Educational Programs
Expert Instructors of Nonprofit Center Courses and On-Site Group Trainings
Patrick Feeley has over 13 years of experience in generating donations and sponsorships from corporations. Currently assistant vice president of Institutional and Events Fundraising at the Children's Hospital Foundation at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, he oversees corporate advancement, foundation relations, cause-related marketing and special events. He was previously director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at La Salle University and prior to that, worked with Junior Achievement. He earned an MBA from La Salle University and a BA from Millersville University and holds a Certified Fundraising Executive Designation.
Donna Freyman has served as director of Human Resources at the Jewish Federation of Philadelphia for 15 years, overseeing all aspects of HR, including employee recruitment and retention, compensation and benefits, performance management, training and employee relations. She previously served as assistant vice president of training and development for PSFS. She holds a BA in Education from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has done graduate work in management at the University of Pennsylvania and La Salle University.
Greg Geruson is Director of the Catholic School Development Program, the nonprofit arm of the International Education Foundation which provides pro bono consulting services in development, governing boards, enrollment management, and strategic planning to Catholic schools and dioceses. He has worked extensively in advancement for many educational institutions, the latest being St. Joseph’s University. He has run multimillion dollar capital campaigns, cultivated and solicited major gifts, managed advancement offices, established enrollment management and student recruitment systems and strategies, helped establish and build governing boards, and managed strategic marketing initiatives. Greg holds an M.S. in public policy and management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in economics from La Salle University.
John Kelley, Ph.D. has extensive experience at various levels in the nonprofit world. At the social policy level, he headed the research division of the policy analysis firm Public/Private Ventures. He founded and led Villanova University's HOS Institute, devoted to training an program evaluation in the human services. Subsequently, he was the founding leader of Villanova's Office of Planning and Institutional Research. For three decades, he has worked collaboratively with The Nonprofit Center, serving on planning committees and as a consultant and instructor. He also teaches strategic planning and program evaluation in Villanova's 's Master of Public Administration program. He earned a master's in social work and social research at Bryn Mawr and his PHD from the Medical College of Pennsylvania.
Stephanie Kindt has more than 10 years experience in organizational development for both nonprofits and for profits. As a human resources consultant, her focus is primarily in the areas of process management and continuous improvement, leadership and facilitator training, mission and strategy development and organization design. Her community leadership and board experience have further informed her knowledge and appreciation of nonprofits. Her education includes a BA in Psychology from Bloomsburg University, an MA in Organizational and Industrial Psychology from West Chester University and a JD from the Widener School of Law.
Linda Kligman is Vice President for Advancement, Institute for Restorative Practices. She has developed and grown fundraising and promotional campaigns and has won awards for her special events including Jenkintown Jazz & BrewFest, Jenkintown Bridal Premier, Gay Bingo, and the Philadelphia AIDS Walk. Prior to her current position, she was executive director of the Jenkintown Community Alliance and has served as director of educational programs for The Nonprofit Center, which she initially joined as a fundraising consultant and instructor. Before joining The Nonprofit Center, she was principal and co-founder of Aunt Bunny Marketing, a fundraising and marketing consulting firm. A self-described “recovering engineer,” Linda earned a BS in Appropriate Technology and a BS in Civil Engineering from Drexel University.
Patricia LePera, senior vice president, Steege/Thomson, brings more than 20 years of experience in nonprofit management, marketing, communications and organizational development to her client relationships. Her skills as a strategic thinker and planner have helped numerous organizations analyze, then strengthen, their positions and branding. She previously served as marketing vice president for the American Cancer Society in Pennsylvania. She holds an undergraduate degree from Temple University and a master of science degree from Drexel University.
Erika Loperbey is an education, training and organizational development consultant with more than 20 years of experience in education, training, workforce development, human resources, program and organizational development. She has held a variety of direct service, administrative and managerial positions within the private and public sectors. Erika is an effective communicator with strong facilitation, training design and team building skills with proven ability to create and build successful programs and teams. She teaches leadership development courses at Harcum College and International Communications at Wilmington College and is an adjunct instructor at Eastern University’s Campolo College of Graduate and Professional Studies – School of Leadership Development. Erika most recently served as Vice President of Human Resources for Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Delaware Valley She has a B.A. in Psychology from West Chester University and holds her Masters of Education in Adult and Organizational Development from Temple University. She holds a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) Certification. Erika has also earned a Master’s Certificate in Training and Organizational Development from Temple University and a Certificate in Human Resources Management from Villanova University.
Steven P. Melick is Executive Director of the Center for
Entrepreneurship at La Salle University.
An experienced business leader and entrepreneur with over 16 years of
professional experience, he was previously founder and president of MODA
Technology Partners. He helped MODA
raise $8.5M in venture capital, establish its financial and operations
infrastructure, implement a product delivery organization and manage all of its
legal and IP concerns. MODA was product
of Steve’s prior company, The Sycamore Group, of which he was founder and
president/ CEO. Sycamore was noted for its regional success and rapid growth by
various industry media outlets. His
wealth of knowledge of successful business practices will be brought to
nonprofit organizations who will benefit will applicable strategies and best
practices. He has a Bachelors of
Science degree from Drexel University.
Kim Neubauer is an award-winning trainer who has worked globally to increase personal,team and organizational effectiveness. She is especially accomplished at training trainers, improving customer service, and designing programs that improve working relationships and productivity. Kim is also a certified associate with Lee Hecht Harrison, a talent management company that specializes in career consulting. For 11 years, Kim served as the training director at the Franklin Institute. She earned a BS in Psychology and African Studies from Penn State and an MS in Human Resources Development from American University/NTL Institute.
Laura Otten, Ph.D., has been the director of The Nonprofit Center since 2001. She began her affiliation with The Nonprofit Center shortly after it was formed in the early 1980s, working as a consultant and trainer, primarily in the areas of board development, strategic planning and program evaluation and she continues to play these roles, in addition to providing director and leadership to The Nonprofit Center’s educational, consulting, and leadership development programs. She is a national expert in numerous aspects of nonprofit management and governance. She earned her MA and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and her BA from Sarah Lawrence College.
Elizabeth F. Pilacik, CPA, chairs the Nonprofit and Tax-Exempt Services of Asher & Co., Ltd., a team of professionals seeking to optimize the financial performance of nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations. Elizabeth is experienced in conducting audits in keeping with generally accepted auditing standards, as well as with specific government and industry regulations. She works with clients on accounting for endowments, contributions, and government funding, evaluates internal control procedures, identifies potential problems and proposed sound recommendations for improvements. She has assisted organizations in developing procedures to record charitable gift annuities and trusts. She holds a BS in Accounting from St. Joseph's University and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Richard Przywara is executive director of the West Chester University Foundation where he had also held the university position of associate vice president for advancement. He previously served as the General Manager for the Special Services Department for New Castle County DE., overseeing a staff of 450. Richard received his B.A. in Criminal Justice and a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Delaware.
Katherine Ann Reilly, a
Certified Management Account, recently retired as finance director for the
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, where she was
responsible for all fiscal matters, including the preparation of monthly and
year-end financial statements and reports, budgets and investments. Previously,
she was finance director for Big Sisters of Philadelphia, Inc. and MEND, a
housing organization. Prior to focusing
on accounting, she was a program director at Lutheran Settlement House Women’s
Program in Philadelphia. She received an
MBA from Temple University, a M.Ed. from Eastern Washington University and a BA
from SUNY at Buffalo.
Ruth Roberts is the director of human resources for Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern PA (BBBS SEPA). With more than a decade of experience in human resources and more than half of that time spent at nonprofits like BBBS SEPA and BETA Center Alternative School, Ruth is an HR generalist with experience in attracting and retaining talent; training and coaching; performance management and employment law. In addition, Ruth has for-profit experience from Walt Disney World Resort, Inc. and Oasis Lakes Resort. She received her master’s degree in Human Resources Management from Webster University and her bachelor’s degree in Communications from Towson University. Ruth has a Professional Human Resources (PHR) Designation through the Society of Human Resource Management/Human Resource Certification Institute.
Jennifer Shropshire is a principal with Edward F. Swenson & Associates, Inc., a management and fundraising consulting firm, where she uses management and fundraising expertise to support nonprofit clients. She was formerly director of development for the Walnut Street Theatre. In addition to her consultant work with The Nonprofit Center, she was a CLEAR Circle facilitator, working with nonprofit executive directors. She holds an MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and a BS from the State University of New York at Oswego.
Rick Simmons is a Principal at Dinkum Interactive, a leading online marketing company. He has more than 25 years of experience in advertising and marketing and more than nine years working with the Internet. For the past five years, he has merged his marketing expertise with his Internet knowledge through search engine optimization and numerous other Internet marketing strategies. He was part of the team that perfected webcasting in 1999. He graduated from Temple University with a degree in Urban Studies and an MBA.
Michael Smith, Ph.D., teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in public
relations, organizational communication and conflict at La Salle. During his 25
years as an educator, he has taught at several universities, including La
Salle's graduate programs in Prague and Athens. In addition to his own
nonprofit training and consulting, he has supervised over 100 student-run
service learning public relations projects for area nonprofits. He earned
a Ph.D. in Communication at Purdue University, and his MA, MS and undergraduate
degrees at Central Michigan University.
Sonia J. Stamm is principal of The Stamm Consultancy which helps nonprofits and entrepreneurial clients build more cohesive organizations. She brings more than 20 years of experience in management consulting, organizational development, program management and training within the nonprofit, service and technology arenas. A staff member of The Nonprofit Center for more than seven years, Sonia served as director of educational programs and director of leadership programs, as well as a consultant and instructor in governance and leadership. She also spent a decade as an executive search consultant for emerging companies. She earned an M.Ed. in adult and organizational development from Temple University and a BS in communication technology from Ithaca College.
Edward F. Swenson is founder and principal of Edward F. Swenson & Assoc., Inc., a management and fundraising consulting firm that helps nonprofits design and implement strategic and fundraising plans. His firm performs organizational and feasibility assessments, strategic planning assignments and provides counsel to annual, major gifts and capital fundraising programs. He holds an MS from Columbia University and an MBA and BA from Yale University.
Lynne A. Texter, Ph.D., is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Communication at La Salle University. An award-winning educator with over 20 years of teaching experience in the U.S., Czech Republic, Switzerland and Greece, she consults with a variety of organizations, including the New York State Department of Health, the Association of Government Accountants, JEVS, Habitat for Humanity/Germantown, Siloam Ministries, and the Kelly Anne Dolan Foundation. She received her Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo and her Master's from the Newhouse School of Communication at Syracuse University.
Allison Trimarco is the founder of Creative Capacity, a consulting firm that collaborates with nonprofits to solve management challenges, inspire people to participate and enhance an organization's ability to carry out its mission. Her practice focuses on strategic planning fundraising and board development projects. Prior to becoming a consultant, she worked for a wide range of nonprofit organizations, including performing arts groups, libraries and public television. She earned her MA in Arts Management at Carnegie Mellon University, and her BA in Theatre at Smith College.
Janis Von Culin is the founder and president of Von Culin Associates, a human resources consulting firm working in organizational effectiveness and human resource strategies. With more than 25 years of experience in industry and human services, she combines the knowledge of a hands-on human resources professional with that of a senior level business executive. Prior to starting her consulting practice, she spent 17 years with a Fortune 500 company, where she led the HR function for nine divisions operating in North America and Asia. She has a BA from Pacific Oaks College and an MA in Organizational and Industrial Psychology from California State University, Los Angeles.
Eric Wichner, former principal of Aunt Bunny Marketing and director of corporate relations and major gifts at the American Red Cross of Southeastern PA, brings 15 years experience in individual and corporate fundraising, volunteer utilization, and corporate and nonprofit marketing alliances. As executive director of the AIDS Fund, he was the driving force behind the unparalled growth of Pennsylvania’s largest AIDS fundraising organization. Eric currently spends most of his time in Puerto Villarta, Mexico.
Miki Young,
President, MarketShift, a social issues
marketing and communications agency. She has worked for over 30 years to
communicate about critical issues that impact our society. Her marketing work
with nonprofits has focused on areas of sustainability, racial isolation,
aging, and community development. As a communications strategist, Miki
has been responsible for research, evaluation, message development and delivery
system implementation for regional and national clients in education,
healthcare, social services and economic development. She previously was
senior vice president/strategist for LevLane Advertising/PR/Interactive and
also ran a full-service agency specialized in healthcare promotion.
An experienced presenter for many nonprofits, she has also lectured at Wharton
Small Business Development Center, George Washington University, Temple
University, St. Joe’s University, LaSalle University and Chautauqua
Institute. She is s also an Interfaith/Interspiritual Minister and holds
a Masters in marketing communications from Temple University and in Judaic
studies from Gratz College.
