Keynote Speakers
Founder
Dion Dawson is a food equity entrepreneur, philanthropic leader, and founder focused on health equity through an innovative and transformative lens. Dion’s penchant for challenging the solvency of food insecurity through the stabilization of last-mile delivery and logistics has reinvigorated the traditional food distribution model. With transparent operations, consistent quality, and a deep commitment to a resident-informed process that meets residents and recipients where they are, he prioritizes the end-user experience.
Dion founded Dion’s Chicago Dream, a nonprofit organization that delivers a week’s worth of fresh produce to the doorsteps of food insecure Chicagoans, totaling more than 300,000 lbs provided, 15 jobs created, and one powerful movement.
Dion is an award-winning military journalist, public relations and communications expert, philanthropist, and son of Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. His philanthropic achievements include being named an Echoing Green Fellow, a 2023 University of Chicago Civic Leadership Academy Fellow, a 2023 Chicago Bulls Martin Luther King Legacy Award recipient, and an American Express NGen Fellow.
Host & Executive Producer, UNDISTRACTED
Brittany Packnett Cunningham is a social justice activist, educator and writer. Leading at the intersection of culture and justice, she builds platforms to activate everyday people to take transformative action for justice. She is an NBC News and MSNBC contributor and host of UNDISTRACTED, an intersectional news and social justice podcast. She is the former co-host of iHeart Radio’s Best Political Podcast of 2019, Pod Save The People, and is the founder and principal of Love & Power Works, a full-service social impact and equity agency. Her TED Talk on Confidence has garnered over 5 million views worldwide, making it one of the top ten most popular TED Talks of that year. Brittany is a former elementary teacher, education executive, and policy advisor. In the past, Brittany held top roles at Teach For America, was a Congressional policy advisor, and a 3 time fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics, leveraging her broad skillset on wide-ranging justice issues from public education to racial justice. Brittany was a member of President Obama’s 21st Century Policing Task Force and the Ferguson Commission, helping lead the country and her community through change during times of tumult. Brittany graced the covers of British Vogue and Essence Magazine, been listed as one of Time’s 12 New Faces of Black Leadership, and has been honored by BET, Politico Magazine, Marie Claire, The Trayvon Martin Foundation, Higher Heights and more. She serves on the Gucci Changemakers Council and lives with her husband in Washington, DC.
Founder
Named by Fortune Magazine as one of the Top 50 World’s Greatest Leaders, a recipient of the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian of the Year Award, and listed as one of the world’s most influential creative people by The Creativity ’50s, Mick Ebeling is a maker, hacker, and inventor who has sparked a movement of pragmatic, inspirational innovation. As a career producer and filmmaker and now founder and CEO of Not Impossible Labs, Ebeling consistently speaks to companies and audiences all over the world inspiring them to change their world and the world.
Ebeling founded Not Impossible Labs, a multiple award-winning social innovation lab and production company, on the premise that nothing is impossible. His mantra of “Commit, then figure it out” allows him to convene a brilliant team of hackers, doers, makers, and thinkers to create inventions and creations that better the world by bringing accessibility for all. Ebeling’s book, Not Impossible: Do What Can’t Be Done, recounts the life experiences that led to the founding of Not Impossible.
Called the “Elon Musk of Good,” Ebeling is the only person to ever be honored two times as a TIME Magazine Top Invention of the Year recipient, a two-time Tribeca Disruptor innovation winner, a two-time SXSW innovation of the year award winner, a WIRED Agent of Change, a fellow with The Nantucket Project, and a recipient of every major creative and advertising award, Ebeling is on a mission to change the world by creating “Technology for the Sake of Humanity.”
The Rest of Our Amazing Speakers
Sr. Manager, Digital Growth
Aaron has spent over a decade in direct marketing and fundraising and currently provides the Feeding America Network of food banks with education, training, and resources designed to build capacity and growth for the food bank’s fundraising program.
Vice President of Development
Abby is a Certified Fundraising Executive and brings a variety of nonprofit and development experience to Kesem. For more than 20 years, she has held positions with well-known, national organizations including Best Friends Animal Society, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the American Cancer Society. More recently, she provided marketing, communications and development expertise to a number of animal welfare and environmental organizations. She currently serves as the Vice President of Development for Kesem, a nationwide nonprofit whose mission is to support children coping with a parent’s cancer diagnosis with free, fun-filled programs and a lasting community. Abby is a graduate of Florida State University and currently lives in California with her husband, four sons and dog, Bo. In her free time, which is rare, she enjoys hiking, sailing and watching college football.
Manager, Product Support (Classy Live)
Abraham Chen is the Care Team Manager for Classy’s digital events solution, Classy Live. He is passionate about the multiplying effect that for-profit business and technology can have on the nonprofit sector. Throughout his career at Classy, Abraham has advocated for customer experience improvements and the continuous innovation of Classy Live. He is also deeply involved in the company’s Environmental Employee Resource Group, Project Green, which champions climate change solutions by engaging employees, influencing company policies, and amplifying customers.
Outside of work, Abraham can be found lounging with his two oreo cats, Tucker and Quinn, supporting The Los Angeles Lakers, and sipping on whiskey neat. He is also a huge fan of The Tim Ferriss Show podcast, of which he has listened to 200+ episodes. Come find him at the Classy Live booth to chat in person about any of these topics and more!
Partner
Alan Levine, a Partner with Barker & Scott, builds on over 25 years of senior IT and business leadership experience to guide organizations in creative uses of information technology to achieve their desired business outcomes. Alan has served as a consultant and virtual CIO for numerous regional, national, and global nonprofit organizations.
Before joining Barker & Scott, Alan served for many years as the CIO of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. Alan is past President of CIO/Arts, a founding member of the worldwide CIO Executive Council, has served on the Small Agency CIO Council of the US Federal Government. Alan was a founder and past Chairman of the Board of the Tessitura Network.
Alan spends his free time as an equestrian, spending time with horses as majestic, intelligent, powerful partners, as well as hiking, baking, and gardening.
SVP, Client Strategy
Alyssa Boger serves as the Senior Vice President of Client Strategy at Pursuant. Through her experience working with organizations of varying size and purpose, she supports the creation of successful, comprehensive fundraising solutions across the donor pyramid. Alyssa’s client relationships are strengthened by her passion for data-informed strategies that inspire new and measured thinking. Alyssa’s expertise lies in omnichannel fundraising, data analysis and insights, comprehensive direct response strategy and execution, and program transitions to relationship fundraising.
Director of Foundation Marketing
Alyssa Zamora Henriquez leads marketing for a leader in pediatric healthcare, Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. With 15 years of marketing experience working in healthcare, higher education and philanthropy, and another five in journalism, Alyssa’s expertise spans strategic communications, content strategy, digital marketing, storytelling and online fundraising. Since joining Nicklaus Children’s in 2020, she has led marketing for multi-million dollar fundraising events, directed a website migration, and quadrupled online fundraising. Prior, she held marketing roles at Miami Dade College Foundation, University of Miami and Duke University’s Global Health Institute. Alyssa completed Seth Godin’s altMBA and has formal training in broadcast journalism, graduating cum laude from University of Florida. Early in her career, Alyssa was a public radio journalist, with reports on Florida Public Radio and NPR. Alyssa believes in mission-driven work that impacts lives and facilitates change
Program and Partnership Manger
Alyssa Young is a Program and Partnership Manager at KABOOM! working to end playspace inequity. Her work is primarily based in Philadelphia, where 2/3 of the city’s public schools do not have a playground. Children, especially children of color and children from low-income communities, are denied the physical, social, and cognitive benefits of play when they lack access to safe, high-quality playgrounds. She tests new ideas and solutions to reducing the impacts of playspace inequity, through projects that impact the lives and wellbeing of children. Recent projects include: a data-informed mapping effort that identified areas for playspace investment for Philadelphia’s youngest children, a collaborative project to install five new Story Trails in Philadelphia’s public parks with playful learning elements, and a pilot program designed to get community-built Play Everywhere spaces activated by a cohort of trained Playful Learning Ambassadors.
Director of Digital Strategy
With over 14 years of experience at The Salvation Army, Andrew is a seasoned professional currently serving as the Director of Digital Strategy at National Headquarters. In this role, he oversees the development and implementation of effective and efficient web-based technologies and strategies that support internal and external communications and online fundraising for all levels of Salvation Army administration and advisory organizations. He coordinates and manages all approved national online fundraising initiatives and serves as the primary point of contact with external vendors. Prior to this role, he oversaw donor services, marketing and branding, media and graphic arts, and assisted with special projects at The Salvation Army’s Central Territory Headquarters (in Chicago) and Eastern Michigan Division (in Detroit). Andrew is married with two daughters, a dog, and enjoys reading history and traveling to explore US National Parks.
Manager, Scaled Customer Engagement
Audrey leads the Classy Coaching team responsible for providing impactful training programs centered on industry best practices, onboarding onto Classy, and new features to drive fundraising growth. She came to Classy six years ago after working as the Annual Giving Manager at T.E.R.I., a San Diego nonprofit focused on helping those with autism. During her time on the Development team, Audrey discovered that while fundraising relies on strong relationships and powerful storytelling, having technology that can help you build upon these skills is instrumental to sustained fundraising success.
Audrey first became passionate about nonprofit work after volunteering at her local Humane Society. She served as a “Dog Behavior Specialist”, which translated to spending time holding chihuahuas to ease their nerves and help them get adopted to their forever homes. Honestly, a dream job.
Executive Director
Avril Benoît is the executive director of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières in the United States (MSF USA). She has worked with the International Medical Humanitarian Organization since 2006 in various operational management and executive leadership roles. Prior to this, she was a journalist and radio broadcaster in Canada for 20 years.
Dean
Amir Pasic is the Eugene R. Tempel Dean of the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy; the world’s first school devoted to research and teaching about philanthropy.
Prior to joining the school, Pasic was vice president of international operations at the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), a global professional association serving educational institutions and their advancement professionals.
Previously, Pasic was associate dean for development and strategic planning at the Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) as well as executive director of its Foreign Policy Institute, where he continues to serve as a fellow.
Pasic served as deputy director of the world security project at the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and was deputy vice president for advancement at The George Washington University. A former librarian at the Library of Congress, he began his career with faculty appointments at Brown University’s Watson Institute.
Pasic earned his doctorate in political science at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a master’s degree in international relations from Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from Yale University.
Vice President, Business Development
Brea Kratzert Todd is the Vice President of Business Development for Wounded Warrior Project, a national veteran service organization headquartered in Jacksonville, FL. She has been with WWP for 13 years in various roles dedicated to business development. In her current role she sits on the executive team and oversees a national team with responsibility for multiple fundraising channels. These channels include: major and planned giving, foundations, corporate partners, signature events, livestreaming & gaming as well as community events.
Brea came to WWP from the University of North FL. where she oversaw marketing for the athletic department. She also spent time at the PGA TOUR and in the pharmaceutical industry. She is a graduate of West Virginia University with a Bachelors degree in Psychology and she also holds a Juris Doctor from Florida Coastal School of Law. She is an avid equestrian, competing nationally. She resides Jacksonville Beach with her husband Ryan Todd.
Sr. Technical Support Engineer
Chelsea Bentley-Scott (she/they) is a Senior Technical Support Engineer at Classy supporting Embedded Giving. Chelsea was first introduced to Classy as a Starbucks barista, building connections with the Classy founders, who were regular customers. They ultimately found their way to Classy’s Care team, where their drive to help customers succeed has shaped their career in tech. While at work, you can find them trying to get their cat, Freddie, out of the way on Zoom calls. While off work, you can find them with their wife and two kids, hanging out at the neighborhood park or the San Diego Zoo.
SVP & Chief Marketing Officer
Cindy currently serves as SVP and Chief Marketing Officer for the March of Dimes, where she brings 20 years of experience in marketing, public relations, crisis communications, corporate communications, nonprofit brand building and more.
Prior to joining March of Dimes, Cindy spent more than 15 years specializing in health, wellness and social responsibility initiatives at a boutique marketing agency. Cindy’s clientele included Walmart/Walmart Foundation, Sam’s Club, Inova Health Foundation, MedStar Institute, and Massachusetts General Hospital among others.
Throughout her career, Cindy has received numerous industry accolades including: PR News Agency Elite Award Winner and American Marketing Association Integrated Marketing Campaigns Winner. In 2022, She was named American Marketing Association Nonprofit Marketer of the Year.
Cindy earned a BSBA degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her MBA from The George Washington University School of Business.
Director of Development & Marketing
Clayton Davenport is the Director of Development and Marketing for one•n•ten, Arizona’s largest LGBTQ+ youth organization. After leaving the private sector in 2011, Clayton began his fundraising career with the GLBT Community Center of Colorado, now called The Center on Colfax. He quickly found his passion for serving the LGBTQ+ community. In 2015, Clayton moved to Arizona to lead the Phoenix Pride team as their Director of Development before joining one•n•ten in June 2019. Clayton has helped secure over $16M in gifts during his fundraising career and recently embarked on his CFRE journey. When Clayton isn’t fundraising, you will find him in nature, camping and hiking with his husband and their two dogs.
National Community Relations and Development Secretary
Dale Bannon has twenty years of nonprofit executive leadership experience and currently serves as the National Community Relations and Development Secretary (Director) and National Spokesperson for The Salvation Army National Headquarters. In this role he provides leadership in the areas of brand awareness, fundraising, strategic partnerships, and public relations/communications.
His experience also includes serving as Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer for The Salvation Army National Capital region in Washington, DC; Director of Development for Washington County Public Schools; Executive Director for the United Way of Washington County; and Corps Officer of The Salvation Army in Dallas and Lakeland, Florida.
Marketing Manager
A part of the Marketing and Communications team, Dan manages Concern’s marketing campaigns, assists with measurement and reporting, and guides marketing strategy. Prior to starting with Concern, Dan worked as a Senior Account Strategist for a digital marketing agency, helping clients maximize their digital marketing budgets. When not knee-deep in spreadsheets, Dan enjoys reading, running, and obsessively refreshing his podcast feed.
Senior Vice President, Strategic Alliances
Dana Bond is the Senior Vice President of Strategic Alliances at First Book, an award-winning nonprofit social enterprise focused on advancing educational equity for children in need. With more than 18 years of experience in sales and marketing in the for-profit and nonprofit space, her passion for education, children, and serving underserved communities helps connect some of the world’s most well-known brands to the First Book mission. Her team is responsible for generating significant revenue for First Book through the development of unique and innovative corporate partnerships across a variety of industries.
Growing up in Milwaukee, WI, Dana lived and attended school in the exact communities First Book serves. This authentic connection, coupled with the desire to lean into work that drives systemic change is what drew her to the mission. Before joining First Book, Dana spent 10 years with Make-A-Wish® America in corporate partnerships, partnership marketing and brand campaigns. Prior to her move to the nonprofit sector, Dana started her career in the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry working for Pepsi and the Campbell Soup Company in sales and marketing roles. Dana holds a B.S. in Marketing from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from Arizona State University.
VP for Fundraising Operations
With a lifelong commitment to service and volunteering, David entered the nonprofit sector following a long career in higher education advancement. He enjoys working for organizations with impact on human needs. With almost 30 years working in the University System of Georgia, he now uses those experiences to address hunger relief and poverty issues with the Food Bank for New York City. David leads the teams at Food Bank responsible for Donor Relations, Annual Giving, Prospect Research & Management, Database Administration, and Gift Processing. Most of those functions were informally managed or outsourced prior to the tremendous growth of philanthropy at Food Bank for New York City during the pandemic. David joined Food Bank in April 2021, helping them close record-setting fundraising totals while serving the 1.6 million neighbors experiencing food insecurity across the five boroughs of NYC
Customer Development Manager
Emily is a Customer Development Manager on the Coaching team at Classy. Before joining Classy in 2021, she was a Program and Development Manager for a nonprofit that provided support and resources to individuals with bipolar disorder. Emily’s passion lies in working collaboratively with her clients to discover innovative fundraising solutions and train them on campaign best practices to enhance their fundraising potential. Originally from San Diego, Emily grew up surrounded by its natural beauty and spends her time outdoors with her beloved German Shepherd, Olive. When not adventuring with Olive, Emily enjoys exploring the world – in fact, she’ll be headed to Australia this winter to spend time with her family in Melbourne!
Chief Product and Technology Officer
Eric Pannese is the Chief Product and Technology Officer at Classy. Eric joined Classy in 2021 with more than 20 years of experience in technology and has lead product organizations at Medallia, Zingle, NuORDER, Kyriba and Intuit Turbotax. He has a passion for working directly with customers to deliver best-in-class user experiences that solve challenging problems. He has served on the boards of Meals on Wheels of Greater San Diego and the Rancho Penasquitos Little League. He lives in San Diego, CA with his wife, two sons and two dogs. He is a Boston native and will always be up for discussing the current state of the Red Sox (one of his dogs is even named Fenway!)
Founder
Eric Tostrud established Peloton4Parkinsons in 2016 to honor his mother Judy who was battling the disease. What started as one person on a spin bike for 12+ hours, with a few friends joining in throughout the day, has turned into a MOVEMENT. Since 2016 Peloton4Parkinsons (or “P4P” for short), has raised over $350,000 to support local people affected by Parkinson’s Disease, as well as help fund critical research being done by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
Senior Director of Development
Fundraiser, Storyteller and Senior Director of Development
Founder & Executive Director
Gabrielle A. Perry, MPH is an epidemiologist, writer, and executive director of The Thurman Perry Foundation, a nonprofit providing direct-giving resources to women impacted by incarceration nationally, with emphasis on Black women. The biological daughter of an incarcerated mother, Gabrielle’s experience with incarceration began at birth and peaked when she was arrested at 21. In 2016, 2 years after her arrest and experiencing homelessness, her conviction was settled and later expunged in 2019.
In 2021, Gabrielle used the power of social media to create The Thurman Perry Foundation, named in memory of her father. TPF provides scholarships, housing relief, and public health resources to justice-impacted women. Since inception, TPF has awarded almost $60,000 in scholarships, paid the rents of formerly incarcerated mothers, and donated over 140,000 organic menstrual products to correctional facilities. To date, The Thurman Perry Foundation has aided over 2,000 women across America.
Account Director
Geraldine is an Account Director at Community Boost with over 10 years of experience in Nonprofit work and Marketing. She received her MA from USD in Nonprofit and Leadership Management, and continues to be deeply involved in the sector within her role at cBC. She currently spearheads strategy and partnerships for the Obama Foundation, San Diego Bloodbank, Westside Foodbank, and more.
Vice President, Partnerships and Philanthropy
Heather currently serves as Vice President of Partnerships and Philanthropy at Direct Relief, a humanitarian organization that mobilizes medical resources to healthcare facilities in nearly 100 countries every day and during times of disaster. In her role, she is responsible for managing strategic communication with philanthropic partners, aligning fundraising efforts with programmatic design, and leading the acquisition of financial resources from individuals, corporations, and private foundations. Since starting at Direct Relief in 2009, she has developed and strengthened relationships with a number of large foundations and corporations, resulting in increased revenue streams to improve access to medicine and health for millions of vulnerable people around the world.
Senior Strategy Manager
As Senior Strategy Manager, Isabelle helps her fellow Whalers to provide best-in-class digital marketing services to her clients. She specializes in helping clients actualize their missions and maximize impact through digital campaigns and online fundraising. Isabelle is passionate about education and sharing data-driven fundraising insights; she has spoken on nonprofit marketing strategies at AFP ICON, the Bridge to Integrated Marketing Conference, and Whole Whale’s very own WWULive events.
Isabelle has spent her career focused on social impact, education, and the arts. She is a graduate of Kenyon College, where she studied International Studies and Studio Art. Isabelle began her career by serving a year as a City Year AmeriCorps teacher, working as an English Language Interventionist in New Orleans. A native of the Bay Area, Isabelle currently resides in Brooklyn.
President
As President of NextAfter, Jeff is responsible for leading client relationships by growing the capacity and effectiveness of their fundraising programs. In this capacity, he’s helped lead research efforts to produce large conversion rate increases for more than one hundred nonprofit clients.
President
Jessica founded the Harrington Agency on the belief that we needed a better way to create integrated campaigns and to bring big, bold ideas to the nonprofit industry. Jessica is known as one of the industry’s most dynamic, exciting fundraisers. She’s admired for her ability to pull truth and actionable recommendations from raw data, for her determination to seize every challenge as an opportunity, and for her bedrock belief that “best practices” are only the launching point for the results-boosting advances she creates. For over 25 years, Jessica has been working with nonprofit organizations to keep learning and testing new ideas, new technologies, and new concepts.
SVP Marketing & Communications
Justin is an industry-leading marketer, with two decades of guiding commercial and nonprofit organizations to success. He oversees brand management and thought leadership for RKD, and hosts the award-winning Group Thinkers podcast. Justin is also Co-Chair for the 2023 Bridge Conference–and a nerd for soccer, professional wrestling and dad jokes.
Vice President Development Programs Strategy
Do-gooder at the intersection of fundraising, strategy and operations.
Senior Product Manager, Platform
Kate Roberts is a Senior Product Manager at Classy, with a focus on the Integrations and Login experiences. She joined Classy in 2021, and loves finding ways to turn complex customer problems into simple, delightful solutions. A lifelong New Englander, she resides in Boston with her husband and dog. Kate spends her free time gardening, keeping up her Duolingo streak, and bingeing the latest sci-fi titles (but will always happily talk classic Star Trek).
Director of Digital Marketing
I serve as the Director of Digital Marketing for To Write Love on Her Arms. I curate our supporters’ experience through all digital communications which include social media, email marketing, SMS, the TWLOHA website, and more. I work with a team of amazing folks to help tell the story of TWLOHA and share our mission via the internet.
CEO and Founder
Since 1989, Katrina has been developing successful revenue programs and counseling executives for organizations like the American Cancer Society, the ALS Association, March of Dimes, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Special Olympics, and the Alzheimer’s Association. Her clients’ successes and her dedication to research and learning about human behavior have made her a sought-after speaker, presenting at national conferences for the likes of Blackbaud, Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum, Nonprofit PRO P2P and her clients’ national meetings. Katrina also regularly shares her wit and business experiences on NonProfit PRO as a blogger on “Peeling the Onion” and is co-author of the 2017 book Dollar Dash – the Behavioral Economics of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising and the recently published Social Fundraising: Mining the Peer-to-Peer Landscape. Katrina’s mantra for life is “Be nice. Do good. Embrace embarrassment”.
Founder
Kevin Schulman is an academically trained social scientist focused on answering the why behind human behavior.
He’s the founder of DonorVoice, a full-service fundraising agency, and DVCanvass, a canvassing and telefundraising firm who share the red thread of applying behavioral science for better outcomes.
Kevin developed the Commitment Model to measure donor relationship strength and the TrueQuality Score, a real-time, forward-looking measure of donor quality.
His work serves as foundation for the number one, best-selling fundraising book, “Retention Fundraising, The New Art and Science of Keeping Your Donors for Life” and he’s Managing Editor for the Agitator/DonorVoice blog, a top 5 fundraising blog globally.
Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications
Larry Olson is the Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications at the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. He has global executive-level experience in non-profit, publishing, content development and marketing, branding and communications at companies that include Wiley and Oxford University Press.
He served on the Board of Directors at The Fuqua/Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics (COLE) at Duke University, the Board of Directors at The Hesselbein Global Academy for Student Leadership and Civic Engagement at the University of Pittsburgh. Larry was a founding member and served on the Board of Directors at Team Red, White and Blue. In 2014, he completed an Executive Certificate in Transformational Nonprofit Leadership at the University of Notre Dame, Mendoza College of Business.
He met his wife of thirty-four years while pursuing his BA in English Literature at Niagara University. They have three children and live in Briarcliff Manor, New York.
Director, Community Outreach
Laura S. Nieto serves as Director of Community Outreach at Southwest Airlines, where she leads the Company’s corporate giving and stewardship strategy. Founded on the principles of loving people, building resilience and living responsibly, Laura oversees Southwest’s strategic community investments, employee engagement and volunteerism, foundation giving, sustainability programs and social impact initiatives. She and her team work to ensure Southwest is a trusted partner by nurturing authentic relationships and championing causes that help communities thrive. Laura has a passion for developing innovative programs that engage and empower diverse communities. Under her leadership, Southwest has been recognized as an industry leader and outstanding corporate citizen. Laura graduated from Texas Tech University and was named a 2016 Distinguished Alumni. Laura achieved her goal of becoming a Six Star Finisher by completing the six World Marathon Majors
Director, Development Operations
Lisa is a non-profit veteran with over 17 years of experience in fundraising, data management, and donor relations. As Robin Hood’s Director of Development Operations, Lisa leads the team responsible for using data, technology, and research to inform revenue generating strategies and building and managing systems to streamline and support all aspects of fundraising. In addition to her role on the Development Operations team, Lisa also serves as a frontline fundraiser, managing a portfolio of loyal supporters at the largest poverty fighting organization in New York City. Prior to her work at Robin Hood, Lisa held Development positions at The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts and the Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMOM). A true New Yorker through and through, she holds a Bachelor of Arts from Hunter College and a Master of Arts from Brooklyn College.
VP of Technology
Luke Dringoli is the VP of Technology at Media Cause, a leading agency specializing in digital marketing for nonprofits. With over 14 years of experience, he is a thought leader in the industry and has spoken at events such as INBOUND, NTC, and ActCON. Luke has worked with notable clients like the United Nations Development Programme, Direct Relief, and Starlight Children’s Foundation. He is also an active board member of the Madelyn James Pediatric Cancer Foundation. Luke is based in Connecticut.
Managing Director
Marcie Maxwell is the Managing Director of the Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum. Marcie joined the P2PPF team in 2021 after 15+ years as a front-line fundraiser, national events & campaign director and fundraising consultant. She started her career in fundraising with 10+ years at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where she ran local fundraising events, managed national volunteer partnerships and launched their national walk program. She then spent 5+ years as the Director of Chapter Fundraising Events with Make-A-Wish America, where she provided strategy, support & training to 60 chapters on the full event portfolio – walks, school fundraising, an endurance hiking program and galas & social events. In her most recent role at Charity Dynamics, she partnered with clients to provide strategic guidance and analysis to help them optimize and grow their peer-to-peer fundraising events & campaigns. She resides in Memphis, TN.
Chief Corporate Affairs Officer
Margaret leads Marketing and Corporate Affairs at GoFundMe responsible for community engagement, brand and creative, product marketing, and communications. Previously, Margaret led Trust and Safety and teams at Apple and Airbnb and led Airbnb’s Global Policy team as it scaled globally. Prior to Airbnb, Margaret served as Chief of Staff and Counselor to Attorney General Eric Holder, Jr. in the U.S. Department of Justice. Prior to joining the U.S. Department of Justice, Margaret led a legal services program driving equitable criminal justice reform. She holds a BA from the University of Virginia, a JD from U.C. Berkeley Law School and an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School.
Executive Director, Digital Projects & Innovation
Martin Quessenberry is the Executive Director of Digital Projects and Innovation at Shriners Hospitals for Children, where Martin creatively directs, manages, and leads enterprise, large-scale digital integration projects that provide foundational and functional support for creative fundraising campaigns, micro-site development, landing page optimization, recurring giving programs and design. Before starting with Shriners Hospitals for Children, Martin was a valuable member of the International Walt Disney digital team responsible for launching Disneyworld/Disneyland.com, as well as a ten+ year career in professional sports, providing digital vision and guidance for the 2004 Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning, 2003 World-Champion Tampa Bay Storm, and the National Hockey League.
Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer
Mary Beth is responsible for all fundraising, marketing and communication efforts of the food bank. Her non-profit career began in college when she conducted an alumni fundraising effort to help cover the significant medical expenses her friend, the college mascot, incurred after being struck by a drunk driver.
Prior to the CAFB, Mary Beth was Senior Vice President, Development for a national cancer research organization and has decades of experience in resource mobilization and partnership development in the non-profit world.
Mary Beth earned Bachelor of Art and Bachelor of Advertising degrees from the Pennsylvania State University, a Certificate of Association Management from the University of Maryland and holds the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation.
Nonprofit Digital Strategist & Technology Coach
A resident of Cape Cod Massachusetts, Maureen has developed a proven process that maps your nonprofit’s strategic and operational goals to the right software and business processes – helping you make good decisions about the systems you use to engage your supporters and run an efficient, effective organization.
Now in her 18th year as a nonprofit technology consultant, Maureen is a solo practitioner focused on helping the Accidental Techies working at nonprofits learn to navigate today’s complex technology platforms and get a good ROI on their technology investments.
In addition to her work with clients, Maureen has authored multiple guides on nonprofit engagement software, blogs at her website and answers questions about nonprofit technology live on Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube every Friday afternoon. A sought-after speaker and trainer, she has led many live workshops and video webinars around the country and is one of TechSoup’s expert trainers.
Director of Performance Marketing
Megan Toscano serves as the Director of Performance Marketing at charity: water, where she owns the organization’s paid acquisition strategy. In this role, Megan spearheads the strategic development, execution, and optimization of all paid marketing efforts aimed to grow and scale the organization. Prior to her work at charity: water, Megan worked in the for-profit space leading acquisition strategy for subscription-based brands.
Director, Marketing and Communications
Meghan Freeman is the Director of Marketing and Communications at Riley Children’s Foundation. Meghan leads creation of paid, earned and owned marketing and communication strategies to drive broader awareness of the Foundation and increase giving. This allows her to work closely with Riley Children’s Health patients and families, physicians and team members, as well as our collaborative partners, to take on the biggest challenges and greatest opportunities in children’s health.
EVP & Chief Development Officer
Natalie leads FFTPs Major Gifts, Donor Relations, Legacy and Gift Planning, and Institutional Philanthropy teams along with its Direct Mail renewal programming.
In January 2010, Natalie came on board to establish the Major Giving Department. Since that time she has developed the strategy, plans, and team necessary to build and strengthen fundraising and partner relationships nationally.
Much of Natalie’s career has been focused on Major Gift development, Capital Campaigns, Planned Giving, Special Events, and nonprofit program development. She has held executive leadership positions and consulted with state, national, and international organizations
Natalie holds the Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) designation and a Certificate in Planned Giving from the Planned Giving Institute at the College of William and Mary. She attended Auburn University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing at the University of North Alabama.
President/Founder
Natalie A. Collier is a transformative writer who’s been telling stories on the page and throughout her career with the work she’s done. She compels audiences to think deeply about girls and women in all communities, particularly those in the U.S. South. Collier is the founder and president of The Lighthouse | Black Girl Projects where her dream is to see Black girls and women live lives free from unnecessary outside pressures and barriers.
Through TL|BGP, Collier and her team implement programs and support structures that ingress and create deep, abiding change for the people whose hopes and heartaches reverberate with her deepest: Black girls.
Collier has combined experiences from her years in undergraduate and graduate school studying political science/philosophy and marriage and family; a myriad of fellowships; and work in the field fighting the injustices pervasively affecting girls and women’s chances at socio political advancement.
Chief Development Officer
Neil Batiancila currently serves as Philadelphia Zoo’s Chief Development Officer, where he oversees all contributed revenue activities, including charitable operations and government affairs. He has led the Zoo through the turnaround of its fundraising operation positioning the Zoo for the activation of a campaign. Prior to his current role, Mr. Batiancila served as Executive Director, Campaign Operations at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation where he led efforts for its $1 billion comprehensive campaign, For Tomorrow’s Breakthroughs. He got his start as an AmeriCorps member with City Year, where he ultimately rose to Co-Executive Director in Philadelphia. He has also served as Aramark’s Director of Community Relations, executing the community involvement strategy for one of Philadelphia’s most recognizable corporate brands. Neil received his undergraduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania and graduate degree at Temple University’s Fox School of Business.
Associate Customer Development Manager
Nick is a Customer Development Manager on the Classy Coaching team. He has been acting as human Tylenol for Classy customers since Fall of 2020 when he started as a Customer Care Agent. He now uses the knowledge acquired there in his daily calls with Classy clients. As a Coach, Nick enjoys building strong relationships with nonprofits, guiding them through the onboarding process with ease, and helping them achieve their fundraising goals. Outside of work Nick spends his time surfing, camping and nerding out on all types of music.
CEO
Nick Palmisciano is a New York Times bestselling author, an award-winning filmmaker, a Founding Board member of the international rescue nonprofit organization Save Our Allies, and the CEO of Diesel Jack Media.
Nick’s marketing journey began in 2006 when he founded the first military apparel brand, Ranger Up. His journey with that brand culminated with production of the cult-classic film Range 15, the first and only independent film to ever top the charts at Amazon, and the critically acclaimed follow on documentary, Not a War Story.
In August of 2021, when Afghanistan fell, Nick was one of 12 veterans who went to Kabul to assist in the evacuation of Afghans. That team, nicknamed Task Force 6:8, was responsible for the evacuation of 12,000 Afghans. In 2022, Nick’s film about that event, Send Me, qualified for Oscar voting.
He is the host of the podcast Neutral Position.
Vice President of Development and Communications
Pradnya has more than 25 years of development and management experience in myriad national and international settings. She has focused on uniting philanthropists, corporations, and foundations with strategic projects and priorities. She is an experienced and creative development professional who excels at building big ideas and strong relationships.
She comes to ISC with experience from prestigious academic medical institutions such as Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC, Mount Sinai Health System in New York City, and Boston Children’s Hospital, as well as think tanks, global development organizations, and the arts. Over her career, she has raised more than $175M to support research, capital projects, endowment, operations, and programmatic projects.
Pradnya was born in Mumbai, India but grew up in New Jersey. She resides in Silver Spring, MD, with her husband Joe Clemons, their children, Mirza Cate and Xavier Anant.
Associate Customer Development Manager
Rilee Eidsmoe is a Customer Development Manager on the Coaching Team at Classy. Prior to joining Classy, she worked in the nonprofit space for several years, specifically with animal welfare organizations. Today, as an Onboarding Coach, she gets the pleasure of working directly with hundreds of nonprofits to get them started on their fundraising journey using Classy. With her deep product knowledge, she empowers and sets her partners up for success, while making meaningful connections with each person along the way. In her free time you can find her with a good book and her kitten Miko, or biking through the streets of sunny San Diego where she calls home.
Customer Development Manager
Sarah is a Customer Development Manager on the Coaching Team at Classy. Sarah brings a fresh perspective to her role that was honed during her time in education working with underserved communities. Her passion for growth and learning has been a driving force in her career, and she continues to leverage her knowledge to help leaders of nonprofit organizations achieve their goals through the power of Classy. And when she’s not busy helping organizations change the world, you can find Sarah and her trusty companion Roca (the unofficial Classy office dog) soaking up the sunshine in San Diego, where they both reside.
Director of Professional Services
Sarah Jo (she/her) has spent over a decade working at the intersection of nonprofits, data, and program management. She is passionate about solving complex business problems utilizing smart, scalable technology, and is always eager to find new and improved ways to structure and display organizational data. Sarah Jo lives in Philadelphia with her partner, rescue dog, and occasional foster dog guests.
CEO
Shane Michael is a website specialist with a passion for helping nonprofits grow. As the Founder & CEO of Mittun, Shane has helped hundreds of nonprofits raise millions of dollars online. Through his success as a website entrepreneur, digital innovator and online fundraising expert, Shane has developed a proven formula for success for launching high-converting landing pages & donation campaigns. His unique blend of industry insight and experience makes him an invaluable resource in the nonprofit sector. Attendees at the conference can expect to leave energized, empowered, and ready to make a difference.
Executive Director
Shane Woods began her career as a middle school science teacher in the Fort Worth Independent School District. In her 17 years with the district, Shane was able to make her mark in every position she held from department chair to leading the entire district as the K-12 Science Director. From 2019-2022, Shane acted as the Senior Director of the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas STEM Center of Excellence, which is a 92-acre living laboratory where kids of all ages can explore and develop their competence and confidence in STEM. In her newest role, Shane serves as the Executive Director for Girlstart, a nonprofit focused on empowering girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. She remains active in the formal and informal education community as a highly-sought after nationally recognized and award-winning leader and speaker in science education, equity in STEM and leadership.
President + COO
Soraya Alexander is the Chief Operating Officer at GoFundMe and President of Classy, a social enterprise that creates world-class online fundraising software for nonprofits. Prior to being named President, Soraya was the COO of Classy, building system and processes for the teams responsible for customer engagement, retention, growth, and success, in addition to driving awareness and interest of the Classy platform. Previously, Soraya led customer retention and engagement, direct marketing, and omnichannel experience for DICK’S Sporting Goods, and also spent time on the Consumer Marketing Strategy team at Time Inc. Soraya sits on the Board of Directors at Urban Surf for Kids, a nonprofit that provides surf therapy for foster and adoptive youth who have experienced complex trauma. She has a BA from University of California, Berkeley and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Senior Director, Nonprofit Industry Advisor
Sterrin is a nationally recognized leader in the nonprofit community, with nearly three decades spent working with some of the most prestigious organizations in the country, including UCSF Medicine, Duke Medicine, American Red Cross, United Way and the March of Dimes. In addition, she founded her own consulting practice in 2010.
Sterrin partners with organizations to ensure they can access the affordable creative support and counsel necessary to scale their operations — and their impact. She’s conducted more than two dozen capital campaigns throughout the United States with combined fundraising goals in excess of $5.5 billion. In 2020, she joined Salesforce as a Nonprofit Industry Expert.
Vice President, Data & Insights
Thomas Turner is the Vice President, Data & Insights at International Justice Mission, a global team of lawyers, social workers, community activists and other professionals in 40 offices across 27 countries who share in the mission of protecting people in poverty from violence.
With over fifteen years of experience in research and data analysis in the corporate and non-profit industries, Thomas currently leads a team that provides prospect management, business intelligence, financial planning, data science and data stewardship to US and Canada fundraising and marketing teams.
Digital Marketing & Analytics Manager
Tim Krueger is a non-profit marketer, analyst, troubleshooter, and jack of [many] trades. He specializes in helping organizations make the most of their resources to maximize their impact through data-informGeraldine Zamora ed strategy. When he’s not working, he can be found making spreadsheets for fun or trying to convince his kids that maps and sci-fi are actually very cool. Tim leads digital marketing at Feed My Starving Children, a Minneapolis-based organization that believes food is the foundation for individuals and communities to thrive and provides hundreds of millions of emergency meals each year to kids and families experiencing food shortages around the world.
Director of Community Philanthropy
As a philanthropic next-practice thinker, Tina believes that philanthropy is fundamentally about meetings supporters wherever they might be in their journey to changing the world. Over the last 15 years she has honed her skills as an individual giving strategist leading national fundraising programs and focusing on exploring the intersection of social justice, equity, and philanthropy. In her current role as Director of Community at The Trevor Project, she leads the team responsible for more than $30M in community, peer-to-peer, and social fundraising revenue. In her free time, she enjoys true crime podcasts, exploring the Shenandoah Valley with her partner, and hanging out with her nieces and two cats.
Development Advisor
Usha’s professional background includes key strategic operations and project management roles at leading non-profit organizations and advertising firms across the country.
Prior to POW, Usha worked for Rocky Mountain Institute, University of Colorado Foundation, Colorado Public Radio, and top advertising firms such as Rapp Collins Worldwide and Young & Rubicam in Chicago and New York. Her professional career spans 25+ years and includes experience with strategic planning, project management, risk management, organizational policy/process development, fundraising, database management and advertising.
Usha has her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and Sciences from Queens College-CUNY, New York and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. She also has her Graduate Certificate in Project Management from the CU Boulder Engineering Management Program.
Usha lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband and chocolate lab mix puppy, Riley.
Chief Data Officer
As Chief Data Officer for GivingTuesday, Woodrow has been instrumental in shaping the global generosity movement and has led ground-breaking research and analysis of individual giving behaviors. He leads the GivingTuesday Data Commons, bringing together a coalition of more than 100 collaborators coordinated through working groups, as well as data teams in 50 countries, to understand the drivers and impacts of generosity to inspire more giving of all types. Woodrow brings expertise in moving markets and transforming audiences from passive participants to active and vocal ambassadors. Woodrow is also the Founder of With Intent Strategies, an international agency specializing in brand reimagination. Woodrow is a member of the Generosity Commission Research Task Force, serves as a Co-Chair for Global Impact Canada’s Board of Directors, and was named a Fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School with the Technology and Public Purpose project.
Stay tuned for new additions to the speaker lineup.
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