The Collaboration Conference 2015

Maya Winkelstein is Executive Director of Open Road Alliance. Winkelstein’s involvement with Open Road Alliance dates to its inception in 2012. As an Associate Director with the philanthropic consultancy williamsworks, she worked with philanthropist Laurie Michaels to establish Open Road as a new strategic initiative to fill market demand in the non-profit sector for fast, flexible contingency funding. In 2014, Winkelstein was seconded to Open Road Alliance full-time to help incubate and scale the initiative. In 2015 she was named Open Road’s first Executive Director.

During her tenure at williamsworks, Winkelstein also worked with a range of clients to develop and implement new philanthropic initiatives, including Eastern Congo Initiative, Nike Foundation, PATH, Tostan and TOMS Shoes.

Prior to williamsworks, Winkelstein served the NGO and government sectors focusing on program development, fundraising strategy, and corporate partnerships. Former affiliations include The Corporate Council on Africa, International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), and the Institute of National Strategic Studies (INSS) at National Defense University (NDU). She also worked as a Political Risk Consultant for the London-based consulting firm, Exclusive Analysis Ltd.

Winkelstein holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Michigan, and an MSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics. She also earned a Diplôme Internationale from the Political Sciences Institute, Sciences-Po, in Paris, France.

Kate has over ten years of professional experience in creative non-profit and social enterprise development. Her work with Design Impact began in 2009 while living and working in a rural south Indian village. Since then she has grown the organization from a small idea to a full-fledged public interest design firm. She has spoken and led trainings in various settings such as TEDx, Procter & Gamble, College for Creative Studies Toyota speaker series, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Before founding Design Impact, she earned her Master’s degree in Education, taught for four years in a low-income, under-performing district, and led strategic planning and capacity building for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center, a non-profit law firm that works for criminal justice reform. She has lived and worked internationally on education and youth development initiatives in India, Jamaica, and New Zealand. In addition to leading Design Impact, she currently teaches as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of Cincinnati Honors College and the Center for Creative Leadership. Kate’s work has been published through media outlets such as Fast Company, Innovations, and GOOD, and she was recently listed as one of Public Interest Design’s Top 100 Global Designers. Her experiences in corporate, non-profit, and educational settings have given her a unique ability to build diverse, cross-sector partnerships that create positive social change.

 Gladys Washington leads the Program Team and supervises the Network Officer, Program Associate and Grants Manager activities at the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. Gladys also oversees grants and PRIs in Gulf Coast Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and the Delta. She leads the Program Team in planning and learning on public policy grantmaking. Before joining the Babcock Foundation, Gladys was a Program Officer for the Community Foundation serving Coastal South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina.  The Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation assists people in the Southeatern US to build just and caring communities that nurture people, spur enterprise, bridge differences and foster fairness.

Vincent Pan is the Executive Director of Chinese for Affirmative
Action (CAA), a community-based social justice organization in San
Francisco. He was also a participant in Management Assistance Group’s
Network Leadership Innovation Lab and is an experienced network
leader. CAA is a progressive voice in and on behalf of the broader
Asian American community and advocates for systemic change that
protects immigrant rights, promotes language diversity, and remedies
racial injustice. Prior to joining CAA, Vincent was a consultant to
the Clinton Foundation and was the co-founder and executive director
of Heads Up, a youth development program in D.C. public schools. He
has been a fellow with the Center for Social Innovation at Stanford
University, the Echoing Green Foundation, and the Stride Rite
Foundation.

Elissa Perry is a Co-Director at Management Assistance Group. In addition to her work with MAG, Elissa teaches in the MA in Leadership Program at Saint Mary’s College where she facilitates diverse, cross-sector and multi-issue learning communities in developing and implementing leadership plans and practices and recently helped establish a Social Justice concentration. She is co-author of “Doing More with More: Lessons from a Shared Leadership Initiative,” published in the Nonprofit Quarterly, “Toward 'Complex Adaptive Philanthropy': Preliminary Learnings from the Network Leadership Innovation Lab,” and “Leadership and Race: How to Develop Leadership that Contributes to Racial Justice.”  She is also the lead author on “The Network Leadership Innovation Lab: A Practice for Social Change,” in the forthcoming 2015 edition of the Handbook of Action Research. Prior to joining MAG, Elissa was an independent consultant and spent six years with the Leadership Learning Community.

Karen is the Executive Director of the Collaborative for Student Success, a grant-making initiative created with the pooled resources of a diverse group of regional and national education foundations deeply committed to improving public education. The mission of the Collaborative is educate and inform all stakeholders – parents, students, teachers, community leaders and policy makers — about the needs for and benefits of increased standards, aligned assessments and comparability across states.

Karen is a veteran communications strategist with experience in the private, public, political and non-profit sectors. Her work has included strategic communications plans, public relations, advocacy campaigns, corporate communications, strategic planning, lobbying and advocacy and media training. Prior to the Collaborative, Karen owned and operated a successful boutique communications firm, Ripple Communications, which she started in Manchester, Iowa in 2005. Karen is also a frequent guest on a variety of television networks and speaker to groups of all sizes. 

Richard F. McKeon is the Program Director of the Helmsley Charitable Trust’s Education Program, which focuses on national work in education at both the K-12 and higher education levels. In this capacity, he leads a team that seeks to increase the number of American students who succeed in college or careers and can compete in the global, 21st century marketplace. Rich also co-chairs the Collaborative for Student Success, which supports higher K-12 academic standards and high-quality student assessments.

Before joining the Trust, Rich was a director at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) where he led grantmaking programs for clients funding in education, youth development, healthcare and conservation.  Prior to RPA, Rich was vice president and community relations manager at Fleet/Bank of America where he led grantmaking programs for NYC and Westchester County in the areas of education, community and economic development, youth development and arts and culture. 

As a senior director, Chris oversees the Managed Organizations team, which is responsible for Arabella’s management of several nonprofits, including the New Venture Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity, and the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a separate 501(c)(4). Chris helps donors and social entrepreneurs turn their philanthropic visions into reality by implementing innovative donor collaboratives, campaigns, and grant-making initiatives that help them achieve concrete goals.

At Arabella, Chris has launched and managed a number of groundbreaking projects. He helped a large institutional foundation develop a global grant-making mechanism for time-sensitive investments in global health, and has helped it to grow significantly over the past six years. Chris also recently helped a donor launch an initiative to improve women’s economic outcomes. Chris has managed projects on a range of other issues, including conservation, public policy, gun violence prevention, and education.

Patrick Horvath is Deputy Vice President of Programs, Denver Foundation, and served previously as Director of the Denver Foundation's Strengthening Neighborhoods Program, which "works with residents of the Foundation's partner neighborhoods to help them make their communities better places to live."  Patrick was a founding member of the Communities for Public Education Reform (CPER) Fund, an 8 year effort that engaged 76 foundation members, and raised and invested $34M to 140 grassroots and advocacy groups in national coalitions and in six regions across the country, including Denver, CO.   Patrick played a leadership role on CPER’s national governance committee and its local Denver, CO funder table, which engaged ideologically and issue-diverse funders in the areas of education reform, community development, immigration rights, and economic security.  Patrick will share insights gleaned from CPER’s intersectional strategy to support (successful) grassroots and advocacy that ensured legislation providing Colorado’s undocumented students with access to an in-state tuition rate for higher education. 

Julien Ross is Executive Director of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC), having served in that position since 2006.  A native of Santa Fe, New Mexico with lifelong roots in Colorado, Julien also serves on the Executive Committees of the Fair Immigration Reform Movement and is Co-Chair for the National Partnership for New Americans, two national organizations working for immigration reform and immigrant integration.  During Julien's tenure, CIRC has fought vigorously for citizenship for the undocumented, to protect the civil liberties and human rights of all Coloradans, and for a full integration of immigrants into community life in the U.S.  CIRC’s work on LGBT-immigration intersectionality has had policy, legal, advocacy and cultural impact in both communities.  Julien will share insights about CIRC’s multi-issue, coalitional work, sharing both opportunities and challenges, and addressing what grantees want funders to 

Michele has worked in the philanthropic sector since 1993. During the past 15 years, she has led NEO Philanthropy through a period of dramatic growth in its program offerings and reach in philanthropy. Today, NEO has over 32 staff and an operating budget of $42 million. She has helped create and manage NEO’s 12 signature collaborative and partner funds that together have raised $222 million in revenue since 2010 and engaged more than 130 national, state and local foundations, family foundations and individual donors. In January 2011, Michele transitioned into a co-leadership model with NEO’s Deputy Director Berta Colón, both becoming President of NEO Philanthropy.  Michele has deep experience managing and advising family foundations and individual donors. She currently serves as the Director of the Ottinger Foundation, a small New York-based family foundation that supports work in the areas of economic justice, civic participation and environmental justice.

Marian Urquilla serves as principal of Strategy Lift, a consulting practice focused on strategic planning, collective impact and leadership development. Current clients include the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Kresge Foundation and The Workers Lab. From 2008 to 2012, she served as Director of Program Strategies at Living Cities, where she led the organization’s programmatic efforts and managed the Integration Initiative, a national program to revitalize neighborhoods and connect low-income people to opportunity. Prior to Living Cities, Ms. Urquilla led the Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative in Washington DC.  During her twelve-year tenure, Ms. Urquilla spearheaded the citywide implementation of family group decision-making and launched a youth violence prevention partnership that dramatically lowered Latino youth homicide rates in the city. Recognized by the Rockefeller Foundation as a Next Generation Leader, Ms. Urquilla has been a Mellon Fellow in the Humanities and an Annie E. Casey Foundation Children and Family Fellow.

Jeff Edmondson is managing director of StriveTogether, a national  initiative that brings together leaders in Pre-K-12 schools, higher education, business, industry, community organizations, government leaders, parents and other stakeholders who are committed to helping children succeed from birth through careers.

Edmondson was founding executive director of the Strive Partnership in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, a partnership of postsecondary, K-12, business, philanthropic, non-profit, and civic organizations aimed at increasing educational aspirations, achievement, and attainment of students throughout the region.

Edmondson also worked as the Peaceable Schools Coordinator at Woodrow Wilson Senior High School, the largest public secondary school in Washington, D.C., whereas an advocate for teachers and students, he  built  partnerships between the school and the community to improve student outcomes.

Jeff was named the 2012 recipient of the American Express NGen Leadership Award, and was recently named a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Social Entrepreneur.

Marilyn Darling is a partner of Fourth Quadrant Partners and a founding member of the Society for Organizational Learning. She pioneered the field of Emergent Learning and has worked over the past 20 years to develop tools, practices and principles that link strategy, learning and evaluation around complex work. Emergent Learning emphasizes making thinking visible and providing frameworks to test it in real-time. Marilyn’s research has included the learning practices of the U.S. Army’s Opposing Force, as described in “Learning in the Thick of It,” Harvard Business Review. They created the After Action Review, which has become a cornerstone of Emergent Learning.  She has studied the learning practices of grantmakers, as reported in A Compass in the Woods: Learning through Grantmaking to Improve Impact. Marilyn’s recent clients include Annie E. Casey Foundation, Colorado Health Foundation, Ford Foundation, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Living Cities and The World Bank, among others.

Michael Moody is the Frey Foundation Chair for Family Philanthropy at the Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In this role, he works with a network of advisors and partners to pursue a comprehensive program of applied research, teaching, professional development, and public engagement, all designed to advance and promote the field of family philanthropy. Dr. Moody is trained as a cultural sociologist and has been actively working to understand and improve philanthropy and nonprofit organizations for over 25 years. He is co-author of the books Understanding Philanthropy: Its Meaning and Mission, and The Philanthropy Reader (forthcoming in 2016), as well as the influential Next Gen Donors report and many other publications. He is a frequent speaker about philanthropy, and his work has been featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, Forbes, Chronicle of Philanthropy, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Alliance, and others.

Katherine Lorenz is President of the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation (www.cgmf.org), a grantmaking foundation focusing on environmental sustainability in Texas. Previously, she served as Deputy Director for the Institute for Philanthropy (www.instituteforphilanthropy.org), whose mission is to increase effective philanthropy in the UK and internationally. Prior to that, Ms. Lorenz lived in Oaxaca, Mexico for nearly six years where she co-founded Puente a la Salud Comunitaria (www.puentemexico.org), a non-profit organization working to advance food sovereignty in rural Oaxaca through the integration of amaranth into the diet. She currently serves on the Boards of Directors of the Environmental Defense Fund, The Philanthropy Workshop (Chair), and the National Center for Family Philanthropy and is a member of the Global Philanthropists Circle of the Synergos Institute and serves on the Leadership Council of the Greater Houston Community Foundation. Ms. Lorenz holds a B.A. in Economics and Spanish from Davidson College.

Laura McCargar is a Program Officer at the Perrin Family Foundation, where she oversees the foundation’s youth-led social change grantmaking and the development of strategies to strengthen, promote and expand youth organizing practices throughout Connecticut. Laura’s work in the philanthropic sector is informed by her experience as a youth worker and organizer. After graduating from Yale University in 2002, Laura co-founded Youth Rights Media, a New Haven-based nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth to use media and organizing strategies to create community change. In 2007 Laura was awarded the International Reebok Human Rights Award in recognition of her outstanding work with and on behalf of marginalized youth, and in 2011 Laura was awarded a Soros Justice Fellowship to engage in research and organizing around Connecticut’s school-to-prison pipeline.  Laura currently serves on the board of the Funder’s Collaborative on Youth Organizing. 

Prior to joining Alliance Health Care Foundation in 2011, Nancy’s career with Planned Parenthood spanned 29 years, beginning as a Health Educator in Austin, Texas. In addition to Austin and San Diego, Nancy has also worked as the CEO in Los Angeles and the interim CEO in Hawaii. She is most proud of the work she has done to expand access for women in need in each of the communities served, enhance cultural awareness for employees and customers/patients, and to bring creative and innovative alternatives to the organization. Nancy also worked as the Executive Director of the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties.

Kelli joined The Simmons Foundation in 2012 after more than 15 years engaged in nonprofit advocacy work around issues such as access to health care, community engagement, and youth/young adult leadership. Kelli has delivered presentations and workshops to audiences, including: America’s Promise Alliance, National Children's Health Summit, The University of Texas Law School Nonprofit Organizations Institute, True Colors Fund, Texas Juvenile Probation Commission and the Texas Association of School Administrator’s. Since joining The Foundation, Kelli has worked extensively on homelessness. In addition to being a member of the local Funders Together to End Homelessness chapter, she is the funder representative on the local Continuum of Care Steering Committee. Most recently Kelli joined the HUD LGBTQ youth homelessness prevention pilot initiative where she serves on the Steering Committee and is the chair of the funding subcommittee.

Kelli is a graduate of New York University with a B.A. in Sociology.  Kelli is also an alumna of Leadership Houston.  Kelli is married to JT and the parent of two young adult children. Kelli is a social media aficionado who enjoys reading, politics and spending time with family and friends.

Emily Bradley works to end chronic and veteran homelessness in Los Angeles County through Home For Good, a countywide, cross-sector initiative led by United Way of Greater Los Angeles. At United Way, Emily focuses on strategic communications, activation of a broad base of stakeholders, and the expansion of the Home For Good Funders Collaborative, a group of 25 public and private partners jointly investing in regional solutions to homelessness. Prior to joining the Home For Good team, she served as a Financial Stability Fellow at United Way while attending graduate school. Her previous experience also includes working in grants and planning at a local nonprofit consulting company, serving as an AmeriCorps VISTA on a two-year federal capacity building grant, and working in community development at the local government level for seven years. Emily holds degrees in Political Science and International Development Studies from UCLA, and a Masters of Public Administration with a focus on nonprofit management from the University of Southern California. 

As Executive Director, Nat Chioke Williams leads the Hill-Snowdon Foundation in its philanthropic and programmatic work, operations and partnerships within the community. Nat manages HSF’s Youth Organizing and Fund for DC programs. He is also responsible for developing learning and leveraging opportunities in these program areas. In partnership with other social justice funders, he has recently been involved with the development of Grantmakers for Southern Progress, an emerging network of local, regional and national funders committed to facilitating joint learning, collaboration and leveraging of new resources to help build a vibrant and enduring infrastructure for social justice in the US South, and currently serves as co-chair of the group. Nat holds a B.A. in Psychology from Morehouse College, as well as a M.A. and Ph.D. in Community Psychology from New York University.

Nat’s funding experience has focused on community organizing and youth organizing, and his background includes research on the socio-political development of African American youth activists, social movements, social oppression and liberation psychology; tenant organizing and non-profit management consulting. He previously served on the board of the Funders’ Collaborative on Youth Organizing and the board of the Neighborhood Funders Group. Nat’s prior philanthropic work in youth and community organizing includes positions as Program Officer for Youth Development at the Edward Hazen Foundation and Program Officer for the New York Foundation. Additionally, Nat has served as Assistant Professor of Black Studies for the State University of New York at new Paltz, Senior Program Associate for Community Resource Exchange in New York City, and Director of Organizing for the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board in New York City.

Ashley Snowdon Blanchard, great-granddaughter of Arthur B. Hill, is Associate Director of Philanthropy at TCC Group, where she works with nonprofit organizations and foundations on strategic planning, program design and organizational development. In addition to HSF, Ashley was previously the co-chair of the Board of the Ms. Foundation for Women and was the founding co-chair of the Council on Foundation’s Next Generation Task Force.

Kathleen P. Enright is the founding president and CEO of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. GEO is a diverse community of more than 500 grantmakers working to reshape the way philanthropy operates. While with GEO, Kathleen (with the GEO board of directors) has developed a compelling vision and cohesive strategy for the organization, supervised the development of a host of products and services and grown the community to over 500 organizations.  

Kathleen speaks and writes regularly on issues of nonprofit and grantmaker effectiveness at national and regional gatherings of executives and trustees. Publications includeInvesting in Leadership: Inspiration and Ideas from Philanthropy’s Latest Frontier and Funding Effectiveness: Lessons in Building Nonprofit Capacity. She is also a contributing blogger for The Huffington Post.

Previously, Kathleen served as the group director, marketing and communications for BoardSource, where she was responsible for developing and implementing an organization-wide marketing and communications strategy, building and maintaining a consistent and recognizable brand, supervising the promotion of all products and services, and building public awareness of the importance of strong nonprofit boards.

Prior to joining BoardSource, Kathleen was a project manager for the National Association of Development Organizations Research Foundation where she directed a Ford Foundation funded project to encourage collaboration between nonprofits and local governments.

In 2007, Kathleen received the Distinguished Public Service Award from the George Washington University Chapter of Pi Alpha Alpha, a public administration honour society. She serves on the advisory board of The Center for Effective Philanthropy. She previously served on Independent Sector’s Building Value Together Committee and the selection committee of the Washington Post Nonprofit Excellence Award. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s of public administration from The George Washington University.

At Root Cause, Margaret Leipsitz is the Director of the Youth Violence Prevention Collaborative, a public/private alliance of over seventy-five funders and content experts. Initiated by State Street Foundation in 2008, the Collaborative connects and intensifies funding to improve young people’s lives in the Boston neighborhoods most affected by violent crime. Margaret is deeply knowledgeable about youth development, having built programs and philanthropic partnerships with community, business, and foundation leaders for twenty-five years. Before Root Cause, Margaret worked at Putnam Investments, The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, The Boston Foundation, Boston Children’s Museum, and Building Educated Leaders for Life.

Karley Ausiello is Senior Vice President of Community Impact for United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley. She sets strategic direction for UW’s investments and initiatives in the community in three impact areas - Healthy Child Development, Increasing Youth Opportunities and Family Financial Stability. Previously, Karley served as UW’s Vice President of Volunteer Engagement and Associate Director at Massachusetts Campus Compact. She has a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University, a M.P.A. from Harvard University, and a M.S. in Higher Education Administration from Syracuse University. Karley is a sustaining leader of the YVP Funder Learning Collaborative.

Meghan Duffy is Director of Programs at Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, overseeing content development for GEO conferences, publications and other programming. From 2011-2013, Meghan led implementation of the Scaling What Works initiative at GEO as Manager of Special Initiatives. Prior to joining GEO, Meghan served as Director of Special Projects for San Diego Grantmakers, a regional association of funders. In six years with SDG, she managed a variety of projects, including conferences, communications, and organizational technology. Meghan has over fifteen years of experience in the philanthropic/nonprofit sector. She has served on the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative Allocations Committee and the San Diego Human Dignity Foundation Grants Committee. Before moving to California, Meghan was Development Director at a national nonprofit LGBT health organization. She has also worked in fundraising and outreach for the Victory Fund and the Feminist Majority Foundation, and as a consultant specializing in writing and research for several other community organizations. Additionally, Meghan has taught sociology and LGBT studies as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Maryland. Meghan earned her master’s in sociology at the University of California San Diego. Her graduate research focused in part on institutional philanthropy, and she has published an article on elite groups and social change. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Maryland.

Josh Miller is a Senior Program Officer at the Jim Joseph Foundation. In addition to managing a portfolio of major grants, Josh also oversees the Foundation's multi-year effort to develop and invest in new models for community-based Jewish education for teens through a joint collaboration with local and national funding partners. Josh's areas of interest include the development of effective multi-funder partnerships, strategic investment in organizational capacity building for the Foundation's grantees, and evaluating collective impact initiatives.

Josh brings direct field expertise to the Foundation's grantmaking work from his fifteen years as an experiential educator, community builder and social entrepreneur in a range of settings. Josh holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA from Brown University. When he isn’t working, Josh enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons hiking, biking, cooking, making music, and volunteering at his kids' schools.

Lisa is in her 18th year directing Rose Community Foundation’s Jewish Life grantmaking. She has stewarded over $54M in grants and created many collaborative initiatives including BUILDing Jewish ECE, The Endowment Challenge, Rose Youth Foundation, Roots & Branches Foundation, BOOST (Building Organizational Operating Strength Together), Live On: Build Your Jewish Legacy, and MazelTot.org. A consultant to nonprofits prior to joining the Foundation, she has also authored Nonprofit Piggy Goes to Market and was the editor of Apples & Honey, a newsletter for young parents about creating a Jewish home. Lisa and her husband David are parents of two sixth-generation Denverites and have three grandchildren.

At the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), Canada's largest grantmaker, Arti Freeman turns ideas into high impact investments that build local communities and sector capacity. Skills in collaboration, stakeholder engagement, and knowledge-sharing make it possible for her to innovate in different contexts from engaging youth and their partners in a collective process of emergence, resulting in a community of practice that accelerates the conditions for youth-led organizing, to partnering with Indigenous groups, the corporate, public, and philanthropic sectors to develop a collaborative and culturally appropriate granting program that supports the social and environmental wellbeing of Indigenous youth and their communities. Most recently, Arti applied Design Thinking to bring shape to two of the Foundation's strategic funds. The outcomes of her experiments with different models of high impact philanthropy have been written about in the OTF publication, Sector in Conversation, in the quarterly journal, The Philanthropist, and by the coalition, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. Arti has been recognized by the Foundation for her excellence in collaboration and innovation. Arti has lived and worked in many countries including the Philippines, India, Belgium and South Africa, and now lives with her husband in St. Catharine's, Ontario.

Ash McNeely is executive director of Sand Hill Foundation, a family foundation in Silicon Valley that focuses on regional efforts to protect the environment and help families break the cycle of poverty.  She works also as a senior program officer for Pacific Foundation Services in San Francisco where she supports the grantmaking of two other private foundations. Prior, Ash spent four years in the Philanthropic Partnership Group of the Pew Charitable Trusts primarily focused on environmental policy, eight years leading advised fund grantmaking for philanthropic families at Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and ten years in performing arts marketing and development. Ash has an extensive background in collaborative funding efforts and program development; she helped found the Silicon Valley Out-of-School-Time Collaborative and Bay Area Environmental Education Funders Collaborative. Ash received an M.B.A. in nonprofit management from Golden Gate University and graduated summa cum laude from Vassar College.

Elise Cutini is the executive director of Silicon Valley Children’s Fund (SVCF), a non-profit agency dedicated to providing pathways of opportunity to foster youth. After retiring from her corporate career as a management consultant, she accepted a position on the Board of SVCF. This experience introduced her to both the needs and resiliency of these young people. Two years later, Ms. Cutini was offered the position of executive director. She currently co-chairs two community collaboratives: the Silicon Valley Out-of-School-Time Collaborative, focused on social-emotional learning, and the Opportunity Youth Partnership of Santa Clara County, re-connecting youth ages 16-24 to education and employment.

Michele Rone Cooper is executive director of McAuley Ministries Foundation, the grantmaking arm of the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System. McAuley Ministries was established by the Sisters of Mercy in 2008. Cooper was responsible for the start-up of the foundation, including establishing the strategic plan and developing its governance and grantmaking processes. McAuley Ministries focuses on the Hill District, Uptown and West Oakland neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, and on initiatives that address health and wellness, community and economic development, education, and nonprofit capacity. McAuley Ministries’ vision is to be known as a “good neighbor” whose support has contributed to neighborhoods that are safe, vibrant, and celebrated, and where residents are healthy and enabled to reach their full potential. Cooper manages an annual grantmaking budget of $3 million. Since its inception, McAuley Ministries has awarded more than 350 grants with awards totaling over $15 million. Cooper earned bachelor and master’s degrees from the University of Pittsburgh. Her professional career includes positions at Magee-Women’s Hospital, the Health Systems Agency of Southwestern Pennsylvania, and the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System. Currently, Cooper is a member of the board of the Falk Foundation and volunteers with the Hill District Education Council and Everybody Wins!, a Reading is FUNdamental lunchtime literacy and mentoring program. 

Jera Stribling is the Executive Director of the Joseph S. Bruno Foundation, Executive Director of Alabama Giving, a state grantmaker network and Board Chair of the Gratitude Foundation. Jera has consulted with foundations on governance, organizational development and strategic planning. 

She served as the first Executive Director of the Alabama Power Company Foundation and worked in Marketing and Corporate Communications there and Duke Power Company.  As the founder of Voices for Alabama’s Children, the Nonprofit Resource Center of Alabama, and Alabama Giving, she recruited board members, and secured foundation partners.

Jera is a graduate of the University of Alabama and Leadership Birmingham.  She is a past board member of the Southeastern Council of Foundations and the YWCA of Central Alabama.  She currently chairs the Alabama School Readiness Alliance and serves on Advisory Boards for the University of Alabama, Auburn University, and Birmingham Southern College. 

 

Caroline co-founded A+ Education Partnership in 1991 to promote excellent educational opportunities for all of Alabama’s students. A+ advances policies and practices to ensure that every child graduates from high school prepared for success in college, work and citizenship.

Caroline led development of the state’s Reading Initiative and then expanded the focus of A+ to work directly with schools and districts. The Alabama Best Practices Center was established as a division to facilitate adult learning. A+ College Ready was created to increase access and success in Advancement Placement courses and to increase the pipeline of students prepared for college level rigor. A+ also focuses on policies to increase teaching quality.

Caroline helped establish a coalition of 4 organizations, the Alabama School Readiness Alliance, to promote expansion of high quality pre-k. She also organized and chairs a statewide coalition of 45 organizations supporting college and career readiness for all students, Alabama GRIT Graduate Ready. Impact Tomorrow.

Lori Bartczak is vice president of programs at GEO. In this role, Lori sets strategy for GEO’s content and services, including publishing, conferences and peer learning programs and serves as a key spokesperson for the organization. Lori has written numerous publications and articles on topics related to philanthropic effectiveness. Prior to joining GEO in 2002, Lori was publications editor at BoardSource. Lori is an active volunteer in her community, serving on various committees for her church, her sons’ school and the local education foundation. Lori holds bachelor’s degrees in journalism and English from the University of Missouri - Columbia, and a master’s of arts degree in philanthropic studies from Indiana University’s Center on Philanthropy. 

Mae Hong is the Vice President of the Chicago office of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, where she serves families throughout the Midwest in developing and implementing their giving programs and strategies through grantmaking, planning, and facilitation.  She has also been actively involved in RPA’s leadership on the issue of diversity in philanthropy, particularly among families and individuals.  She currently serves as the board chair of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations and is a board member of Illinois Humanities.  She completed her graduate work in social service administration at The University of Chicago.  Prior to entering the nonprofit sector, she worked in the publishing industry for several years following her graduation from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.

 

Kelly Brown is Director of the D5 Coalition, a five-year effort to increase philanthropy’s diversity, equity and inclusiveness. Ms. Brown was Director of Programs and Evaluation at Marguerite Casey Foundation, and Grants Director at the Vanguard Public Foundation.  She has also served as Director of Marketing and Industry Relations at OpNet and as Administrative Director for TransAfrica/TransAfrica Forum, national foreign policy organizations at the forefront of efforts to secure a peaceful transition to a multi-racial democracy in South Africa.  

Ms. Brown has lived and studied in Nairobi, Kenya where she worked on Kenya Women Finance Trust, one of the continent's first micro-loan funds for women.  She has an M.B.A from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, a BA in Sociology and African/African American Studies from UC Santa Barbara and was a Sloan Foundation Fellow at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School.  Currently, she is pursuing a PhD at the University of Chicago. 

Karen Gahl-Mills was named Executive Director of Cuyahoga Arts & Culture in 2009. Under her leadership, the agency remains one of the nation’s top sources of local public funding for arts and culture. In total, CAC has granted more than $112 million dollars to 237 local arts organizations, big and small, throughout Cuyahoga County. Gahl-Mills’ career began in Los Angeles where she worked as part of a team creating national and international advertising for many well-known global brands. Her work then led her to Chicago and back to her roots as a musician, first as a development officer for the Ravinia Festival, summer home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and then as Managing Director of The Rhythm Cafe, an advertising music production company. She went on to serve as executive director of the Westchester Philharmonic and then as President and Executive Director of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra. Gahl-Mills holds a Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. A vocalist and former cellist, she currently resides in Cleveland Heights, Ohio with her husband.

 

Cullen K. Geiselman chairs the board of trustees of the Cullen Trust for Health Care, a support organization founded in 1978 to grant financial assistance to institutions providing direct healthcare, conducting health-related research, or training healthcare providers in the greater Houston area. In addition to her stewardship of the Trust, Dr. Geiselman works with her family on business matters and serves on the Board of Directors of the Houston Zoo, the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, Bat Conservation International, Blaffer Art Museum at University of Houston, Houston Advanced Research Center, and the Houston Parks Board. Dr. Geiselman holds a BA in Environmental Science and Policy from Duke University and a MA and PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Columbia University. Her dissertation research focused on seed dispersal and pollination by bats and she has coauthored a book entitled Seed Dispersal by Bats in the Neotropics. 

Mr. Bell was born in Stamford, Texas, August 19, 1945.  He attended Texas Tech from 1963-67, graduating with a B.A. in government and a commission through the Air Force ROTC program.  Deferring active duty to attend law school, he received his J.D. from the University of Texas in 1970.  He served as an Assistant Staff Judge Advocate and Staff Judge Advocate for four years, then attended The George Washington University Law School in Washington, D. C., where he received an LLM with an emphasis in taxation. From 1975 to 2003 he practiced law in Houston and Dallas.

In 1977 he began his association with Rockwell Fund, Inc., and was elected a Trustee and Vice President in 1980. In 1994 he was elected President and became a full time employee in 2003.  

Peter Long, Ph.D., is the president and CEO of Blue Shield of California Foundation. He leads the Foundation in its mission to improve the lives of all Californians, particularly the underserved, by making health care accessible, effective, and affordable, and by ending domestic violence. In 2013 alone, the Foundation provided $34 million to 326 organizations across California, making it one of the state’s largest grantmaking institutions. Prior to joining Blue Shield of California Foundation, Dr. Long served in leadership roles at the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and The California Endowment. Dr. Long also served as the director of development and programs for the Indian Health Center of Santa Clara Valley in San Jose, before assuming his position there as executive director. Previously, in Cape Town, South Africa, Dr. Long was a legislative analyst for the National Progressive Primary Health Care Network during the country’s transition to democracy. Outside of his role as CEO, Dr. Long is actively involved in multiple healthcare and professional organizations, serving on the Board of Directors for Grantmakers in Health and Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, and the Governance Board at the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review. He was one of the lead organizers of the Philanthropy-Joining Forces Impact Pledge, which raised more than $170 million for veterans and military families. Dr. Long received a bachelor of arts degree from Harvard University; a master’s in health policy from The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health; and his doctorate in health services from the University of California, Los Angeles. He currently lives in Orange County with his wife and three children.

As associate director of Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR), Felecia Bartow plays a lead role in advancing member engagement, funder outreach, and strategic initiatives. She also oversees information resources and communications efforts. Felecia served as a longtime consultant to GCIR prior to joining the staff. With over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, she previously worked at the National Immigrant Justice Center, the American Friends Service Committee, and the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies. Felecia holds a Master of Social Work degree from Washington University in St. Louis and a B.A. from Macalester College. 

Amanda Cloud is The President and CEO of The Simmons Foundation in Houston, Texas.  In this position, she is responsible for overseeing the Foundation’s three million dollar annual investment in the Houston community in the areas of health, education, advocacy and human services.   She is active in the community, serving as Chair of the board of directors of One Voice Texas, as a board member for Our Global Village and on the advisory board for the Rice Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Management as well as numerous committees for local and regional philanthropic associations.  Since 2012, Amanda has been closely involved with the Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative serving on the Executive Committee as well as participating in a national collaborative of local funders focused on immigration.  Amanda is a native Houstonian and graduated from The University of Houston with a B.A. in Political Science and a Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management through Texas A&M University.  

Jessica Bearman (Bearman Consulting) works with foundations and other mission-based organizations, focusing on organization development, facilitation, planning, and project R&D to help them become more intentional, effective, and responsive to the communities that they serve.

Jessica’s current and recent clients include GMN's Project Streamline, the Talent Philanthropy Project, Exponent Philanthropy, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, Funders Together to End Homelessness, and a variety of individual foundations. As a consultant and in her prior role as deputy director of New Ventures in Philanthropy, Jessica has written and spoken widely about new and established philanthropy. Her most recent Project Streamline publication:  Practices That Matter,investigates the impact of grantmakers’ application and reporting practices.  She (often disguised as "Dr. Streamline") blogs regularly on the topic of funder practices and values.

Laura Rust founded and created BIG, one of Houston's largest yoga communities. She is an E-RYT 200 & RYT 500 certified yoga teacher and has studied under yoga visionary Baron Baptiste, who founded the Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga style, for 6 years now. Laura also founded and directs Houston's first Stand Up Paddle yoga program, BIG SUP. Laura approaches yoga as a tool for health, vitality and leadership and she is passionate about innovating the way yoga is delivered to make it accessible and valuable for each and every person on the planet. When not teaching yoga, Laura enjoys spending time with her husband, celebrating life, and traveling the world looking for new adventures!

Kate has over ten years of professional experience in creative non-profit and social enterprise development. Her work with Design Impact began in 2009 while living and working in a rural south Indian village. Since then she has grown the organization from a small idea to a full-fledged public interest design firm. She has spoken and led trainings in various settings such as TEDx, Procter & Gamble, College for Creative Studies Toyota speaker series, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Before founding Design Impact, she earned her Master’s degree in Education, taught for four years in a low-income, under-performing district, and led strategic planning and capacity building for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center, a non-profit law firm that works for criminal justice reform. She has lived and worked internationally on education and youth development initiatives in India, Jamaica, and New Zealand. In addition to leading Design Impact, she currently teaches as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of Cincinnati Honors College and the Center for Creative Leadership. Kate’s work has been published through media outlets such as Fast Company, Innovations, and GOOD, and she was recently listed as one of Public Interest Design’s Top 100 Global Designers. Her experiences in corporate, non-profit, and educational settings have given her a unique ability to build diverse, cross-sector partnerships that create positive social change.

Chris Thompson is director of regional engagement for the Fund for Our Economic Future, a philanthropic collaboration made up of more than 40 foundations that advances a growing, opportunity-rich economy for the people of the Northeast Ohio.

Chris helps Fund members and other civic leaders improve job creation, job access and job preparation outcomes in their communities through collaboration. He enjoys helping leaders strengthen their collaboration skills, embrace complexity and achieve sustained positive change.

Before joining the Fund in 2007, Chris was vice president of a communications consulting firm serving nonprofits and high-growth companies. He worked as a journalist for more than 20 years in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ohio. A native of San Francisco, Chris is a graduate of Marquette University. He and his wife, Anne, are the parents of two grown children. He lives with his wife in Strongsville. He would rather be fly fishing.   

Marcy Levy Shankman, Ph.D. is vice president for strategy and director of Leadership Cleveland for the Cleveland Leadership Center. In this dual role, Marcy oversees the strategic work of the Center as well as designing and leading Leadership Cleveland, a 10-month program for senior executive leaders to enhance their understanding of the civic landscape and their role as leaders in it. 

Prior to this role, Marcy was principal of MLS Consulting, which she founded in 2001. Marcy specialized in facilitating strategic planning and visioning initiatives as well as designing and delivering leadership workshops and retreats. She conducted trainings for a wide range audiences, from educators and school administrators in Singapore to nonprofit professionals, educators and accountants across the country.

Marcy has taught graduate and undergraduate courses at John Carroll University, Baldwin-Wallace College, and Case Western Reserve University.

Marcy is co-author of Emotionally Intelligent Leadership: A Guide for College Students.  

Mark Scheffler has served as the executive leader of Leadership Akron since July 2005. He has helped hundreds of leaders develop their collaborative civic leadership skills to advance community within Greater Akron. 

Mark serves on the board of the national Association of Leadership Programs (ALP) as immediate past chair. He chaired the 2010 ALP National Conference, where he also received the Preceptor Award for excellence in directing a leadership organization. He also serves on the boards of Akron Roundtable and United Way of Summit County.

Mark previously served as Director of Development at Summit Education Initiative. A native of Dayton, Ohio, he graduated from Grove City College with a B.A. in Political Science and Economics, and received his Masters of Public Administration from The Ohio State University.

Mark and his wife Bethany have two daughters, Jordan and Daniela.  

Amy Celep guides Community Wealth Partners' strategic direction and oversees the team’s efforts to support partners in solving problems at the magnitude they exist. Amy was named to this role in April 2010, and since then has led the organization in developing and implementing a new strategy for greater impact, while achieving significant revenue growth and securing a marquee list of partners.  Amy served in various consulting and management roles with Community Wealth Partners for eight years before moving into her current position. Prior to joining the organization, she worked in the nonprofit sector as a marketer and fundraiser and in the private sector where she served as a producer for a CBS affiliate’s award-winning evening news. In 2011, Amy was honored as one of The Washington Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. Amy received her MBA from Georgetown University and her BS from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.

Dr. Ortiz’s work revolves around building and strengthening early childhood systems to promote language acquisition and emergent literacy for children birth through age eight.  In this role, Dr. Ortiz works in conjunction with the Foundation's community investment team to identify partnership opportunities and implement the Foundation's strategic early childhood education investment goals in Arizona and Florida.

Dr. Ortiz brings more than 25 years of academic and professional experience in early childhood education.  In addition to practical experience within school districts and classroom settings, she served as an early childhood policy advisor to Arizona’s Governor Janet Napolitano and was Director of the State Board on School Readiness. Dr. Ortiz has helped lead statewide and national initiatives impacting children ages birth to eight and their families. Dr. Ortiz is a graduate of Arizona State University and holds Doctoral and Master degrees in Curriculum and Instruction, Early Childhood Education.  She holds undergraduate degrees in business and nursing. 

Uma Kotagal is senior vice president for quality, safety and transformation and executive director of the James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. As director of the Anderson Center, Dr. Kotagal oversees the development of disease management teams and development and institution of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines.

The primary purpose of the Anderson Center is to foster health services research and system transformation with the goal of improving the quality of healthcare delivery, translating knowledge into practice, and building the next generation of improvement leaders.

Dr. Kotagal was director of the neonatal intensive care units at the University Hospital and at Cincinnati Children’s for several years. While practicing, Dr. Kotagal recognized that care and outcomes improvement were a system property. She completed additional training, receiving her master’s of science in clinical epidemiology and clinical effectiveness from the Harvard School of Public Health, and refocused her clinical efforts on quality transformation at a systems level. She was also a visiting scholar at the Center for Risk Analysis at the Harvard School of Public Health and a visiting professor at the Tufts New England Medical Center, in the Division of Clinical Decision Making, completing further training in the field of decision and cost effectiveness analyses.

Dr. Kotagal has published extensively in the field of neonatal outcomes research, including studies on neonatal cost models, and early discharge of newborns. She published the first landmark paper on early discharge programs in the NICU setting.

Dr. Kotagal was born in Bombay, India, where she received her undergraduate and her MBBS from the University of Bombay. She did a rotating internship at the University of Bombay from 1970-1971 and another rotating internship at Detroit General Hospital from 1971-1972.

At Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Dr. Kotagal completed her pediatric residency from 1972-1974 and went on to do a fellowship in neonatology from 1974-1975. She completed a fellowship in neonatal physiology at the University of Cincinnati from 1975-1977.

Dr. Kotagal is a senior faculty member of the Institute for Healthcare. She also serves as chair of the quality steering team of the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association, as a member of the advisory committee of the Toronto Patient Safety Center, as an associate editor of BMJ Quality and Safety and as a member of the Institute of Medicine.

Dr. Kotagal is also a member of various local, regional and national committees in the area of child health.

Cris Kutzli is a Program Director at Grand Rapids Community Foundation, and serves as Co-Director of the Challenge Scholars initiative.  She participated in the design of Challenge Scholars, and now leads its program and evaluation components.  Her work with Challenge Scholars includes program planning, strategy development, and partnership building at both the systems and grass-roots level.  Cris also advises the Community Foundation’s Youth Grant Committee. She is involved in a number of local initiatives related to education, youth development, and college access.  Prior to joining the Foundation in 1999, Cris served as a community organizer at a large neighborhood association in Grand Rapids. Cris earned her Bachelor of Arts in Social Science Education at Michigan State University. 

As a director in FSG's Strategic Evaluation approach area, Srik is part of the firm's Leadership Group. Srik's role includes supporting and advancing FSG's thought leadership in Strategic Learning and Evaluation, as well as contributing to other impact areas. He is currently involved in a range of projects, including developmental evaluation and shared measurement, as well as leading FSG's intellectual capital around "next generation evaluation."

Srik is a trained facilitator and has worked with multiple stakeholders to build organizational capacity to use data and metrics to plan, implement and evaluate interventions. He has led developmental, formative and summative evaluations, as well as projects around organizational design, strategic planning and leadership development. Prior to joining FSG, Srik worked in the education field for nine years, most recently serving as Chief Impact and Learning Officer at New Teacher Center, a national nonpofit with a mission to accelerate teacher effectiveness. In this role, Srik worked to set up frameworks for impact measurement as well as systems and processes for data-driven learning and organizational improvement. Prior to New Teacher Center, Srik worked on supporting whole systems change in public education as Director of Evaluation for the Ball Foundation. Prior to working in education, Srik's experiences range from manufacturing operations to strategic business consulting, allowing him to bring a unique perspective to the field of social change.

Hallie Preskill, PhD, is a Managing Director with FSG, where she oversees the Strategic Learning & Evaluation practice and advises on evaluation and learning projects with foundations, nonprofits, corporations, and government organizations.

Prior to joining FSG, Hallie spent more than 20 years in academia, teaching courses in the theory and practice of evaluation, training and development, organizational learning, appreciative inquiry and consulting. Hallie’s books include Becoming the Change (2011), Reframing Evaluation through Appreciative Inquiry (2006), Building Evaluation Capacity: Activities for Teaching and Training (2005, 2^nd Ed. 2015), Evaluation Strategies for Communicating and Reporting (1999, 2005), and Evaluation in Organizations (2001, 2009).

 Dr. Preskill was President of the American Evaluation Association in 2007. She received the American Evaluation Association's Alva and Gunnar Myrdal Award for Outstanding Professional Practice in 2002 and the University of Illinois Distinguished Alumni Award in 2004. Hallie holds a PhD from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Jeff Raderstrong joined Living Cities in May 2014 as Program Associate on The Integration Initiative. Jeff’s role for TII is to capture lessons learned from sites for sharing with Living Cities' members and the field more broadly. Before coming to Living Cities, Jeff worked as an Associate at Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP), where he led the assessment of its nonprofit portfolio. He also supported VPP’s communications activities, including the launch of Leap of Reason, a book on nonprofit outcomes management, and Capital Kids, the first report on the state of children and youth in the DC area. Jeff also worked as a consultant, helping organizations disseminate digital products. He founded UnSectored, a community platform for re-thinking social change, and co-founded the Social Entrepreneurs of Grinnell (SEG), which is now a functioning microfinance institution with an over $30,000 portfolio. Jeff is currently pursuing his Masters of Public Administration at George Washington University.

Dr. Frank Mirabal has over 20 years experience designing and implementing high-impact collaborative strategies with local communities.  Currently, Dr. Mirabal is serving as the Director of Collective Impact for Mayor Richard J. Berry in the City of Albuquerque.  In this role, Dr. Mirabal focuses on engaging historically marginalized groups and cross-sector partners in problem solving using collective impact as a fundamental approach.  Dr. Mirabal earned a Ph.D in Educational Leadership from New Mexico State University and lives in Albuquerque with his multi-generational family. 

Theresa serves as Director of Strategic Development for Nexus Community Partners, a community building intermediary whose mission is to “build more engaged and powerful communities” throughout the Twin Cities region. As Director of Strategic Development, Theresa oversees the organization’s development, evaluation and communication activities, ensuring Nexus is advancing its mission and achieving its goals. In addition, Theresa leads the Building the Field of Community Engagement initiative, a cross-cultural collaborative designed to magnify and elevate the power of community engagement. She has a Master’s Degree in International Relations from American University in Washington, DC and a Bachelor’s Degree in History from the University of Connecticut. 

Courtney Bourns is a senior program officer at the Henry P. Kendall Foundation.  In this role, she collaborates with her colleagues on the staff and board of the Foundation roll out the Foundation’s new grantmaking program focused on building a resilient food system across the six New England states. Courtney joined the foundation in 2011 after three years as Vice President of Programs with Grantmakers for Effective Organizations in Washington, DC. There, she directed efforts to advance the field of philanthropy by supporting grantmakers to partner with their grantees in ways that make the biggest difference to grantee effectiveness and ultimately lead to impact.  Courtney brought to GEO her expertise in facilitation, organizational development and multi-stakeholder change initiatives. Previously, Courtney served as director of organizational development at Conservation International and senior associate at the Interaction Institute for Social Change. Today, she is a board member at the Center for Courage and Renewal.  Courtney received her BA from Brown University and her MA from Union Theological Seminary.

Marianne Hughes recently left her position as the founding Executive Director of the Interaction Institute for Social Change (IISC). While continuing to work with IISC as a Senior Consultant, Marianne is pursuing work as an individual Consultant, as well.

Marianne combines 20 years of experience as an executive director with expertise in the design and facilitation of systems change, network building, leadership development, public policy advocacy and community organizing with her devotion to social justice, and deep faith in the human capacity for goodness to further the work of global transformation

Marianne’s professional commitment to social change began in 1966, during an early life-directing experience as one of the original VISTA Volunteers. She followed this with years of community organizing and advocacy work. In the decade prior to becoming executive director at IISC, Marianne worked at Regina Villa Associates, a public affairs firm that specializes in public policy and political consulting, public interest lobbying and public participation as a Senior Associate. In 1993, Marianne was hired by Interaction Associates to launch the Interaction Institute for Social Change as a nonprofit partner organization to work in the social and public sectors as well as local communities.  Since that time, IISC has grown from a start-up with a staff of two to an organization with offices in Boston and Belfast and 30 staff and affiliates, serving hundreds of clients annually across the country and world. 

While leading IISC as executive director, Marianne worked with change makers across the world in their social transformation efforts by providing consulting in: strategy development and organizational change; the design and facilitation of multi-stakeholder collaborative planning and network building initiatives as well as learning events and retreats. Marianne also provided capacity building trainings in the skills and tools of collaboration, transformational leadership development and skillful and effective facilitation.

Richard Evans directs, designs and facilitates EmcArts’ programs and strategic partnerships, which support individuals, organizations and communities on their journey to becoming highly adaptive. Through this work, EmcArts creates conditions for adaptive change to become integrated throughout the arts sector. 

A frequent speaker on the relationships between systemic change, cultural policy and emerging practices in the arts, Richard’s recent engagements have included most of the annual conferences of arts service organizations in the U.S. and Canada. His research and analysis has been published in numerous publications.

Richard received his M.A. from Trinity College, Cambridge, England.  Prior to founding EmcArts, he held senior positions in performing arts management and philanthropy, including: Co-director of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Advancement Program; Coordinator of the National Alliance of Artists’ Communities; Chief Executive of the Bath International Festival of Music & the Arts, England; and Vice President of the National Arts Stabilization Fund.

Lynne McCormack serves as the director of Art, Culture + Tourism for the City of Providence, RI. Appointed director in 2006, Ms. McCormack successfully transitioned the department from a programming organization, to a community development agency.  Completing a comprehensive cultural plan in 2009, she forged partnerships that resulted in a destination branding campaign, a summer youth workforce development program, citywide arts festivals and increased funding for artists, designers and organizations through CDBG, HUD, transit and economic development funds. Her department has been awarded two NEA Our Town grants and been funded for an ArtPlace America project.  Recognized as a change-maker, Ms. McCormack earned her BFA in Film/Video from Rhode Island School of Design and continues to employ creative practice and design-based thinking in her innovative government work.

Rebecca Fox works as a program officer at Wellspring Advisors. In this position, she focuses on advancing LGBT issues. Prior to coming to Wellspring, she was Executive Director of the National Coalition for LGBT Health, leading organizations nationwide to work together to improve the lives and health of LGBT people through advocacy, outreach, and education. She was also an adjunct professor at George Washington University. Rebecca serves on the board of directors of Funders for LGBTQ Issues.

Adriann Barboa is a Chicana, Native New Mexican born and raised in Albuquerque, where she is a single mother of two. In 2012, Forward Together launched the Strong Families New Mexico state based action site. As Field Director for Strong Families New Mexico, Adriann connects across issue areas, geography and difference to advance the work and leverage capacity for a strong state network and in connection to the national movement work led by Forward Together. Adriann brings 10 plus years experience in the social justice sector, working primarily on issues of gender, reproductive, anti-violence, education and youth justice in communities of color.

Sean Thomas-Breitfeld co-directs the Building Movement Project, with a special focus on BMP’s work on service and social change. Prior to joining the BMP staff, Sean spent a decade working in various roles at the Center for Community Change. At CCC, he developed training programs for grassroots leaders, worked in CCC’s communications and policy departments where he coordinated online and grassroots advocacy efforts, and lobbied on a range of issues, including immigration reform, transportation equity and anti-poverty programs. Before joining the Center, Sean worked as a Policy Analyst at the National Council of La Raza, where he focused on employment and income security issues. Sean holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service and a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and Multicultural Studies from St. Olaf College in Minnesota. - See more at: http://www.buildingmovement.org/people/sean_thomas_breitfeld#sthash.PNWxQnBD.dpuf

Sidney’s 15-year career in philanthropy has produced a record of success in community leadership, organizational innovation and performance, and strategic grant investment. Since 2009, Sidney has served as the first executive director of the Community Foundation of South Jersey, which serves the southern eight counties of New Jersey. Sidney's goals are to build and implement a foundation strategy that embraces the foundation’s three roles as giving advisor to donors, advocate for philanthropic investment in South Jersey solutions, and community convener for the issues that matter in the region.

Sidney came to the foundation from The Columbus Foundation in Columbus, Ohio where he was the Senior Officer of Strategy and Organizational Learning. He managed the foundation’s business and innovation strategy, organizational learning, and social impact evaluation. He also served as the philanthropic advisor for the Siemer Family Foundation, Paul G. Duke Foundation, and Central Benefits Healthcare Foundation. As a community leader, Sidney actively participates on a number of boards and committees, both regionally and nationally.

Hellen Hong, Esq., is our Southern California Regional Executive Director. Hellen leads the talented team in Los Angeles as the organization plans to more than double its impact in the coming year. She is responsible for expanding First Place’s public and private sector partnerships, as well as engaging the community and stakeholders to advance First Place’s mission. Hellen joins existing First Place leadership in LA to continue to advance the organization’s work.

Hellen comes to First Place with a strong track record as the Executive Director of the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice (LACLJ) where she provided vision and strategic leadership for nearly seven years.  Under Hellen’s leadership, there was significant growth at LACLJ, an organization that provides free legal services to low income families in LA County. During her tenure, the organization’s operating budget doubled and its staff size increased by 30 percent, while increasing access to the legal services for immigrants, domestic violence survivors, and teens. Her career as an attorney has been dedicated to the service of low income clients.

Rea Carey is one of the most respected leaders in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) movement.  Through her leadership, Carey has advanced a vision of freedom for LGBTQ people and their families that is broad, inclusive and unabashedly progressive.  She grounds her work solidly in racial, economic and social justice. This approach to leadership has delivered results as diverse as: winning an LGBT-inclusive federal hate crimes prevention law; defeating multiple state anti-LGBT ballot measures; spotlighting discrimination against transgender people; winning marriage equality; building stronger support for fair immigration reform; and, successfully securing scores of changes in federal agencies to attend to the needs of the LGBTQ community.

Prior to her work with the Task Force, Carey worked extensively in HIV/AIDS prevention, on issues affecting homeless and LGBTQ youth, and in organization and leadership development. She was a co-founder of Gay Men and Lesbians Opposing Violence (DC) and the founding executive director of the National Youth Advocacy Coalition. Carey is a Hunt Alternatives’ Prime Movers Fellow and serves on the boards of directors for the Flamboyan Foundation and the Alliance for Justice.

Kate has over ten years of professional experience in creative non-profit and social enterprise development. Her work with Design Impact began in 2009 while living and working in a rural south Indian village. Since then she has grown the organization from a small idea to a full-fledged public interest design firm. She has spoken and led trainings in various settings such as TEDx, Procter & Gamble, College for Creative Studies Toyota speaker series, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Before founding Design Impact, she earned her Master’s degree in Education, taught for four years in a low-income, under-performing district, and led strategic planning and capacity building for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center, a non-profit law firm that works for criminal justice reform. She has lived and worked internationally on education and youth development initiatives in India, Jamaica, and New Zealand. In addition to leading Design Impact, she currently teaches as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of Cincinnati Honors College and the Center for Creative Leadership. Kate’s work has been published through media outlets such as Fast Company, Innovations, and GOOD, and she was recently listed as one of Public Interest Design’s Top 100 Global Designers. Her experiences in corporate, non-profit, and educational settings have given her a unique ability to build diverse, cross-sector partnerships that create positive social change.