Jeanne Bell
Jeanne Bell, MNA is the CEO of CompassPoint Nonprofit Services---one of the country’s leading providers of training and consulting services to community-based organizations. She is the co-author of Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability (Jossey-Bass) and Financial Leadership for Nonprofit Executives: Guiding Your Organization to Long Term Success (Wilder). In addition to frequent speaking and consulting on nonprofit strategy and finance, Jeanne has conducted a series of research projects on nonprofit executive leadership, including Daring to Lead 2006: A National Study of Nonprofit Executive Leadership and Securing the Safety Net: A Profile of Community Clinic and Health Center Leadership in California. Jeanne is on the Editorial Advisory Board Member for the Nonprofit Quarterly.
 

Ignatius Bau
Ignatius Bau is an independent health policy consultant, working with organizations such as the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network, Consumers Union, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Council of Asian & Pacific Islander Physicians, Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations, and Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum. He has worked as an immigration and civil rights attorney at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area and as a program officer at The California Endowment. He also has served on the boards of directors of Funders for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Issues, National Minority AIDS Council, Gay Asian Pacific Alliance Community HIV Project, Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and Services, and National Sanctuary Defense Fund.
 

Adrian Bordone
Adrian Bordone is co-founder and Vice President of Social Solutions, Inc, an industry-leading provider of performance management software for human service organizations. Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, Adrian is a 1993 graduate of the University of Baltimore and earned a Master’s degree from St. John’s College in Annapolis in 1996. Adrian began working with underprivileged youth in Baltimore in 1996 as a teacher with a small, private, alternative education provider called Ombudsman Educational Services. He later joined and lead The Learning Bank, a non-profit specializing in adult education in the heart of Baltimore’s economically depressed west side. He left The Learning Bank in 1999 to become the Program Director of the Maryland Center for Arts and Technology. The Maryland Center for Arts and Technology (MCAT) was a newly incorporated non-profit dedicated to improving the caliber of training and the marketability of Baltimore’s underemployed residents. MCAT’s mission was built on the strategies successfully implemented by its national workforce partners, Pittsburgh’s Bidwell/Manchester programs and New York’s Wildcat Services Corporation. Locally, MCAT established and sustained strong employer partnerships with CitiFinancial, Johns Hopkins Health Systems and Mercy Medical Center providing customized training and comprehensive retention services. Adrian rose to the position of Chief Operating Officer before helping to found Social Solutions and joining the day-to-day operations of the company in January 2001. Today, Adrian works with the sales and marketing team to strengthen the awareness and adoption of promising practices and performance management strategies in the nonprofit community of service around the country.
 

Amanda Cooper
Amanda is always challenging herself and the people she works with to ask the tough questions about their communications, making sure they are reaching the right people with the right message at the right time. She relishes the role of an “inside-outsider”, i.e. the person who works with your organization, but can maintain enough critical distance to evaluate your message like an outsider. She has more than a decade of experience working with organizations in labor, legal rights, children’s services and food insecurity.

She has placed thousands of stories in every medium of the mainstream press and created buzz for her campaigns in social and progressive media.

For the past six years, she worked as a Communications Director and Press Secretary for labor organizations, providing critical strategic and tactical support to dozens of successful organizing, corporate and political campaigns. Recognizing the public opinion challenges unions face, she innovated the way her organization approached communications, leading an effort to put workers in the forefront of every campaign. She used the latest opinion data to create media strategies, messages and even picket signs and chants with broader appeal. She revolutionized the training of worker spokespeople, bringing them inside the strategy so that they became more focused, passionate and effective.

Before joining the labor movement, Amanda was the Media Relations Manger for the Brennan Center for Justice. In addition to developing communications strategies to support winning lawsuits, she generated unprecedented media attention for the Center’s initiatives and developed interactive online databases so that journalists could use Center data for their own research. She was a leader in a coalition campaign that the Brennan Center hosted that made strides in the effort to restore voting rights for people with past felony convictions. Her early career included roles in public relations and development for the Children’s Village in Dobbs Ferry, NY and for the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. Amanda is one of the only people she knows who actually uses her undergraduate degree, having earned a BA in Communications and Political Science from UCLA. She lives in Oakland with her husband, daughter and many, many lemons.
 

Marla Cornelius
Marla Cornelius, MNA, is a Senior Project Director at CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. She developed and manages several of CompassPoint’s nonprofit management and leadership programs and research projects. She co-authored the national research reports Ready to Lead? Next Generation Leaders Speak Out(2008) and Daring to Lead 2011: A National Study of Nonprofit Executive Leadership. She develops curricula, trains, and consults in the areas of staff performance management, leadership, personal development, performance metrics, and governance/boards of directors.
 

Emily Davis
For more than 15 years Emily has been committed to the nonprofit sector as employee, trainer, board member, philanthropist, and consultant. Emily began her career working in the field of ending violence against women more than 15 years ago as a community activist, victim advocate, and trainer. After focusing on women’s health and sexual assault, she became involved in environmental issues, international human rights, and philanthropy. Emily has worked closely with various grassroots organizations serving both local, domestic, and international stakeholders. Since spring 2007, Emily has been serving as a nonprofit consultant and philanthropic advisor to various individuals and organizations through her company, Emily Davis and Associates (EDA) Consulting. EDA Consulting leverages the best strategies to help businesses – nonprofit, corporate, and philanthropic – to succeed and serve their missions. Emily herself started Young Nonprofit Professionals Network San Diego and most recently served as the Executive Director for the The Colorado Chapter of the National Hemophilia Foundation. Emily is the author for the AFP Fund Series publication, Fundraising and the Next Generation. Emily’s passion for powerful and effective leadership is a core value to her consulting practice and volunteer participation.
 

Rachel Ebora
Rachel Ebora is a Filipino immigrant who started her activism at age nine, making sandwiches for volunteers at the National Movement for Free Elections in the Philippines. Since immigrating to the United States, and over the past 19 years, Rachel has engaged in queer youth organizing, union and community organizing, economic and social justice organizing cultural and performing arts activism, bicycle advocacy, and nonprofit administration. Currently, Rachel is the executive director of Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center, a multi-service affordable housing organization providing linguistically and culturally appropriate programs and services in Bernal Heights and the surrounding areas. Bernal Heights Neighborhood center runs the Excelsior Community Center as a hub for senior, youth and employment programs, as well as public safety organizing and community engagement work. Rachel was recently honored by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors "for being a passionate and articulate advocate on behalf of the oppressed and marginalized communities in San Francisco..." and is a 2012 awardee of the Windcall Residency Program for social change organizers and activists.
 

Shannon Ellis
Shannon Ellis, MNA, is a Project Director at CompassPoint responsible for consulting and training in finance and strategy. Her work focuses on supporting nonprofit leaders in the unique challenges of effectively managing a dual bottom line to ensure both program impact and financial viability.
With more than 20 years of experience working in the nonprofit sector, Shannon has a strong commitment to supporting organizations working for social change. Prior to coming to CompassPoint, Shannon worked in the domestic violence movement since 1994, spending the last 12 years at Family Violence Law Center in Oakland. She learned nonprofit financial management on the ground, working with FVLC during a period of significant growth and moving through the leadership pipeline from Office Manager to Interim Executive Director. In addition, she is a Certified Nonprofit Accounting Professional and has supported many Bay Area nonprofits in establishing solid accounting systems through her work with Mark Halpert, CPA + Associates.
 

Allen Fernandez Smith
Allen Fernandez Smith, President & CEO, has been committed to issues of social, racial and environmental justice since his early years growing up in Chicago, where he got a firsthand look at inequality and the systematic exclusion of low-income families and communities of color from economic and political opportunities. Fernandez Smith worked most recently as the Executive Director of the California School-Age Consortium (CalSAC), a statewide, non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the professional development of youth workers across California through high-quality trainings, policymaking, and advocacy. As President of the Board of Directors and then as Executive Director, he led the organization in developing and implementing a multi-year strategic plan that culminated in a realignment of CalSAC’s mission, vision and staffing. Prior to his tenure at CalSAC, Fernandez Smith served as a Senior Community Development Specialist in the San Francisco Mayor’s Office of Community Development. He worked closely with major city agencies, local community leaders, and small business owners to revamp neighborhood economic strategy programs in distressed commercial corridors. Fernandez Smith also worked at the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and Their Families. There he managed the first-ever citywide initiative to improve San Francisco’s after-school programs, bringing multiple stakeholders together in a comprehensive system to serve youth from all parts of the city. Fernandez Smith graduated from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Illinois and was a graduate fellow at the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund. In 2011, he was named to “The Root 100” national list of African-American leaders under 45 years old. He now lives in Oakland, CA with his wife, Kay Fernandez Smith, Deputy Director at PolicyLink, and their children, Malcolm and Malaya.
 

Matt Fitzgerald
After many years in the nonprofit sector as a project manager, evaluator and strategist, Matt now just calls himself a specialized generalist and leaves it at that (unless you ask). In 2009 he led grassroots communications for 350.org as they coordinated the first ever International Day of Climate Action – described by CNN as "the most widespread day of political action in the planet's history." These days he builds trails with Volunteers for Outdoor California, continues to organize with the climate movement, and works to make the ocean more famous on the internet with his fellow rogues at Upwell.
 

Ezra Garrett
As Executive Director of the PG&E Corporation Foundation and the Vice President of Community Relations for PG&E, Ezra Garrett is responsible for maximizing the impact, reach and visibility of PG&E's community investments and partnerships, multicultural outreach, and its employee volunteerism programs. Ezra's ten years with PG&E include roles of increasing responsibility within Government Relations, Customer Care and Human Resources. His current community involvement includes board service with Leadership San Francisco and the Contributions Council of the Conference Board. He previously served on boards for the Bayview Hunters Point YMCA, Mission Housing Development Corporation and the San Mateo County Economic Development Association. Ezra holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.
 

Michelle Gislason
Michelle Gislason, MA, is a Senior Project Director at CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. She is responsible for the program creation and management of several of CompassPoint’s leadership programs, including the Coaching and Philanthropy Initiative, the Blue Shield of California Foundation Strong Field Project, and the Leadership Development Program for Executives Serving Transition-Age Youth. She is a trainer and coach for CompassPoint’s leadership series, “Thriving as an Executive Director,” and recently co-authored the award-winning book “Coaching Skills for Nonprofits Managers and Leaders (Jossey-Bass). In addition to being a trainer, consultant, and certified organizational coach, Michelle is a trained facilitator in the Authenticity Circles© peer coaching model and a part-time instructor at University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Affairs. She graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor of Arts degree and completed her Masters degree in Organizational Psychology in 2007.
 

Trista Harris
Trista Harris is nationally known as a passionate advocate for new leaders in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. She is a leading voice for Generations X and Y and seeks to create professional development opportunities throughout the sector. Trista has been featured on CNN and her work has been covered by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, the New York Times, Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal, Career Builder, and numerous social sector blogs. She writes about generational change in the foundation field in her blog, New Voices Of Philanthropy and is an international speaker on working across generations to create social change. In her professional life, Trista is the Executive Director of the Headwaters Foundation for Justice. Headwaters is a community foundation with a mission to act as a catalyst for social, racial, economic and environmental justice. She oversees the Foundation’s grantmaking, communications, fund development and investment management activities.
 

Chip Heath
Chip Heath is a professor at Stanford Graduate School of Business, teaching courses on business strategy and organizations. He is the co-author (along with his brother, Dan) of two books. Their most recent book, Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard debuted at #1 on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. Their first book, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, was a New York Times and Business Week bestseller, and was an Amazon Top 10 Business Book for 2007 for both editors and readers. It was translated into 27 languages including Thai, Arabic, and Lithuanian. His parents are just happy that their sons are playing well together.
 

Dolores Huerta
Dolores found her calling as an organizer while serving in the leadership of the Stockton Community Service Organization (CSO). During this time she founded the Agricultural Workers Association, set up voter registration drives and pressed local governments for barrio improvements. It was in 1955 through CSO founder Fred Ross, Sr. that she would meet a likeminded colleague, CSO Executive Director César E. Chávez. At 81, Dolores Huerta continues to work tirelessly developing leaders and advocating for the working poor, women and children. As voluntary President of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, she travels across the country speaking to students and organizations about issues of social justice and public policy. She has received numerous awards among them the Eleanor Roosevelt Humans Rights Award from President Clinton in l998, Ms. Magazine’s one of the three most important women of l997, Ladies Home Journal’s 100 most important woman of the 20t Century, Puffin Foundation award for Creative Citizenship Labor Leader Award 1984, Kern County’s Woman of The Year by California State legislature, the Ohtli award from the Mexican Government, Smithsonian Institution - James Smithson Award, and Nine Honorary Doctorates from Universities throughout the United States.
 

Lisa Hunter
Lisa grew up in Connecticut and the summer after high school began working with youth at Breakthrough Collaborative (then Summerbridge) New Haven. She continued tutoring and mentoring while she attended Swarthmore College, where she graduated with a B.A. in sociology in 2006. After working in a post-secondary admissions office, Lisa earned her M.A. in government and politics with a particular interest in public policy. As a Project Manager at Social Solutions she worked directly with nonprofits to define custom outcomes and indicators of program quality and implement these standards in performance management systems. Lisa joined Juma Ventures in 2011.
 

Nunu Kidane
Nunuis an activist originally from Eritrea. She is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley and has worked in Africa related program and policy developments for over two decades. She’s written and spoken extensively on migrants' rights, land rights & resource extraction, human rights and racial justice.  For the past nine years, Nunu has worked in grassroots mobilization of new African communities in the Bay Area and nationally.  In January 2012 Nunu was recognized as a “Champion of Change” and received an award from the White House for the work with new African diaspora communities.  She is founding member and current Director of Priority Africa Network (PAN), an advocacy organization based in Oakland, California.

 

Kim Klein
Kim Klein is the founder and publisher emerita of the bimonthly Grassroots Fundraising Journal, which celebrated its 25th birthday in 2006. She is also the author of the classic Fundraising for Social Change, (fifth edition, 2006), Fundraising for the Long Haul, Ask and You Shall Receive, and Fundraising in Times of Crisis. She and Stephanie Roth edited Raise More Money: The Best of the Grassroots Fundraising Journal. She is the featured writer for the e-newsletter of Grassroots Fundraising, with her column of answers to questions posed by readers called "Dear Kim." In addition to writing for her own publications, she has contributed many articles to the leading books, periodicals and websites in the field of fundraising. Widely in demand as a speaker, Kim has provided training and consultation in all 50 states and in 21 countries.
 

Nelson Layag
Nelson Layag is the training director for CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. Nelson’s current responsibilities include the design and management of CompassPoint’s leadership and management workshops, networks, and conferences; strategy and implementation of organizational communications and marketing; and design and delivery of training focused on people/performance management and project management. Nelson’s passion is working with staff and leaders of social change organizations that serve under-represented communities. He understands and enjoys seeing the power a group of individuals can have when they find a way to work effectively together. In his 16 years at CompassPoint, Nelson has held numerous posts including Director of Technology and Director of Education. In 1997, Nelson was instrumental in developing the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) in San Francisco. He currently sits on the board of the Alameda Education Foundation and on the steering committee of the nonprofit online magazine, BlueAvocado.
 

Annie Leonard
Annie had spent nearly two decades investigating and organizing on environmental health and justice issues. She traveled to 40 countries to visit hundreds of factories where our stuff is made and dumps where our stuff is dumped. As Annie witnessed first hand the horrendous impacts of both over- and under- consumption around the world, she became fiercely dedicated to reclaiming and transforming our industrial and economic systems, so they serve, rather than destroy, ecological sustainability and social equity. Today, Annie is the Co-Director of The Story of Stuff Project. Prior to creating and releasing The Story of Stuff in December 2007, she worked with the Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption, GAIA (Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives), Health Care Without Harm, Essential Action and Greenpeace International. She currently serves on the boards of GAIA and Public Citizen, and has previously served on the boards of the Public Citizen, Grassroots Recycling Network, Environmental Health Fund, Global Greengrants India and Greenpeace India. Annie’s first book—The Story of Stuff—was published by Free Press (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) in March 2010.
 

Jan Masaoka
Jan Masaoka is CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits and Editor-in-Chief of Blue Avocado, the online magazine for community nonprofits with 50,000 subscribers and which features her popular Board Café column on nonprofit boards. Jan is also the author of The Nonprofit's Guide to Human Resources and co-author of Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability.. In addition to being named Nonprofit Executive of the Year in 2003 when she was Executive Director of CompassPoint, she is a prominent researcher and writer on boards, nonprofit revenue strategies, and the role of the nonprofit sector in society.
 

Howard Miller
Howard Miller teaches and coaches skills to new and seasoned managers, entrepreneurs and executives. He is on the faculty of the American Management Association and teaches courses on topics such as delegation and motivation methodologies, conflict, how to deal with difficult people, understanding values and behavior, feedback and listening skills. Howard is the author of two books; The Manager Trap: 13 ½ Pitfalls to Avoid which showcases common traps and pitfalls managers face and You’re Full of Shift, which contains short stories that demonstrate shifting difficult situations to opportunities.
Howard has been on the boards of the National Speakers Association Northern California Chapter, ASTD (American Society of Trainers and Developers) and Golden Gate Business Association. He was a Big Brother for seven years and volunteered for San Francisco Suicide Prevention. Howard has a Bachelor of Science, Cum Laude, from the State University of New York at Albany, Albany, NY, a Certificate in Training and Human Resource Development from University of California, Berkeley, and graduated from the Coaches Training Institute (CTI) in San Rafael, California.
 

Ruth Obel-Jorgensen
Ruth joined the CalSAC team in 2008 and now serves as Executive Director. Over the years, she has worked diligently to establish a high functioning organizational culture and infrastructure through intentional program alignment, staff development and partnership cultivation. Ruth now works together with the board of directors and a devoted staff team to move forward CalSAC's strategic vision and mission to advance the out-of-school time field by building connections, competence, and community. Ruth earned a Master of Social Work degree, emphasizing in community organizing and advocacy, at California State University, Fresno. She is also an alumnus of the American Humanics Nonprofit Management and Leadership Program and brings more than 10 years experience in the nonprofit sector. Ruth has coordinated a full range of fundraising programs with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and organized advocacy events with the National Association of Social Workers. In addition, she has trained with the National Coalition Building Institute and served on the board of Fresno Metro Ministry. Since relocating to Oakland in 2005 from the Central Valley, Ruth organized statewide campaigns to increase access to higher education with the University of California Student Association and managed a collaborative of state and regional Gay Straight Alliance networks nationwide.
 

Kate Robinson
Kate Robinson is the Founder and Director of FSP Creative Advocacy. A skilled facilitator, strategist, and advocate, Kate has worked in the non-profit sector for over a decade specializing in coalition building for public policy development and implementation. She is the former Director of Strategic Initiatives for Social Solutions Global, Inc. where she led a national advisory board of high-performing non-profit organizations that conducted extensive research on organizational effectiveness and assessment strategies. She is also the former Executive Director of Consumer Health Coalition where she helped coordinate a campaign to increase the effectiveness of Pennsylvania Medicaid programs.
 

Robby Robinson
Robby studied filmmaking at the University of Southern California and The University of Texas at Austin. He is the founder and President of NE Productions, Inc., an Austin, Texas based film and video production company specializing in documentary and corporate projects.
 

Aparna Shah
Aparna has worked for social change and expanded democracy for 16 years. She is Executive Director of Mobilize the Immigrant Vote (MIV), a multiracial California coalition that builds the power and lifts up the voices of immigrant communities with a shared vision of progressive values and social justice. Previously, Aparna worked for the self-determination and reproductive justice of women, people of color, and queer communities, and spent several years working to transform San Francisco public schools into vibrant youth and community centers. She was born in Manila, raised in Mumbai, and now lives with her family in Oakland, CA.
 

Ann Shanklin
Ann Shanklin is the Director of Loss Control for the Nonprofits Insurance Alliance group of companies. Joining the organization in 2005, she works in collaboration with the member-insured nonprofits and their insurance brokers to improve all aspects of loss control and safety in the delivery of the many key services nonprofits provide in their communities. Ann has spent the majority of her career in the nonprofit sector. She joined the group after 23 years with the National Safety Council, where she was the Director of the Western Region Office,
 

Rich Snowdon
Rich is the author of nonprofithearts.net, a free book with controversial perspectives on nonprofit leadership. He’s also a life coach and loves working with people who want to develop their personal, professional, and political power.
 

Trish Tchume
After almost 8 years of engaging with the network as a volunteer, Trish Tchume is proud to be serving as the first-ever Director of YNPN National. Prior to becoming Director of YNPN in 2011, Trish served as Director of Civic Engagement for the Building Movement Project where she provided technical assistance, training, and developed publications for the growing movement of social service providers who are integrating social change values and practices into their daily work. Prior to joining the Building Movement Project in 2008, Trish served as a Campus Organizer, a Community Outreach Manager, and the Director of Training for Idealist.org following years spent doing community development work via city government and academia. Over the years, Trish has received a number of awards and recognitions for her engagement of young nonprofit professionals including her selection for the inaugural class of Independent Sector NGen Fellows in 2009.
 

Phil Ting
As Assessor-Recorder of San Francisco, Phil Ting is a solutions-focused, innovative reformer whose efforts have enabled him to generate over $245 million in new revenue for San Francisco and make sure everyone pays their fair share in property taxes. Prior to serving as the Assessor-Recorder, Ting also had a long history of civil rights advocacy - he was the Executive Director of the Asian Law Caucus, an organization founded in 1972 to advance and promote the legal and civil rights of the Asian Pacific Islander community.
 

Marissa Tirona
Marissa M. Tirona, J.D., is a Senior Project Director with CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. She is responsible for the development and management of several leadership initiatives, including the Strong Field Project, a four-year effort aimed at building a strong, coordinated network of domestic violence service providers in California. In 2009, she co-authored a study of leadership and workforce issues across community clinics in California, which culminated in the publication of four reports, including The Pipeline Promise: A Study of Emerging Leaders in California Community Clinics. In addition, Marissa develops curricula, trains and consults in the areas of leadership, nonprofit finance, business planning, impact metrics and governance. She speaks often on the topics of financial leadership and impact metrics. Before joining CompassPoint, Marissa was the program director of a national employee rights organization and an employment attorney with two national law firms. Marissa recently completed her coaching training through the Coaches Training Institute and provides management and leadership coaching to individuals and teams and is a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Santa Clara University School of Law.
 

Pedro Trujillo
Pedro Antonio Trujillo was born in Chiapas, Mexico, and migrated to the United States at as a child. He has resided in Los Angeles as for 17 years. While studying at CSU, Northridge, he became involved in immigrant rights through the California Dream Network (CD Network), the statewide youth branch of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA). After a couple of years organizing, Pedro was elected by his peers as a statewide Steering Committee member, where he helped coordinate over 30 clubs and organizations in the CD Network for Comprehensive Immigration Reform and the state and federal DREAM Acts. Pedro graduated this year from CSU, Northridge and is working as a high school youth organizer for CHIRLA
 

Sharon Turner
Sharon Turner is the Regional Director of Prevention Services at STAND! For Families Free of Violence in Contra Costa County. Sharon has been involved in social change work with women and communities for more than thirty years. During her 17-year tenure at STAND! she has filled many roles, including Director of Residential Services and Clinical Treatment Programs. As Prevention Director, she designed and implemented community partnerships including: the award winning Mt. Diablo Relationship Violence Prevention Project, a school based initiative that annually provided teen dating violence prevention education and advocacy to more than 7000 school staff, middle and high school students and parents over a five year period; the Collaborative Response To Victims of Crime in Richmond, a three year faith based initiative in which a cohesive partnership between victim service organizations and faith communities were establishedin order to minister more effectively to the social and spiritualneeds of crime victims, and STAND!’s countywide Faith Task Force, an eight year collaborative of faith leaders who in conjunction with STAND! work with faith groups to educate them about their role in preventing domestic violence. The Task Force published its booklet; God Is Not Abusive: Three Faiths Address Domestic Violence. Sharon is one of the coordinators of the Contra Costa County Zero Tolerance DELTA project, a prevention initiative of the California Partnership To End Domestic Violence. Sharon served on the Countywide Death Review Team and is the Vice President of of the California Partnership To End Domestic Violence Board of Directors.
 

Erica Williams
Erica Williams, is an internationally recognized youth leader, activist and entrepreneur passionate about engaging the next generation in social justice and change. Recently named a Young Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum, her newest project "Foolish Life Ventures" works with individuals and high-impact brands at the intersection of media, technology and social good.
 

JR Yeager
J.R. Yeager is a project director with CompassPoint Nonprofit Services with twelve years direct client experience in Executive Transition Management and executive search. JR also consults and trains in the areas of Succession Planning, Board Development, Interim Leadership, and also manages the placement of Interim EDs with CompassPoint’s transition clients. His client mission experience is broad and ranges from direct client service agencies, advocacy groups, environmental and housing policy, child welfare, education and arts, to supporting organizations to national parks and historic sites.

JR began his nonprofit career in 1982 when he accepted a position with  Greenpeace USA in Washington, DC.  Within a year he made his first of two moves to Europe for Greenpeace. By the end of his tenure with, JR  served as Director of Finance for Greenpeace International,  Administrative Director of Greenpeace USA, and New Offices Coordinator for  Greenpeace Council during which time he managed the reopening of Greenpeace offices in both Moscow and Kiev. In addition he coordinated the establishment of an independent medical testing lab in Kiev (in response to the Chernobyl disaster) with a team of doctors and scientists from around the globe.

JR moved to the Bay Area in 1996 and soon thereafter served  as interim executive director for two CompassPoint clients. “I chose CompassPoint because of its thought leadership and high level of excellent delivery to clients.” J.R. says. “My transition consulting work in particular aligns with my personal skills and my desire to serve the nonprofit sector as a listener and a guide. My consulting style is more facilitative than directive and I strive most to help my clients make the decisions that are best for them. I enjoy working at both the Board and staff level, and most of all bringing both together in a shared vision and purpose. “

J.R. is a former San Francisco Animal Welfare Commissioner and continues his animal welfare work as a volunteer.

 

Melissa Yarnell
Melissa is the Vice President of Risk for the Nonprofits’ Insurance Alliance group of companies. She has fifteen years of commercial insurance experience, and has served the nonprofit sector since 2002. Prior to working in Risk, Melissa served the group in both underwriting and corporate compliance. Melissa’s strong project management skills have helped keep the group on track when initiating corporate change and making business decisions. Melissa presently serves as facilitator for the group’s Product Development Committee, and Claims Committee. Melissa holds a B.A. in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz and an M.B.A. from San Jose State University.