2025 Speakers and Moderators

We’re grateful to all of our 2025 NEAGC speakers, for their generosity and their expertise.
🍎 = Returning NEAGC Faculty Member!
🍏 = First-Time NEAGC Faculty Member!

Skylar Beaver 🍎
Conference Chair

Skylar Beaver is the Assistant Director of Advancement, Director of The Lawrenceville Fund, and Alumni and Family Engagement at The Lawrenceville School. In this role Skylar oversees annual giving efforts, alumni and family engagement initiatives and oversees the advancement systems team. Previously, she led annual giving teams at The Spence School, Washington and Lee University and Hobart and William Smith Colleges. She has thirteen years of annual giving experience, is a frequent presenter with CASE, is a past chair of STAFF (Sharing the Annual Fund Fundamentals), and serves on the Northeast Annual Giving Conference (NEAGC) planning committee. Skylar holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Hobart and William Smith Colleges and a master’s degree in nonprofit management from SUNY Brockport.

Bob Burdenski 🍎
Conference Director 

Bob Burdenski is an internationally-known annual and regular giving programs consultant for schools, colleges and universities.  Bob is the author of three CASE annual giving books and is a recipient of the CASE Crystal Apple Award for Lifetime Teaching Excellence as ranked by his audiences. In 2019 he was also named a CASE Laureate for his years of volunteer service to the profession. He has educated (and entertained) at presentations throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, including numerous CASE Europe and CASE Asia Pacific Annual and Regular Giving Conferences and Masterclasses.  He presented CASE’s first-ever annual giving training programs in India, Japan, Ireland, Singapore, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia, and in 2019, Bob served for the third-straight year as Chair of the CASE Institute for Senior Annual Giving Professionals. Since 2002, Bob has served as the moderator of FundList, the largest fundraising e-mail discussion listserv in the world, with thousands of development professional subscribers.

Daniel Burgner 🍎

Daniel Burgner is the Assistant Vice President of Annual Giving at The George Washington University, where he oversees central and unit-based annual giving efforts, donor pipeline development, and leadership annual giving programming. A recognized industry leader, Daniel drives innovative strategies that leverage data-driven segmentation, digital engagement, and storytelling to grow donor support across GW’s largest donor populations. Under his leadership, GW has seen significant growth in donor retention and acquisition, with an impactful increase in annual giving revenue. Daniel began his career as a Phonathon caller at Abilene Christian University. Before joining GW, he served as a Senior Consultant with Ruffalo Noel Levitz, guiding universities on pipeline development and donor acquisition strategies, and as the Senior Director of Annual Giving for the Texas Tech University System, where he grew the alumni donor base by over 17% through integrated omnichannel marketing efforts. An active member of the advancement community, Daniel serves on the steering committee for the Annual Giving Director’s Consortium, regularly speaks at industry conferences, and advocates for modernizing university advancement through donor-centric strategies. He and his wife, Emily, live in Alexandria, Virginia, with their children, Quincy and Eleanor.

Colleen Carroll 🍎

Colleen Carroll is Community & Events Lead with Double the Donation. Colleen’s background is in nonprofit fundraising, mission-driven marketing, and community engagement. In her role at Double the Donation she facilitates educational opportunities for institutions of higher education, nonprofits, and K-12 schools to discuss workplace giving, an often overlooked fundraising channel.

Christopher Chambers 🍏

Chris Chambers is Manager of Annual Giving and Corporate and Foundation Relations, as well as Development Officer, School of Science, Health & Criminal Justice, at the Canton College Foundation, SUNY Canton.

Alyssia Coates Ph.D. 🍏

Alyssia Coates is Senior Director of Development. Inclusive Philanthropic Engagement at Brown University.

Meg Cummins 🍏

Meg Cummins is Assistant Director of the Bryant Fund at Bryant University.

Sean Devendorf 🍎

Sean Devendorf is Executive Director of Alumni Engagement & Annual Giving at Tufts University. Sean began his career at Tufts University in 2007 at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, where he held various roles focused on alumni engagement, annual giving, and major gifts. In April 2015, he transitioned to the role of Senior Director of Annual Giving, overseeing annual giving efforts across the university and leading initiatives to modernize marketing and outreach strategies. In July 2024, Sean took on a new role as the Executive Director of Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving, working to align the two areas and create a more cohesive alumni engagement and giving experience.

Emily Etzkorn 🍎

After spending over a decade in the higher education fundraising space, Emily Etzkorn joined VanillaSoft as a Fundraising Evangelist, bringing with her a background in annual giving, engagement centers, and phonathons. In her role at VanillaSoft, Emily is working closely with fundraising clients and promoting VanillaSoft within the fundraising world.

Letitia Evans 🍏

Letitia Evans is the Director of Annual Giving at Elizabeth City State University, with extensive experience in fundraising and an affinity for technology. She previously served as an Interim Vice Chancellor for University Advancement, Interim Director of Alumni Relations, and Development Officer at the same university. Letitia holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications- Media Production from the University of Dayton, Ohio. She began her career as a Regional Development Officer at her alma mater and has since worked with the Girl Scout Council of the Colonial Coast and the Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation. She is a CFRE Candidate and finds philanthropy highly rewarding. Currently, Letitia is pursuing her Master of Arts in Philanthropy and Development at Saint Mary’s University in Winona, Minnesota. Beyond her professional role, Letitia chairs the ECSU Staff Senate, is a board member of NC Habitat for Humanity in Elizabeth City, and is a member-at-large in the Association of Fundraising Professionals. In her free time, Letitia enjoys taking in a great action movie and spending time with family and friends.

Austen Farrell 🍏

Austen Farrell is chief marketing officer at the University of Rhode Island Foundation & Alumni Engagement. He began his career as an editor in the publishing industry before moving on to higher education, where he has worked for Tufts University, Harvard University in both its central administration and at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, and Bryant University before joining URI. He has a B.A. in English and an M.A. in classical civilizations. His video and print projects have won multiple Telly Awards and Council for Advancement and Support of Education Best of District I Awards.

Clark Gafke 🍎

Clark Gafke is the CEO of LEAD Philanthropy. Clark enables nonprofit institutions to attract and motivate donors to achieve the organization’s strategic goals. He helps the organization’s senior leadership evaluate and design strategic fundraising plans in the context of contemporary giving trends. He also assists the organization’s development staff to implement the plan through the design and conduct of specific communication initiatives for Capital and Annual Fund programs. Clark’s experience enables him to provide guidance on using appropriate channels to reach prospects and donors in ways they want to communicate – face-to-face, special events, peer-to-peer texting, calling programs, direct mail efforts, email campaigns, crowdfunding & giving days, online technologies, digital communications, text-to-give, text-to-pledge and a host of other mobile channels. In his 30+ years providing fundraising counsel, Clark has served more than 300 organizations in the US and Canada representing education, healthcare, arts, museums, zoos, aquariums, public broadcasting and membership organizations. In the process, he’s trained and coached more than 11,000 communicators. Beyond this direct service to organizations, he is a frequent speaker at fundraising conferences including NCDC, CASE, AFP, PSI, GEAC, and on many college campuses. He is Past President of the Las Vegas AFP Chapter, a former national delegate, and Past Chair of the chapter’s Education Committee and Every Member Campaign. Clark is also Cialdini Certified Professional and Ethical Influence Practitioner with the Cialdini Institute. Clark began his fundraising work as a student caller in the alumni annual fund program at the University of Missouri. After graduation, he worked at the National 4-H Council in Washington, DC. Clark has served as Vice President and Senior Consultant for a variety of consulting firms. He created the first online caller training program for colleges and universities and served as Dean for 21 PHONE/MAIL 101 workshops. He is an avid supporter and volunteer for 4-H. Both Clark and his wife were named to the University of Missouri Extension Leaders Honor Roll for their long-term commitment and support. Clark resides near St. Louis, MO and enjoys fishing and traveling with his wife and their two daughters.

Holman Gao 🍏

Holman Gao is the Founder & CEO of Boost My School. Holman’s fundraising career started when he built the first version of the Boost fundraising platform to help his high school better engage their alumni. Since launching in 2017, Boost has grown to help 100+ K-12 and higher ed advancement teams embrace a modern and streamlined fundraising approach, empowering them to raise $50M+ a year for giving, events, and commerce.

John Garcia 🍏

John Garcia is Assistant Vice President for Development at the University of Rhode Island (URI) Foundation. John has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a focus in Marketing and Communication from Bryant University. John has more than 16 years’ experience in the nonprofit sector, securing more than $100M in annual, major, principal, and estate gifts during his career. Prior to the nonprofit sector, John was a corporate trainer for Fidelity Investments and worked as group sales representative for the Pawtucket Red Sox. He started his nonprofit career at his alma mater, Bryant University, on the annual giving team. He secured corporate sponsorships, annual gifts, wrote appeals, oversaw management of the annual golf tournament, managed a prospect portfolio of 200 donors and rebranded the annual fund to The Bryant Fund. He then spent 3 years rebuilding the dormant planned giving program at Lifespan. John is now the Assistant Vice President, Annual Initiatives and Gift Planning, at the URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement. John manages the Gift Planning and Annual Initiatives team, supporting donors with their annual giving and gift planning needs. John is past president of the Smithfield Rotary Club, past president and past board member of Charitable Gift Planners of RI and currently serves on the advisory council for Little Sisters of the Poor Residence in Pawtucket.

Jon Gregory 🍎
Conference Committee

Jon Gregory is the Associate Director, Donor Participation & College and Unit Partnerships at Cornell University. In his role, Jon leads the coordination of strategic partnerships throughout Cornell Alumni Affairs and Development to develop integrated marketing strategies to solicit 250,000+ alumni annually, grow alumni and student giving year over year, and raise broad base support for the annual funds. He serves as the project manager for Cornell’s annual Giving Day, leading the strategy, implementation, oversight, partnerships, evaluation, and refinement of Cornell’s flagship integrated marketing campaign which results in as many as 15,000 donors and $10 million raised in one day. He spearheads the piloting of innovative initiatives that increase donor participation, and leads integration of new efforts making them scalable for college and unit partners. Prior to joining the Big Red, Jon started his career in athletic administration at his alma mater and served as Assistant Athletic Director at Johns Hopkins University before returning to Ithaca College as a member of the alumni engagement and philanthropy team. Jon holds a bachelor’s degree in Sport Management from Ithaca College with a master’s degree in Athletic Administration from Southern New Hampshire University.

Dominique Marcial-Clark 🍎

Dominique Marcial-Clark is Associate Director of Reunion and Class Campaigns at The Lawrenceville School. Dominique manages cohort-specific annual fund volunteer programs and solicitation strategy. She also oversees fundraising efforts for the 20th, 25th, and 55th Reunion classes. Dedicated to providing and funding educational experiences for all, Dominique aims to tailor class-by-class annual fund programs to best suit the communication styles, availability, and needs of each cohort. Prior to her current role, Dominique worked in Alumni Engagement and Art/Museum operations.

Nora Marzocchi 🍏

Nora Marzocchi is Director of the Bryant Fund at Bryant University.

Kira Mudd 🍏

Kira Mudd is Associate Director of Alumni Engagement at the University of Rhode Island.

Mike Nagel 🍎

Mike Nagel is a Senior Account Executive with EverTrue. He’s spent 14 years equipping advancement teams with strategy and tools to enhance the experience of every donor and drive fundraising results. Before EverTrue, Mike spent six years at Phillips Exeter Academy as the Associate Director of Digital Communications. He drove annual giving strategy and worked closely with major gifts, alumni relations, and admissions. Previously, Mike worked for Care.com, STA Travel, Good Morning America, and NBC Universal as a storyteller and communicator. He lives in NH with his wife, Sonja, and their five (!) kids and two cats. He speaks regularly at RAISE, CASE, APRA, AFP, and other advancement conferences.

Sara Pond 🍎

Sara is the Vice President of Client Development at MCR, Inc. She is a philanthropic leader with a 20-year career serving educational and non-profit sectors with special focus on pipeline development. Her experience details leading teams, targeted marketing and communications, technical strategy, artful storytelling, and qualitative analysis to build the donor pipeline and raise revenue. She is passionate about helping organizations provide economic mobility, access to educational pathways and healthcare.

Christene Riendeau 🍏

Christene Riendeau is Senior Director of Annual Giving and Volunteer Engagement at College of the Holy Cross.

Gina Simonelli 🍏

Gina Simonelli is Director, Annual Initiatives at the University of Rhode Island.

Rachel Spencer 🍎

Rachel Spencer is Senior Account Executive, Fundraising with VanillaSoft. Rachel is a true “phonathon” and Engagement Center expert, benefitting from nearly 15 years of tele-fundraising experience. She graduated from student caller, to telefundraiser-for-hire, to Engagement Center manager (and VanillaSoft client), and is currently salesperson-cum-consultant. In her role at VanillaSoft, Rachel works closely with more than 100 universities and her ability to imbue others with her unique brand of enthusiasm and joie-de-fundraising is truly unmatched.

Jake Strang 🍎
Conference Committee

Jake Strang is the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Alumni Annual Giving at the University of Pittsburgh. In this role, he leads a central annual giving team that engages alumni constituents and secures sustainable funds for Pitt’s highest priorities. Jake is a resource and convener for annual giving staff at Pitt’s regional campuses and has primary responsibility for the operations and staff of Panthers Forward, a signature student debt relief program. Prior to joining Pitt, Jake was the director of annual giving and alumni engagement at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. While there, he led a comprehensive annual giving program including reunions, volunteers, graduating class gift campaigns, and the school’s leadership society. In addition to annual giving responsibilities, he also was responsible for alumni marketing including newsletters, social media, alumni webinars, and the semi-annual Tepper Magazine. Jake also worked at Columbia University, where he was the senior associate director for annual fund programs. At Columbia, he served on the core team for the first five Columbia Giving Days and led the direct marketing for multiple annual funds across the university. Before joining Columbia University, he was a program center manager with Ruffalo Noel Levitz. While with RNL, he managed the on-site telefunds for Columbia University and the University of South Carolina. Jake holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Carolina in Marketing and Management and a master’s degree from Columbia University in non-profit management.

Lane Sulzer 🍎

Lane Sulzer is the Director of Annual Giving at Vassar College. Lane joined the Vassar College Advancement team in June 2022. As the Associate Director of Annual Giving, Lane led the development of the digital engagement (DXO) program that continues to be a core part of the Vassar Fund. In May 2024, Lane was promoted to Director of Annual Giving. Since joining Vassar in 2022, Lane has raised over one million dollars to support the College. Prior to starting at Vassar College, Lane worked as an annual fund officer at Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts. Lane ran the College’s annual day of giving, direct mail and e-mail marketing, phonathon program, and managed a portfolio of donors. Lane attended Lasell University in Auburndale, Massachusetts, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Lane is native to the Hudson Valley and loves being nearby his family. Outside of work, Lane is frequently at the gym, playing video games or basketball, or cooking his next vegan meal.

Matt Sulzer 🍎

Matt Sulzer is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for MCR, Inc. For the past 20 years, Matt has served more than 600 college, university and healthcare teams with their direct mail needs. He prides himself on providing clients with excellent customer service, while partnering with them to help achieve and exceed their organizational fundraising goals. In Matt’s tenure, he has achieved Sales Person of the Year eight times and regularly speaks at conferences on different annual giving and direct mail topics.

Yoni Sunshine 🍏

Yoni Sunshine is Assistant Director, Annual Leadership Giving at Brown University. He oversees the Brown Annual Fund Leadership Council, which raises over $2 million annually through peer-to-peer outreach. Prior to joining Brown in 2021, Yoni spent fifteen years working in volunteer management, programming and fundraising for human-empowerment focused organizations, including a decade working for the Boy Scouts of America in Southeastern New England and Louisiana, and several years with post-Hurricane Katrina community groups. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from Tulane University and an M.S. in Urban Policy Analysis and Management from The New School University.

Amanda Talbot 🍏
Conference Committee

Amanda Talbot serves as a Senior Annual Leadership Giving Officer for the Brown Annual Fund at Brown University. In her work, she solicits, increases and maintains gifts from alumni that qualify for the Carrie Tower Society, Brown’s recognition giving society. Amanda has cut her teeth in fundraising at Brown, spending the last five years working with student giving to class-based giving and then leadership and major giving. She received a B.S. in Business Management and Theater Arts at Providence College. Amanda has lived in Rhode Island since 2011 and is happy to recommend a restaurant or tell you where something “used to be”.

Amanda Tsapatsaris 🍏

Amanda Tsapatsaris is Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Engagement at Endicott College.

Shannon Wood 🍏

Shannon Wood currently serves as the Director of Annual Giving at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, a role she had held since January 2022. At UMass Dartmouth, she oversees traditional and leadership annual giving efforts consisting of direct mail, campaigns, giving days, crowdfunding, technology solutions and personal solicitation supporting current use and endowed funds for eight schools and colleges, athletics, student affairs and more. Prior to her current role, Shannon spent 5 and a half years in annual giving at the College of the Holy Cross managing outreach strategy and fundraising volunteers for young alumni and the senior class gift effort. Shannon is a 2020 CASE District I Rising Star Award Winner. A proud public school advocate, Wood graduated from the University of Connecticut with her Bachelors in Communication and will complete her Masters in Public Policy with an Educational Policy concentration in May 2025 from UMass Dartmouth. She currently lives outside Providence, RI.