Lori Hood Lawson is the Vice President of Advancement Insights for UC Innovation, a CRM Solutions & Services company with extensive expertise in Salesforce implementations and building managed products on Salesforce for Higher Education organizations. Lori is also the Co-Founder of WorkingPhilanthropy.com LLC. Lori is a member of aasp, where she has served on the Prospect Development Best Practices Committee, and Apra, where she has served with the Florida chapter as a board member and as president. Lori volunteers with Apra through serving on the Ethics and Compliance Committee. She has served on the Body of Knowledge Committee and is a former chair and co-chair for the Ethics and Compliance Committee and Online Curriculum Committee. She holds a master's degree from The Florida State University School of Information and a bachelor's degree from Emory University.

Megan has been working with UC San Diego Advancement since 2015 where she has worked with campaign operations, Corporate & Foundation Relations, and is now involved in both Prospect Research and Prospect Management. She currently serves as Chair of the Apra Ethics & Compliance Committee, and has presented at several conferences including Apra Prospect Development, AFP ICON, and CARA. Before coming to San Diego, she worked in El Salvador and Washington, D.C. where she worked in violence prevention and Latin American social justice nonprofits. Megan has a BA in International Affairs from George Washington University, and an MA in Latin American Studies from UC San Diego. 

Erin Osborn is the Prospect Development Director at Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation. She started at the Foundation in 1997, working as a coordinator in a variety of departments, including planned giving, major gifts and special events. Erin has worked in prospect research since 2001.  She is a past president of Apra-Rocky Mountains and has presented for Apra, Apra-Rocky Mountains, AFP Colorado, AHP Rockies & Southwest and other groups like Community Shares of Colorado and the Aspen Development Group.

Jayme began her career in development in 2008 at the Rutgers University Foundation, where she spent the next seven years, first in prospect management and then prospect research. She spent several years at Monmouth University as their senior prospect research analyst, working with the fundraising staff, university president, and top leadership. She has worked as both a volunteer and consultant for non-profits in the areas of research and writing. She earned a bachelor of arts degree from Drew University and a master of communication and information sciences from Rutgers University. She is a member of APRA’s Online Content Committee. Jayme joined The Helen Brown Group in April 2019.

Michele began her career in development in 2012 as a Development Analyst with the University of California, Berkeley Corporate and Foundation Relations team. She served as a Prospect Analyst at University of California, Davis and then as a Senior Prospect Analyst at the George Washington University. Michele is a member of NEDRA, Apra Florida, and Apra International and previously served as the Social Media Chair for Apra Metro DC. She received her BA in creative writing from Florida State University and studied higher education leadership at California State University, Sacramento. She currently lives in Tampa, FL with her husband and two children. Michele joined the Helen Brown Group in July 2018.

Kelli North is a Senior Development Research Analyst at the University of Michigan, where she assists multiple academic units as well as the Alumni Association and the Office of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion with prospect research, prospecting, and fundraising strategy. Her current areas of focus are diversity, equity, and inclusion and NextGen fundraising. She tries to bring her social justice education and experience as a first-generation college student to her work. She is the Advocacy Lead on the board of the APRA Michigan Chapter as well as a member of the FORUM Planning Committee and former Chair of the Research Committee for the Great Lakes Prospect Development FORUM. She is also a member of the planning committee for the APRA Great Lakes Conference.

She has presented at several conferences including APRA-International, APRA-Michigan, and the Great Lakes Prospect Development ForUM. She has also presented webinars for CASE, APRA-Pennsylvania, APRA-Ohio, and APRA-Michigan.

Cara Bradshaw is a communications and fundraising professional who has worked on communications and fundraising teams at international humanitarian organizations, in higher education, and in the media to promote social justice and community engagement. Cara studied Political Science and Spanish at Drew University in Madison, NJ and International Affairs and Media at The New School in Manhattan.

She currently serves as Chief Impact Officer at Family Promise, a national non-profit that provides community-based solutions to empower working families. With a dedicated team at Family Promise, Cara works to elevate the Family Promise brand, engage stakeholders through powerful storytelling, and deliver long-lasting social change through meaningful philanthropy. Cara’s curiosity about good leadership and organizational development inspires her work. An outdoor enthusiast, Cara lives in Brevard, NC with her family and enjoys mountain biking and hiking with her dog, Blu.

Nedra serves as Executive Director of Research & Prospect Management for the University of Georgia’s Development and Alumni Relations division since November 2018. Before that, she served as Senior Director of Development Research and Prospect Management for Georgia State University’s Development and Alumni Affairs division. During her tenure at GSU, she provided leadership in critical areas of prospect development. She partnered with senior advancement leadership to support a $300 million campaign, including developing prospect pools, managing the prospect management system, and conducting fundraising performance analysis.

Nedra is a fundraising and development professional with more than 25 years of experience in philanthropic fundraising and non-profit management, including all aspects of prospect development (prospect management, prospect research, information engagement, and data mining/analytics).  

Previously, she served as Manager of Prospect Research at Boys & Girls Clubs of America, where she worked for more than 14 years. In addition, Nedra has been an active member and volunteer of Apra and served as President of the local Apra-Georgia Chapter.

Sharon Parkinson (pronouns: she/her/hers) is Senior Associate Director of Prospect Development and Research at Vassar College, which stands on Wappingers, Stockbridge-Munsee, and Delaware Indigenous peoples’ homelands. She collaborates with the Associate Vice President for Individual Giving and the fundraising and engagement teams to plan and implement research projects designed to identify new donors and build a robust pipeline of potential campaign donors.

Sharon provides strategic guidance to fundraising program directors and gift officers on assessment and qualification of newly discovered prospects, portfolio management, and cultivation strategies through consultations and training sessions.  She oversees professional development and manages research projects assigned to PDR’s Research Specialist and freelance Research Analyst.

A key component of Sharon’s role is to create a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable work environment for the Prospect Development and Research team and other Advancement colleagues.  She plans and facilitates team retreats and serves on the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) staff development group within Advancement. Sharon is also a steering committee member of the Carolyn Grant ‘36 Endowment. This committee reviews applications and provides Vassar faculty and staff funding to integrate expressive and experiential processes into their teaching and work, including movement, drawing, meditative arts, group process and dialogue, and other creative models of instruction and expression. 

In partnership with the Office of Campus Life and Diversity, Sharon facilitated a Conversation Dinner, “Creating Contemplative Community,” and a workshop for All College Day, “Using Contemplative Practices to Navigate Life at Vassar.”  She is one of several administrators who provides resources and support to Vassar's first-generation, low-income, and undocumented students involved in the Transitions program.  Her favorite time spent with students is during Transition’s Wisdom Dinners, which provide opportunities for students and employees to bond together over their shared identities.

Sharon holds an undergraduate degree in Communication with a second major in Business Administration and advanced degrees in Organizational Communication and Sociology. She is a long-time member of the Apra New York chapter whose mantra is “Share the Knowledge.”  Sharon served as the chapter’s Social Media Sage and as a board member for several years.  She has also been a member of the Apra Greater New York chapter and facilitated a workshop, “Envisioning Change: Transforming Prospect Development Offices,” for Apra GNY’s ProspectCon. Sharon also participates in the Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance and the Mid-Hudson Association of Women in Higher Education. 

April is Assistant Director of Development Research at Bowdoin College. Before joining Bowdoin in 2018 she was Senior Research Analyst for the University of California, Davis, and began her career in prospect research at Amherst College. A California native, April holds an undergraduate degree from UC Davis and an MA in English literature from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. April has served in volunteer roles for NEDRA since 2019 and was elected to the NEDRA Board in July 2021. She additionally co-chairs the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion working group in Bowdoin’s office of Development and Alumni Relations. When not working April enjoys exploring Maine with her husband and two little boys.

Felice Gomez-Spencer is the Deputy Director of Development Research at Earthjustice, where she oversees the organization’s prospect development arm. Felice joined Earthjustice in 2013 after earning a master’s degree in library and information science and has over 20 years of nonprofit fundraising experience. Prior to Earthjustice, she worked in prospect development and corporate and foundation relations for the University of California, Berkeley. Felice began her career as a grant writer for community health centers in Tucson, AZ, and San Francisco, CA. She has worked for a number of arts, education and health organizations in the Bay Area, as well as for a Hispanic marketing agency. Felice holds a BA in anthropology from the University of Arizona

Joe Gonzales is Associate Director of Foundations Systems and Operations at Earthjustice where his passion for the environment and social justice are finely balanced. His tenure in the non-profit sector spans institutions of higher education, university medical centers, and mission driven organizations in a variety of roles with fundraising teams. While he currently lives and works in the Midwest, Joe is a native Texan who prefers to spend his summers up north and winters down south

Chandra Montgomery is a veteranfundraising strategist and certified diversity, equity, and inclusion educatorand speaker. Her background in philanthropy spans academic medicine, highereducation, public media, and social services. She is an Apra volunteer leaderand an alumna of CASE’s Minority Advancement Institute. Chandra currentlyserves as chair of Apra’s Advocacy Committee and is a founding member of theorganization’s inaugural DEI Committee. She is also founding co-chair of theAdvancement DEI Task Force at the University of Southern California where sheis the director of pipeline and prospect development for Health Sciences. Priorto USC, she led prospect development teams at National Public Radio andVirginia Commonwealth University. Chandra holds a BA from Hampton Universityand is pursuing a master’s degree at USC’s Gould School of Law. 

Dr. Rodger Devine is the Assistant Vice President for Advancement Operations at Pomona College. As a senior member of the Advancement team, Rodger provides strategic leadership for the college’s development infrastructure, leads annual giving and stewardship strategy, and utilizes data and analytics to drive fundraising success. Rodger also works in close collaboration with the CIO and ITS leadership on advancement technology vision, systems, and resource management.
Rodger previously served as the Associate Dean of External Affairs for Strategy and Innovation at USC Dornsife College of Letters Arts and Sciences, where he built and led a comprehensive advancement operations and data analytics program. Prior to USC, he was Director of Information, Analytics and Annual Giving at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, following expanding leadership roles in information technology at University of Michigan.
Rodger earned his Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Japanese, University of Michigan; Master of Science in Information, Analysis and Retrieval, University of Michigan; and Doctor of Education in Organizational Change and Leadership, University of Southern California. In his spare time, Rodger speaks at various conferences, teaches workshops, and volunteers on projects that benefit non-profit organizations and diverse communities of professional practice.

Kate Aitken is the Senior Director for Talent Management and Strategy and member of the Executive Team in Georgetown University’s Office of Advancement. At Georgetown, her team’s mission is to drive and inspire talent to be the best they can be, and create a safe, inclusive, work environment with a mission-oriented, high performing team.  This includes serving as the chief strategist and trusted thought partner to all in the Office of Advancement in the deployment of talent management strategies.

Previous to joining Georgetown in October 2017, Kate served as a Director, Career Management at EAB where she was the lead HR business partner to the marketing and account management teams for talent acquisition, retention, engagement, organizational planning, performance management and career development.

Earlier in her career, Kate held positions in a non-profit sports association and international consumer goods company where she created and supported programs for enhanced customer engagement.  

Kate holds a B.A. in Psychology from Middlebury College.

Paul Wiklanski is the Senior Associate Director of Prospect Development at the University of Michigan and is a visionary thought-leader who encourages change management with executive teams and organizations. A problem-solver who leverages analytics, creativity, and experience to develop actionable and compelling strategic insight. A leader who delivers results and empowers the success of his team. In his current role as the Senior Associate Director of Prospect Development - University of Michigan; Paul is dedicated to increasing frontline fundraiser effectiveness by integrating information and fundraising intuition. He is focused on improving fundraiser user experience with available data; visualizing that data and transforming it into actionable insights and amplifying donor-centric practices. He is the former president of APRA - Michigan and currently a member of the APRA Advocacy Committee. Paul has previously held positions in Marketing and Annual Giving with the university. Prior to joining Michigan Paul worked in the corporate sector with an emphasis on international markets.

Janna Lee (she/her) is the Director of Philanthropy Operations at The Trust for Public Land, a national organization that creates parks and protects land for people. She and her colleagues oversee the philanthropy CRM, handle gift administration, and provide prospect research, portfolio management, and analytics services to 70 philanthropy staff across the country. Previously, Janna worked at Johns Hopkins Institutions in Baltimore as the Director of Relationship Management and Customer Support. Janna is a volunteer with Apra International, has served as president of Apra Maryland, and currently sits on the board of Apra Minnesota.

Lori Hood Lawson is the Vice President of Advancement Insights for UC Innovation, a CRM Solutions & Services company with extensive expertise in Salesforce implementations and building managed products on Salesforce for Higher Education organizations. Lori is also the Co-Founder of WorkingPhilanthropy.com LLC. Lori is a member of aasp, where she has served on the Prospect Development Best Practices Committee, and Apra, where she has served with the Florida chapter as a board member and as president. Lori volunteers with Apra through serving on the Ethics and Compliance Committee. She has served on the Body of Knowledge Committee and is a former chair and co-chair for the Ethics and Compliance Committee and Online Curriculum Committee. She holds a master's degree from The Florida State University School of Information and a bachelor's degree from Emory University.

Gareth Griffin is the Senior Director of Prospect Development at MIT, where he leads the institute's prospect research, prospect management, philanthropic due diligence, and prospect data integrity programs. Prior to heading back east, he was the Senior Director of Prospect Management & Analytics at Santa Clara University and Assistant Director of Prospect Management at UC Berkeley. Before heading west to California, he served as a Prospect Research Analyst at Clemson University. He currently serves as a Trustee of the Apra Foundation and was previously the Chair of Apra’s Ethics & Compliance Committee.

Liz is an expert development operations; with a focus on automation, workflows and prospect management. She has spent her entire career working in the not-for-profit sector with arts organizations, healthcare foundations, and higher education institutions. She has instructed at both Western University on the topic of technology in the not-for-profit sector and at Georgian College on prospect research. She has shared her knowledge and expertise on prospect research, database management, ethics in prospect development, and using social media for prospect research at numerous Canadian and international conferences including AFP Congress, Apra, Apra Canada, and AHP Canada. She is the co-editor and contributor to the book "Prospect Research in Canada: An Essential Guide for Researchers and Fundraisers". Liz is a Trustee of the Apra Foundation Board of Trustees.

As the Interim Director of Prospect Strategy & Research at the University of Florida I lead a very innovative team with seventy plus years of cumulative experience.  This year I successfully led a six-month remote work pilot with my team and together we achieved 124% of our goals.  Our pilot was a strong driver toward the UF Foundation's move to a hybrid working environment. 

My experience has taken me in many directions and all of my previous positions have been very rewarding.  I have worked in Higher Education, Healthcare, Corporate Law, Real Estate and the Communications Industries.  Over the years I have gained experience in Prospect Research, Relationship Management, Sales and Marketing, Contract Negotiations, Product Management, Customer Relations, Staff Planning and Management, Training and Development, Fundraising and Promotional Events, Strategic Planning and Financial Analysis.  Every day I learn something new and my journey is just beginning.

Beth Inman is the director of advancement research & analysis at Colby College in Waterville, ME. Prior to joining Colby, Beth held similar roles at JDRF, the University of South Carolina, and The Citadel Foundation. Before her prospect development career, Beth was the associate curator of American and decorative art at the Columbia Museum of Art in Columbia, SC. She has served on the Ethics & Compliance committee and chaired the Awards committee for Apra International and was the president of Apra Carolinas from 2015-2018. She is currently a new board member for NEDRA serving as co-chair of the communications committee. Beth was the recipient of Apra Carolinas’ Distinguished Service Award in 2017 and Apra International’s Distinguished Service Award in 2019.

Beth is a native of Charlotte, NC and holds a bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of North Carolina Greensboro and a master’s degree in art history from the University of South Carolina. She is mom to a 17 year old daughter and is passionate about literacy, the arts, and women’s rights causes.

Sabrina Stradtner is the Director of Research and Prospect Management at Valparaiso University. In this role she manages Valpo’s prospect research and management program as well as the constituent records maintenance team. She has held this position since October 2015. She joined Valpo’s Advancement staff in 2012 as a Research Analyst.  She previously worked as a genealogist at the Valparaiso Public Library. Sabrina holds a B.A. in History with a minor in Humanities from Valparaiso University and a Master of Library Science from Indiana University Indianapolis. She currently serves as the membership chair for Apra Indiana.

Vibhas Ratanjee is a senior practice expert based in Gallup's Irvine, California office. He specializes in organizational development, culture change and executive-level engagement strategies, including strengths-based leadership and succession management. Vibhas is also an executive coach and leadership consultant to senior executives and CEOs. He works extensively in the healthcare, retail and financial services sectors.

A major focus of Vibhas’s work involves using large group change management techniques in organizational development, business processes, brand and customer engagement, employee engagement, and vision, mission and values consulting for private and government organizations. Vibhas also developed Gallup’s collaborative visioning approach to large-scale change management.