Apra Fundamentals: Relationship Management

Priya Balachandran serves as the Prospect Research & Management Specialist at Northern Illinois Food Bank, where she manages all aspects of Prospect Development. In this role, she has helped establish structured approaches to prospect research and is currently implementing a new Prospect Management process for her team. Beyond her primary responsibilities, Priya is a committed contributor to organization-wide initiatives, including the Changemakers Taskforce, the Organizational DEI Strategies Subcommittee, the Data and Ethics Subcommittee, and the Strategic Plan UNITE - Pathway Advisory Committee.

Priya actively volunteers and has presented for APRA International and its local chapters. She is serving a second term on APRA International’s Fundamentals Committee, has volunteered on the Awards Committee, and currently serves on the APRA Illinois board.

In the broader nonprofit community, Priya is on the Executive Committee of the Association of Certified Nonprofit Professionals and co-chairs the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Chicago's Continuous Learning Council. She has contributed to launching and co-leading Feeding America’s PhilOps and Prospect Research Community of Practice, and to planning nonprofit sector conferences, including the 5th International Thirukkural Conference and the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance’s Elevate Conference.

Laurie Holmes is a research and development professional with a background in prospect research, legal librarianship, and organizational leadership. Currently serving as Prospect Researcher at the National 4-H Council, Laurie brings over a decade of experience across higher education, legal services, and the nonprofit sector. Her expertise includes competitive intelligence, due diligence, strategic planning, and team leadership.

Laurie is pursuing a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She holds an MLIS from Simmons University, a Paralegal Certificate from Boston University, and a BA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing from Emerson College. An active member and volunteer with Apra, Laurie also serves as a guide at the Saint Louis Art Museum (SLAM) and tutors in community literacy programs.

Don is the Senior Manager of Prospect Research and Strategy at Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota. He earned his BA in History and Anthropology at the University of Minnesota Duluth and MSc in Science and Religion at the University of Edinburgh School of Divinity. He continued in graduate research and teaching History and Philosophy of Science at Arizona State University before moving back to Minnesota to raise his children close to family. Don joined Apra Minnesota and Apra International in 2018 and earned his CFRE in 2021. He is grateful for the support of the Apra community and enthusiastic about giving back as a board member and co-chair of the programming committee for Apra Minnesota.

Tayler Rhoades Lee serves as the Director of Pipeline & Prospect Strategy for NC State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, bringing nine years of experience to her role in Higher Education Advancement.  Tayler provides insights on College strategy and initiatives, special projects, campaign planning, and goal setting. She is responsible for developing and managing comprehensive prospect pipelines for the University's largest fundraising team, which contributed over $478 million to the university's last goal of $2 billion. She also served as a subject matter expert during the University's recent CRM conversion and currently serves on the CRM optimization steering committee, as NC State prepares for its next capital campaign.

Cynthia Mikimoto serves as Associate Director of Prospect Management at Caltech, where she partners with development officers to ensure their portfolios remain accurate, current, and strategically aligned. Cynthia plays an active role in onboarding new team members, and continues to meet regularly with frontline fundraisers to serve as their strategic partner. Collaborating with the information services team, she works to provide insights and the story within the data for fundraisers. Ms. Mikimoto brings more than 20 years’ experience in prospect management, prospect research, leadership briefings, donor relations and event management. At Caltech, she has implemented automations related to portfolio review notifications, list reviews and stage management. She has co-presented on the critical collaboration between fundraisers and prospect development at conferences in 2023 and 2024. In recognition of her leadership and contributions to the field, Cynthia was elected president of Apra’s California chapter, CARA, in 2025. She received her undergraduate degree in psychology from Loyola Marymount University.  

Lindsay Rogillio is the Director of Prospect Development and Analytics at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, leading the prospect management, prospect research, and prospect data analytics efforts. Prior to her current position, Lindsay spent nearly 10 years in higher education prospect development offices at the University of South Carolina and Virginia Commonwealth University. She has volunteered with aasp's Membership Engagement Committee and Best Practices in Prospect Development Committee. She holds a master's in library and information science from the University of South Carolina, and is completing a master's in decision analytics from Virginia Commonwealth University. Lindsay loves traveling, salsa dancing, and enjoying every food festival she can make it to.

Rachael Dietrich Walker is entering her fifteenth year in prospect development. In June 2024, she joined St. Luke's Health Foundation as its first Donor Strategy Manager, where she is building a brand-new prospect development program. She comes to healthcare after a career spent in higher education. Rachael is a longtime member of the Apra Carolinas board and currently serves as its President; she has also served in several volunteer roles for Apra International, most recently on the Winter 2025 Apra Fundamentals Prospect Research faculty.  She holds an MLIS from UNC-Greensboro and a BA from the University of Richmond