Grantseeker Training Courses - Instructor Bios

Richard Brewster

Richard Brewster is Executive Director of the National Center on Nonprofit Enterprise (NCNE), based in Alexandria, North Virginia. NCNE helps nonprofits with the generation and application of resources through research, an information service and training and consultancy. For eight years until February 2003, Mr. Brewster was chief executive of Scope, a national disability charity and one of the UK's largest nonprofits ($175 million revenues and 4000 employees.) As CEO, he oversaw major changes in governance and in the strategy of the organization, and introduced an outcome driven approach to the delivery of programs and a turn around in its finances. Prior to this, he was for seven years Director of Marketing at Scope, responsible for all aspects of fundraising, public relations and advocacy.

Mr. Brewster has extensive experience with earned income initiatives. In Scope he was responsible for: a thrift shop chain of more than 300 outlets, 6000 volunteers and a thousand staff; centers that provided disabled people with workplace opportunities and training; a disability awareness training venture; and a variety of cause related marketing deals.

In 2003/4 Mr. Brewster was Senior Visiting Practitioner at the Center of Public and Nonprofit Leadership at Georgetown University; he is visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Open University Business School in the United Kingdom, under whose auspices he is conducting research on leadership in nonprofits. He was educated at Oxford University and spent the first 10 years of his working life in commercial management in ICI, then a major multinational chemical company. He joined the nonprofit sector in 1986 when he became the National Appeals Director of Oxfam, a major UK NGO.

JuWon Choi

JuWon Choi is vice president for educational services at the Foundation Center, a nonprofit organization recognized as the nation's leading authority on organized philanthropy, connecting nonprofits and the grantmakers supporting them to tools they can use and information they can trust. During her stewardship since 2000, the Center's training efforts have grown rapidly to offer a varied and rich curriculum of full-day courses and shorter classes around the country. Serving over 47,000 people nationwide in 2009 alone, the Center is a premier capacity building training provider for the nonprofit community. The Center currently provides capacity building training for nonprofit organizations in person and on the web in such topical areas as the overall grantseeking process and the field of philanthropy, researching funders, writing proposals, and increasing nonprofit fiscal viability.

Prior to joining the Center, JuWon spent two years as a consultant to nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, specializing in program design, planning, and evaluation. Prior to this she spent 13 years at the City University of New York and Bronx Community College, where she taught and managed various University-sponsored programs. Her expertise in community outreach and development also led to the creation of a comprehensive school-based educational and social services community center during that time.

JuWon serves on the board of Women in Development, a professional association of over 750 executive directors, development staff, and other women involved within all disciplines of the nonprofit sector. She also advises the Beautiful Foundation USA and is a member of its grants distribution committee. She holds a Doctorate degree in adult and continuing education from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Susan Fox

Susan Fox, CFRE has been a fundraising consultant and trainer since 1980. She specializes in providing fundraising services to nonprofits in the areas of fundraising campaigns, grant writing, appeal writing and fundraising strategies. Susan leads fundraising workshops at universities and nonprofit resource centers in the US and Mexico. Together with her colleague Cheryl A. Clarke, Susan leads Reality Grantmaking workshops at conferences throughout California. Susan is co-author of the proposal writing book Grant Proposal Makeover: Transform Your Request from No to Yes.

Susan is licensed as professional fundraising counsel by the state of California. She is an active member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and served on the board of its Golden Gate Chapter for two years including one year as Vice President-Education. She currently serves on the board of directors of Development Executives Roundtable. Susan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of San Francisco.

Jane C. Geever

Jane C. Geever is Chairman of J. C. Geever, Inc., a fundraising consulting firm that she founded in 1975. The firm was the first woman-led fundraising company admitted into membership in the American Association of Fund Raising Counsel—now The Giving Institute.

Among her achievements, she assisted in the creation of the certificate program in fundraising at New York University, spearheaded the first jobs bank at the International Conference for what is now the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) as well as at their New York Fund Raising Day. Jane was appointed to the Independent Sector's ad hoc Committee on Values and Ethics and is active in their "Give Five" Program in New York. She is also a member of the Philanthropic Advisory Council for the Better Business Bureau in New York, the Advisory Council for the national project Funding Fundraising at Baruch College, and has been a Board member and officer of the AFP and of the Giving Institute.

Jane has written widely on topics related to fundraising. She is the author of The Foundation Center's Guide to Proposal Writing and, in support of this book, teaches workshops throughout the country. She also lectures nationwide on subjects related to grantsmanship, volunteerism and philanthropy. In 2007, Jane was appointed to the faculty of Columbia University's Fundraising Management Program.

Jane holds a Master's Degree from The New School and she has done post graduate work in business management at Stanford University. She also holds an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Seton Hill University—her alma mater.

Caroline Herbert

Caroline Herbert, Manager of Multi-Media and On-Demand Training, is responsible for designing, implementing and delivering training programs through the Foundation Center's web site. Since joining the Foundation Center's Washington, DC office in 1998, she also served as senior training coordinator, reference librarian and technology specialist.

Prior to joining the Center, she spent over five years working in nonprofit organizations as an administrative director and as a fundraiser for the Ounce of Prevention Fund in Chicago. Caroline is a member of the selection committee for The Washington Post Award for Excellence in Nonprofit Management.

Caroline holds a Bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a Master's degree in Library Science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

John W. Hicks

John W. Hicks is President and CEO of J.C.Geever, Inc. He provides consultation and strategic guidance for annual and capital fundraising programs for a variety of clients ranging from grassroots to national nonprofit organizations.

John is a contributing author to the John Wiley and Sons' The Nonprofit Handbook: Fund Raising (2001 edition) and the Foundation Center's newest book, After the Grant. He has published articles with Fund Raising Management and Advancing Philanthropy.

A Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE), John is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. John is former president of the Greater New York Chapter of AFP, and has both chaired and served as a member of several International AFP task forces. Additionally, he has been a member of the Board of the AAFRC Trust for Philanthropy, and a judge for the CASE Grenzebach Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Philanthropy and AFP International's Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year Award.

John holds degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Hartford.

David M. Holmes

David Holmes, Regional Training Coordinator for the Foundation Center-Cleveland, is responsible for creating, managing and delivering training programs in support of capacity building of nonprofits in Cleveland, and in the midwestern United States. Prior to joining the center in 2005, David spent over twenty-three years in the nonprofit sector. He served as information officer at the National Assembly in Washington, DC, program officer for the Stocker Foundation and as the director of grants and prospect research at Notre Dame College. Having worked in both the grantseeking and grantmaking worlds, David provides a unique and insightful perspective into the field of philanthropy and nonprofit management.

David has a Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Pittsburgh, a Master's degree in Literature from Villanova University, and a Master's degree in Library Science from Kent State University.

Marilyn Hoyt

Marilyn Hoyt is active nationally in teaching, consulting, and advisory work. She speaks frequently at conferences and fund raisers, and serves as a member of the Young Audiences Program Certification Team and a reviewer for two foundations.

Her past work includes 12 years as a grantmaker for the Westchester Arts Council in New York and the Washington State Arts Commission; fundraising consulting with various nonprofits for J.C.Geever, Inc.; and 20 years at the New York Hall of Science first as head of advancement and ultimately as President and CEO. There she raised early $200 million including a successful $92 million expansion campaign doubling the Hall's budget and attendance.

Marilyn is one of the authors of the Foundation Center book, After the Grant. She also authored the fundraising chapter for the Handbook for Small Science Centers, and an article on outsourcing during tough economic times for the Association of Science-Technology Centers. Her e-newsletter is circulated to a dedicated list and reproduced on New York's Oram Matters.

Marilyn is an Advisory Board member of Columbia University's Masters in Fund Raising program, and an advisor to New York's Latimer House and Chicago's Public Housing Museum. She is deeply interested in nonprofits led by and serving minority communities. Her recognitions include the 2007 Latin American Women's Council Fanny Calderon de la Barca Award.

Joanne Kepics

Joanne Kepics, Regional Training Coordinator at the Foundation Center-Atlanta, is responsible for designing and managing training programs in support of capacity building of nonprofits in the southeast region of the United States. Since joining the Center in 2000, Joanne also served as the reference librarian and outreach specialist. Prior to joining the Center, she worked in the nonprofit sector for sixteen years in a variety of positions with SOLINET, the Southeastern Library Network, in Atlanta, Georgia. Joanne brings great depth of knowledge of the field of philanthropy and nonprofit management.

Joanne holds a Master's degree in Management from St. Mary's College and a Bachelor's degree in Education and Library Science from Edinboro State University.

Greg L. King

Greg King has more than 30 years of professional experience with nonprofits and foundations. A trained facilitator, Greg is experienced in organizational capacity building, strategic planning and program implementation, evaluation, and resource development.

Before joining Strategic Philanthropy Advisors, LLC, as principal of its New York office, Greg worked for 18 years with JPMorgan Chase as program director for community development grants and as secretary of the J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation. Prior to that, Greg served as director of operations for the City Volunteer Corp. in New York City and director of court operations for the Victim Services Agency (now Safe Horizons). He has served on numerous New York-area and national nonprofit boards.

John A. La Rocca

John La Rocca is a vice president and COO of The Rensselaerville Institute, a nationally respected education group committed to leading change by example. As senior staff member at The Institute, John has helped dozens of organizations across the country and in Canada to understand and implement the tools and techniques of innovation, outcome framework and real time change. His interests lie in improved effectiveness and increased efficiency for programs and organizations in terms of real benefits for the people those organizations serve. His strengths come from an ability to translate the lessons of his 25 year tenure at The Rensselaerville Institute to a large and varied audience.

Among his past clients John counts both public and private entities, including the Departments of Transportation in New York, Connecticut and Montana; The Ministry of Housing, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; The Hawaii Community Services Council and United Way organizations in Nashville, Tennessee, Buffalo, Schenectady, Corning and Albany, New York and Oshawa, Ontario, Canada.

Chuck V. Loring

Chuck V. Loring is the senior partner of the firm of Loring, Sternberg & Associates, which provides fundraising and governance consulting services to nonprofits. He is also Senior Governance Associate for BoardSource and a much sought-after presenter for his expertise in board development and other governance issues to nonprofit boards across the country.

Chuck has worked with such prominent national charities as The American Lung Association, Second Harvest Food Banks, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, and The Urban League. He is also a past president of the Indiana Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and founder of Indiana Fund Raising Day, the state's largest nonprofit fundraising conference. He is a past president of the UCSB Alumni Association and a former trustee of the UCSB Foundation.

Chuck is a Certified Fund Raising Executive, and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and an MBA from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.

Michael P. Miller

Michael P. Miller has more than 25 years of experience working with nonprofit organizations as a consultant, development officer, workshop leader and trainer, and volunteer.

A principal with Miller Rollins, a consulting firm located in the New York metropolitan area, he helps nonprofits and foundations develop successful plans and enduring programs-especially at critical junctures when an organization needs to start new initiatives, grow, change direction, or address new challenges. His consulting services include strategic planning, campaign studies, fundraising audits, board development, training and coaching, and providing ongoing fundraising counsel. He is also a senior faculty member with The Fund Raising School.

Kim B. Patton

Kim Patton, training coordinator at the Foundation Center - DC, is responsible for creating, managing and delivering training programs in support of the capacity-building of nonprofits in the Washington, DC region. Prior to joining the center in 2007, Kim spent over 15 years in various nonprofit organizations as a fundraiser, program manager and executive director. Her professional experience includes working with organizations such as the Council on Foundations, the National Endowment for the Arts and Hawaii Public Television.

Having worked in both the grantseeking and grantmaking worlds, Kim provides a unique and insightful perspective into the field of philanthropy and nonprofit management

Kim holds a law degree from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of Cincinnati.

Michael Seltzer

Michael Seltzer is well-known as a pioneer in the field of nonprofit management and philanthropy. Michael is the author of the award-winning Securing Your Organization's Future: A Complete Guide to Fundraising Strategies. He has worked for numerous nonprofit organizations during his 35-year career.

Michael has served as president of the New York Regional Association of Grantmakers (NYRAG) and program officer at The Ford Foundation. He is a past chair of the Nonprofit Management Program of the New School's Robert J. Milano School of Management and Urban Policy. Michael currently serves as a special advisor to a number of local and international foundations.

Luz Rodriguez

Luz Rodriguez, Training Coordinator at the Foundation Center-New York, is responsible for designing, managing and delivering training programs in support of the capacity- building of nonprofits in New York and in the Northeast region of the United States. Luz is fluent in Spanish and conducts the Center's courses for Spanish speakers throughout the United States.

Prior to joining the Center in 2003, Luz was involved in the nonprofit sector for over twenty years and served as executive director of several community-based organizations in New York. In 1994 she was awarded a Windcall Residency for her advocacy work.

She is a co-founder of the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective. Luz brings great depth of knowledge of the fields of philanthropy and nonprofit management.

Luz holds a Bachelor's degree from New York University.

Stephanie Roth

Stephanie Roth has worked with nonprofit organizations on fundraising and board development since 1978, with an emphasis on grassroots, social justice organizations.

She is co-director of GIFT (Grassroots Institute for Fundraising Training), which develops and strengthens the grassroots fundraising skills of individuals and organizations dedicated to social justice, with an emphasis in communities of color. She is also the editor of the Grassroots Fundraising Journal.

Stephanie is the co-author (with Mimi Ho) of The Accidental Fundraiser: A Step-by-Step Guide to Raising Money for Your Cause (Jossey-Bass, 2005) and co-editor (with Kim Klein) of the anthology Raise More Money: The Best of the Grassroots Fundraising Journal (Jossey-Bass, 2001).

Prior work experience includes Director of the Long Island Technical Assistance Center, and Co-Director of New York Women Against Rape. Stephanie holds a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University. She lives in Berkeley, CA and is a member of Jewish Voice for Peace.

Sherry Seward

Sherry is President of Palladium Resources, Inc., a consulting company she established in 1996. Palladium's services include marketing, constituency building and earned income development for nonprofit organizations, with a focus on product development.

Sherry has been with the Foundation Center for over 20 years, first as a staff member and now as a consultant. As staff member, Sherry developed a solid understanding of the Center's information through her development and editorship of several foundation reference products and the Center's database. She gained the user perspective through her direct contact with development staff as director of the Center's Associates Program and as Vice President for Marketing and Product Development. Today, she continues her involvement with the Center as a workshop leader and other product development assignments.

Sherry's consulting work includes business plan development and analysis work for several nonprofits including Aspen Institute's Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program, Princeton University's Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies, and the Yale School of Management-Goldman Sachs Foundation Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures. Earlier in here career, Sherry was the Director of Information Products at FIND/SVP for five years, where she developed and marketed business reference products, databases and multi-client market research studies.

Sherry holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Brooklyn College, and a Masters in Library and Information Science from Pratt Institute. Sherry currently serves on the board.

Sandra R. Smith

Sandra Smith has over 25 years experience as a director and CEO in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. She is president and founder of Global Works, a consulting firm based in Columbus, Ohio. In addition to her work with Global Works, Sandra is a community research and grants management officer at The Columbus Foundation in Columbus, Ohio. Prior to working in the nonprofit sector she spent many years working as a manager in the financial services division of the JCPenney Corporation. She has provided consulting services and training on organizational development issues and trustee development for national and international organizations and agencies.

Sandra is a member of the national steering committee for Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees and serves on taskforces of Neighborhood Funders Group, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations and Grantmakers for the Arts. Sandra is a graduate of Capitol University in Columbus, Ohio and pursued post-graduate studies as an academic fellow in arts and public policy at The Ohio State University.

Pam Sugarman

Pam Sugarman has been helping people build effective nonprofit organizations for the past 16 years. Pam is president of Sugarman Consulting, a firm that delivers strategy and governance consulting to nonprofits and foundations. From 1994 until 2000, she served on the management team at the Georgia Center for Nonprofits. There she developed and delivered information, training and consulting programs to help thousands of nonprofits in Georgia achieve their missions.

The strategic planning, board development, and other services Pam offers through Sugarman Consulting benefit mature, growing and early-stage organizations. A sample client list includes: The Clean Air Campaign, Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Inner Harbour, Our Family Table Foundation, and 100 Black Men of America. In addition, Pam has served on the boards of directors of organizations such as Hands On Atlanta, the Nonprofit Management Association, The American Jewish Committee, Atlanta Chapter, and Research Atlanta. Pam received her BA from Wellesley College and MBA from Yale University.

Scott Ullman

Scott Ullman, Regional Training Coordinator at the Foundation Center- San Francisco, is responsible for creating, managing and delivering training programs in support of capacity building of nonprofits throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, and in the western United States. Scott joined the Center in 2001, bringing with him great depth of knowledge of nonprofit management and the field of philanthropy. Prior to joining the Center Scott was involved in the nonprofit sector for 27 years. His previous roles include executive director of nonprofit organizations, director of a foundation, and fundraiser and technical assistance provider in the areas of peace, social justice and the environment.

Scott holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies from San Francisco State University and a Master's degree in Library Science from San Jose State University.

Libby Villavicencio

Libby Villavicencio is the Director of Ohio Programs for The Rensselaerville Institute. As consultant and presenter she assists foundations, government, and nonprofit organizations to lead results-based grantmaking, fundraising and performance.

Previously Libby was the Vice President of Advancement for LifeCare Alliance in Columbus, Ohio, where she launched and managed a $5 million dollar capital and endowment campaign. Prior to this she was the Senior Director of Program Development for Catholic Social Services, the Executive Director of the United Way Professional Advisory Council, the Director of Supportive Services for National Church Residences, the family shelter manager for Volunteers of America, and a middle school teacher. In 1999 Libby received a Best Practices Award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Libby has a Master's degree in Human Services Management from Franklin University and a Bachelor's degree from Ohio University.

Edgar Zavala

Edgar is director of programs at the Foundation Center. Mr. Zavala is responsible for providing leadership for the education and outreach efforts of the New York library/learning center. Mr. Zavala has a long-standing passion for technical assistance/capacity building work.

Prior to joining the Center in 2011, he was with Seedco Financial as technical assistance coordinator, providing comprehensive support and coaching to human services and arts organizations. Prior to that, he was technical assistance director at the Hispanic Federation. Mr. Zavala is invited frequently to teach as an adjunct at The New School and Baruch College’s School of Public Affairs for fundraising, leadership and management topics.

Mr. Zavala is a native of Mexico, where he once pursued an acting career before he joined the nonprofit, nongovernmental sector. His work in Mexico includes creating and running a capacity building consulting firm and helping numerous institutions with development consultation.

Mr. Zavala is a Fulbright fellow and holds a Master’s degree in Management and Urban Policy Analysis from The New School, a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico), and a Bachelor’s degree in Dramatic Arts from Asociacion Nacional de Actores, Andres Soler (Mexico.)