2026 Speakers and Moderators

We’re grateful to all of our 2026 NEAGC speakers, for their generosity and their expertise.
🍎 = Returning NEAGC Faculty Member!
🍏 = First-Time NEAGC Faculty Member!

Bob Burdenski 🍎
Conference Committee

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.

Theresa Lee 🍏
Tuesday Pre-Conference Workshop

Theresa Lee is the Chief Development Officer at New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill, where she leads fundraising and membership. Over the past 33 years, she has held senior advancement roles at MIT, Boston College, Holy Cross, WPI, and UMass Lowell, and has also worked as a fundraising consultant. A longtime instructor in Boston University’s professional fundraising program and frequent speaker for professional associations, Theresa specializes in annual giving, support services, and management and accountability, with a strong belief in relationship-building and meaningful stewardship. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Maine and an M.A. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from Bowling Green State University.

Theresa Aide 🍎

Theresa Aide is Director of Non-Profit Campaigns with Suttle-Straus. She has more than 30 years of experience in non-profit communication services with Suttle-Straus Incorporated. Theresa enjoys the process of taking a project from concept through to completion using best practices for best results with omni-channel campaigns. She offers consultations and recommendations to all her faith-based clients to represent the extensive communication capabilities of Suttle-Straus including content solicitation writing, social media, individually designed die-cut brochures, and digital print and mail.

Jennifer Atkinson 🍏

In her capacity as Senior Managing Director of the Dartmouth College Fund and Director of the Centennial Circle, Jennifer oversees a distinguished cohort of over 380 women who each contribute $100,000 to either the Dartmouth College Fund or the annual funds of Dartmouth’s professional schools. The Centennial Circle, which celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2024, has set a new national benchmark for alumnae driven philanthropy within higher education. Before joining Dartmouth, Jennifer spent ten years steering customer success initiatives at software startups focused on K 12 and higher education markets. Earlier in her career, she dedicated two decades to higher education advancement, directing major fundraising campaigns and leading development teams at UCLA and UC Irvine, and managing the Western States Regional office for the University of Michigan. Across her fundraising tenure, Jennifer has secured more than $100 million in annual, major, and mega gifts.

Liza Boffen-Yordanov CFRE 🍏
Conference Committee

For nearly 30 years, Liza has worked across the globe helping mission-driven organizations—like her home at Girl Scouts of the USA—develop leaders, inspire generosity, and create lasting social change. A CFRE and former President of the AFP Singapore Chapter, her approach is grounded in ethics, curiosity, and the belief that every gift builds community. Her work spans continents, cultures, and causes, but the constant has always been this: girls and women rise when we invest in them. Over the course of her career, she has played a key role in three billion-dollar comprehensive campaigns and in three additional record-setting campaigns—the largest ever undertaken by their respective organizations at the time. Having lived and worked in Singapore, India, Switzerland, the United States, and the United Kingdom, she brings a distinctly global perspective and has secured philanthropic support in more than 65 countries. Liza holds a BA from Trinity Washington University and an MAT from the School for International Training. She is motivated by possibility, partnership, and designing opportunities that help young people lead with confidence, courage, and character.

Joe Castaldi 🍏

Joe Castaldi is Director, Leadership Annual Giving at the College of the Holy Cross.

Nicole Caputo 🍏

Nicole Caputo is the Director of Annual Giving at Quinnipiac University, where she leads the university’s annual fundraising strategy and donor engagement efforts. She oversees key initiatives such as the Bobcat Challenge and Bobcats Unite —now million dollar fundraising events —and works closely with campus partners to strengthen philanthropic support across the Quinnipiac community. Nicole holds a BS from the University of New Haven.

Vicky Cedeño 🍏

Vicky Cedeño is Director, Annual & Employee Giving at the John Muir Health Foundation.

Christopher Chambers 🍎
Conference Committee

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.

Kate Cominsky 🍎

Kate Cominsky is a Non-Profit Campaigns Strategic Consultant with Suttle-Straus. Kate represents Suttle-Straus Inc. as Strategic Consultant for Non-Profit Fundraising with experience in higher education enrollment management, corporate sales and marketing management, and congressional constituent work. With Suttle-Straus Kate develops unique and creative communication plans for non-profit and faith-based donor solicitation, retention, and acquisition communications using an omni-channel marketing approach with hyper-personalized content. She has presented at national and international higher education and not for profit organizations conferences. In 2019 Kate published a memoir about caregiving for a parent with dementia: Breakfast Memories ~ A Dementia Love Story. The book received a Gold Seal “selected read” by Alzauthors.org.

Shannon Craig 🍎

Shannon Craig 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, Craig graduated from the University of Connecticut with her Bachelors in Communication and holds a Masters in Public Policy with an Educational Policy concentration from UMass Dartmouth.

Meg Cummins 🍎

Meg Cummins is the Associate Director of Annual Giving at Bryant University and a digital fundraising strategist with more than seven years of experience driving engagement and philanthropic growth across higher education and nonprofit organizations. She leads data-informed, multi-channel fundraising strategies spanning email, web, CRM, and marketing automation, building scalable and sustainable donor engagement beyond traditional giving day models. At Bryant, Meg oversees digital-forward annual giving initiatives and has driven growth through signature campaigns like Bryant Giving Day, leveraging analytics, emerging tools, and cross-functional collaboration to expand participation and long-term impact. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mass media communications from Rhode Island College.

Wally Fisher 🍎

Wally Fisher is a Partner Success Manager at GiveCampus, where he helps higher educational institutions in the Northeast optimize their fundraising and volunteer engagement strategies. With a strong background in advancement, Wally previously served as Associate Director of Annual Giving at Vassar College, where he led initiatives to increase volunteer activity and dollars raised through targeted appeals. Passionate about the importance of higher education, he’s excited to continue to highlight the great work advancement professionals do to keep it accessible.

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 its alumni. Since launching in 2017, Boost has grown to work with more than 300 K-12 advancement teams across the US to raise $50M+ every year.

Katie Grant 🍎

Katie Grant is the Director of The Peddie Fund and Family Giving at The Peddie School. She oversees The Peddie Fund, developing integrated marketing and solicitation strategies to inspire alumni, parents, and friends to contribute annually, increase donor participation, and expand philanthropic support for the school. Prior to joining Peddie in August 2022, Katie began her career in higher education advancement, working in Alumni Relations before transitioning into Development. She is a graduate of Franklin & Marshall College, where she was an All-American swimmer, and she remains passionate about fostering lifelong connections between alumni and their alma mater.

Mark W. Harris 🍏

As Senior Managing Director of the Dartmouth College Fund at Dartmouth College, Mark leads a team of volunteer managers and oversees class-based fundraising strategy, driving both leadership-level giving and broad alumni participation. He manages a portfolio of classes, partnering closely with volunteer leaders to advance annual fund priorities and implement targeted class initiatives that deepen engagement and increase philanthropic support. With more than a decade of experience at Dartmouth, Mark previously served as Senior Managing Director of Athletics Giving. He has also held fundraising roles at Loyola University Maryland and Northeastern University. Mark holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Bucknell University and a Master of Sports Leadership from Northeastern University.

Patrick Hewett 🍏

Pat Hewett joined Endicott College as the Vice President for Institutional Advancement in July 2021. Prior to arriving at Endicott, Pat was the Vice President for Advancement at Catholic Charities of Boston where he led all fundraising and marketing and communication efforts. During Pat’s 3+ years at Catholic Charities, one of the largest social service Agencies in the Commonwealth, annual fundraising grew from $5.3 to $9.8m. Prior to Catholic Charities, Pat served as Director of Leadership Gifts at Boston University during their historic $1.8B capital campaign.

Catie Hsieh 🍏

Catie Hsieh is a fundraising professional serving as the Giving Initiatives Program Strategist at MIT, where she leads donor engagement efforts with a primary focus on managing the Institute’s Giving Day and GivingTuesday programs. She brings extensive experience in annual giving and philanthropy from her previous roles at Northeastern University and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Catie holds a B.S. in Mass Communication/Media Studies from Boston University and an M.S. in Nonprofit Management from Northeastern University.

Alicia Johnson 🍏

Alicia Johnson is Associate Director of Development at the University of Rhode Island Foundation, with 9+ years of experience across nonprofit and higher education and expertise in major gifts, annual giving, parent engagement, and Giving Day strategy. Known for her collaborative, donor centered approach, she has successfully built meaningful donor relationships and mobilized broad based support for institutional priorities.

Traci Scott Karro, MBA 🍏

Traci Karro is Director of the Pennington Fund at the Pennington School.

Paul Klenk 🍎

Paul Klenk is the CEO at GetThru, bringing over 20 years of experience in academia and university services. After earning a PhD in Engineering at Duke University, he developed K-12 engineering curricula, reflecting his passion for education and innovation. After getting his MBA, he transitioned to the private sector, helping researchers publish their work at Research Square, where he played a key role in product management, marketing, and finance. Over the past two years, he has led GetThru in supporting donor engagement through P2P texting for approximately 200 schools and launched the company’s Customer Advisory Board for higher education.

Rob Lewis 🍏

Rob Lewis is Director, Annual Giving at the Friedman School of Nutrition, Science and Policy at Tufts University.

Christi Lumiere 🍏

Christi Lumiere (she/her) is the Executive Director of Annual Giving at Bowdoin College where she leads one of the nation’s top-performing annual giving teams in inspiring more than $13 million annually from over 10,000 alumni, families, students, and friends. With twenty years of advancement experience, including more than eight years at Bowdoin, she has worked across higher education and performing arts/arts institutions, bringing a donor-centric approach grounded in data and collaboration.

Molly McGarry 🍎

Sylvia Racca 🍏

Sylvia Racca is Executive Director, Dartmouth College Fund at Dartmouth College. Sylvia Racca joined Dartmouth in December 2002 as the Executive Director of the Dartmouth College Fund and has been in higher education fundraising for 30 years. Before Dartmouth she served in advancement at Scripps College in Claremont, California – first as the Director of the Annual Fund and then as Director of Development. She started her career in higher education development as an Assistant Director in the Alumnae Fund of Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Before transitioning to higher education, Sylvia spent ten years at Atlantic Equity Corporation in Boston, where she syndicated tax-advantaged investments in commercial, historic, and multifamily real estate throughout the United States. Sylvia is adopted by the great Dartmouth Class of 1983 and has her Master’s Degree from Dartmouth’s Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies. She resides with her beloved dog Spot on the scenic slopes of Mount Cardigan in Orange, New Hampshire.

Rachel Riani 🍏

Rachel Riani is Associate Director, Annual Giving, at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University.

Rebecca Scott 🍏

Rebecca Scott is Associate Vice President, University Advancement, at Tufts University.

Alison Shore 🍎

Alison Shore is with Excalibur Direct Marketing. A 20 + year veteran in marketing and advertising, helping non-profits, hospitals and universities transform marketing strategies across digital platforms and traditional channels. She is known for designing cost-effective campaigns that deliver measurable ROI while seamlessly integrating omnichannel approaches to maximize client reach and engagement. Allison’s expertise spans the full marketing ecosystem—from email automation and social media optimization to targeted direct mail campaigns and comprehensive analytics. Allison is a native of North Carolina and loves to explore both the mountains and the beaches of her state with her family and friends whenever she gets the chance.

Gina Simonelli 🍎

Gina Simonelli is Director, Annual Initiatives at the University of Rhode Island. With more than twenty years of experience in higher education and university advancement, Gina is a seasoned professional specializing in annual giving, donor relations, alumni engagement, and strategic programming. She currently serves as Director for Annual Initiatives at the University of Rhode Island Foundation, where she provides leadership for comprehensive annual giving strategies that strengthen engagement and philanthropic support. A strategic and collaborative leader, Gina is known for her ability to build strong teams, optimize resources, increase operational efficiencies, and design impactful programs that advance institutional priorities. She holds a BS and MS from the University of Rhode Island and is a former CASE District I Rising Star award recipient.

Christine Soutter 🍏

Christine has spent the past four years at Gravyty supporting institutions across both community engagement and fundraising initiatives. As a Customer Success Manager, she partners with education and nonprofit organizations to strategically maximize their community and fundraising platforms, helping them drive meaningful engagement and philanthropic growth. Drawing on her experience in both engagement and advancement strategy, Christine is passionate about building strong, connected communities that give back — both philanthropically and through active involvement.

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.

Kellie Sullivan 🍎

Kellie Sullivan is the Senior Director of Annual Giving at Boston University. Kellie oversees the multi-channel fundraising marketing and outreach to Boston University Alumni, Parents and Friends. Kellie and team oversee Giving Day, BU Crowdfunding, direct mail, telefund, email, texting, and student philanthropy. Prior to joining BU Kellie was Director of Annual Giving at the University of Texas at Austin and was call center manager at the University of South Carolina and Wayne State University. Kellie holds a bachelor’s degree from New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark NJ.

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.

Ryan Talbert 🍏

Ryan Talbert is Vice President of Client Services with
Excalibur Direct Marketing. Ryan Talbert is Vice President of Client Services at Excalibur Direct Marketing, where he brings over five years of expertise in providing consultative marketing and data services to non-profit and for-profit clients. With a passion for connecting organizations with their donors and prospects, Ryan designs, develops, and coordinates comprehensive campaigns that span printing, direct mail, and digital outreach, ensuring excellence through innovative strategies. Leveraging cutting-edge AI tools and targeted digital micro-modeling, he uncovers high-potential prospects to maximize ROI and drive fundraising success. Prior to his current role, Ryan spent 11 years with Apple, Inc. working in B2B sales. Ryan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Fine and Studio Arts from Solent University and enjoys integrating his creative background into strategic communication plans. Outside of work, he enjoys running with his wife, his three pugs and is excited to contribute his insights as a first-time NEAGC faculty member.

Amanda Tsapatsaris 🍎
Conference Committee

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

Marium Waqar 🍏

Marium Waqar is Assistant Director of Annual Giving at Rowan University.

Elyse Wallnutt 🍏

Elyse Wallnutt is Founder and Principal, Agility Lab Consulting.

Virginia Webb 🍎
Conference Committee

Ginny Webb is Director of Development at Blessed Sacrament School in Holyoke, MA and is a long-time member of the NEAGC planning committee. Ginny has had 25+ years of experience in the development arena with a focus in higher education, animal welfare and faith based fundraising. An alumnae of Catholic education she is a graduate of her parish elementary school in New York, Assumption School; attended high school at Ladycliff Academy; holds a Bachelor’s degree from Our Lady of Good Counsel College in White Plains, NY; and, a Master’s in Applied Theology from Our Lady of the Elms College in Chicopee. Ginny has been an Adjunct Professor in the Non Profit Management and Philanthropy Department of Bay Path College in Longmeadow teaching graduate students the art of annual giving and donor relations. Former president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and Chair of Newman’s Development Board, Virginia hails from Blessed Sacrament Parish in Holyoke. She enjoys reading, ballroom dancing, playing with her dogs and being with her family.