Eleanor Smith, our Lead Instructor, brings over three decades of experience in the social sector. She has held diverse roles, including foundation grantmaker, nonprofit Development Director, and Board member. Eleanor's expertise extends to program development, strategy, evaluation, and fundraising. She is not only a seasoned workshop trainer but has also been a long-time university instructor. Eleanor serves as a leadership coach and is the founder of Legs on Dreams Leadership Coaching, where she empowers social sector leaders to clarify priorities, establish boundaries to prevent burnout, and thrive. To learn more about her work, visit: www.legsondreamscoaching.com. In addition to the Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector session. In addition to Week 1 Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector, Eleanor teaches Program Development (Week 2) and Leadership Essentials (Week 10)

Gayle brings over 25 years of nonprofit management experience, including service on five nonprofit boards. She specializes in strategic leadership and governance best practices. As board chair for one nonprofit, she led a comprehensive rewrite of the group’s governance policies. A seasoned fundraiser, she has raised more than $200 million for Bay Area causes and has trained other fundraisers who collectively raise over $1 billion annually. She is passionate about fostering inclusive communities that embrace diversity across race, class, gender, and ability, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to contribute meaningfully.

Corey Newhouse serves as the Founder and Principal of Public Profit, an evaluation consulting firm. Before founding Public Profit in 2007, Corey held positions as a Senior Policy Associate with Children Now and as an Associate with HTA, a strategy and fundraising consulting firm. Corey earned her MPP at UC Berkeley and her BA at Columbia College. At Public Profit, Corey leads the team in setting strategic direction, building external relationships, and driving business development. She also plays a vital role as an internal thought partner to project teams, assisting with the firm's engagements in evaluation, capacity building, and strategic program design. Corey has co-authored numerous guides for Public Profit, including "Creative Ways to Solicit Stakeholder Feedback" and "Dabbling in the Data."

Lorianne Lee is a Senior Professional in Human Resources specializing in nonprofit management. Before working in HR, Lorianne devoted nearly two decades to teaching elementary school and training other educators. Her gifts of administration and project management transferred seamlessly to Human Resources. Lorianne’s background in education is evident in the way she prioritizes setting employees up for success and advocating for their training and development. Serving as an HR Department of one, Lorianne gained firsthand experience with many HR disciplines over the years. As an HR Manager, she managed the day-to-day operations for multiple mid-sized nonprofits supporting employees and protecting the organizations.

Lorianne utilizes her HR expertise, operational experience, strategic thinking, and passion for employee engagement and development to help her nonprofits. Her love of food and hospitality often results in treating clients to homemade goodies. Lorianne’s ability to help people feel seen and included is a testament to her commitment to putting the human back in Human Resources.

Marty Low is a faculty member at the Design Strategy MBA program at California College of the Arts, known for his expertise in integrating innovation and creativity into quantitative business models. His teaching portfolio includes subjects such as Accounting, Operations, Strategic Management, and multi-day learning journeys on business and digital transformation. Marty is a strategist and consultant experienced in both the nonprofit and private sectors. He specializes in working with high-growth organizations and operates a small financial and accounting services firm in the San Francisco Bay Area. Marty holds an MBA and a BS in Accounting and has certifications in Global Health Leadership, Coaching, and Facilitation.

Melissa Perez is a founder of Upstream Philanthropy, a nonprofit management consulting firm specializing in helping nonprofits of all sizes navigate growth challenges. Prior to founding Upstream in 2023, Melissa spent several years as a Senior Consultant at Glavin Jacobson Consulting where she played a pivotal role in helping clients secure their first large gifts from donors and increase volunteer leadership involvement. With expertise in annual fund management, major gifts, foundation and corporate grants, Melissa also excels in managing complex corporate partnerships and development office team leadership. Throughout her career, Melissa has artfully combined volunteerism and philanthropy to create meaningful experiences for colleagues, board members, and funding partners. She boasts a career spanning both nonprofit and corporate spheres, having worked with organizations such as United Way, the San Francisco Opera, AT&T, and small nonprofit start-ups. Melissa currently serves as the president of the board of Development Executives Roundtable (DER) and teaches in California State University East Bay's Nonprofit Management Certificate Program

Tim Mooney has guided nonprofits through the maze of political and tax-exempt law for over two decades. His ability to present legal concepts in an interesting and accessible way is heightened by his passion for making a positive difference for every community. At the heart of his work, Tim empowers organizations to elevate their impact, challenge the status quo and drive meaningful progress. He has served as senior counsel at Alliance for Justice and co-founded Columbia Riverkeeper. He received his BS in Environmental Studies from Syracuse University SUNY College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry and his JD from Pace University Haub School of Law.