Moffett was involved in many organizations on campus, one of those being the Ingles Literary Society. She served as their faculty advisor. She would then return to Columbia for a third time to receive her doctorate in 1929.