People

Writing – proposals, reports, case statements and collateral materials. Prospect identification and research.

koranee@capacitypartners.com

Koranee has 25 years of experience across local, state, and national levels in the nonprofit sector, and with a focus on community relations, government affairs, financial, organizational and grant management, strategic consultation, and program design.

A native Atlantan, Koranee has both her B.A. and M.A. from Emory University.

Arts for the Aging

Koranee sits on the Board of Directors for the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, MD, and serves as the co-chair for its Security Task Force offering expertise in grants and government affairs.

In her free time, she continues her lifelong love of learning, and reading voraciously about history and religion. She also enjoys listening to podcasts, hiking outdoors, anything science fiction, cooking Sephardic dishes, and spending time with her husband, two teenagers, and cuddly Havanese puppy.

“Nothing in life just happens. It isn’t enough to believe in something; you have to have the stamina to meet the obstacles and overcome the struggle.” – Golda Meir

Leadership Coaching, Strategic Planning, Fundraising, Nonprofit Leadership, Marketing

nancy@capacitypartners.com

Nancy Leopold is an experienced nonprofit executive, with skills in strategic planning, marketing, leadership, fundraising, community outreach, and leadership coaching.  She co-founded and led CollegeTracks, a highly successful college access and success program, for 16 years. Nancy has a proven ability to innovate, implement, and achieve results.

Before CollegeTracks, Nancy spent 15 years running Nancy Leopold Marketing, a marketing and public health consulting practice. Nancy learned traditional marketing methods at General Foods, acquired social marketing skills at Porter Novelli, and got a close look at for-profit health care management while Assistant Vice President of Marketing at NME’s Psychiatric Institutes of America.

Nancy received a B.A. in History from Brown University, an MBA in Marketing from the Wharton School, and a Masters in Health Science degree in Health Policy at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.

Nancy served on the board of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS Educational Foundation. She currently serves on the board of MOCO Lacrosse, a nonprofit that teaches lacrosse to children in under-estimated communities.

Nancy and her family have been in Montgomery County for 40 years. She lives with her husband, Jeff, and is very proud of her two grown children.

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.”

–Philo of Alexandria (maybe)

Communications Strategy, Media Relations, Social Media and Website Content Development

charlotte@capacitypartners.com

Charlotte Garvey is an experienced communications professional with an extensive career in nonprofit, journalistic, and corporate settings as a writer, editor, and content developer. She served as communications manager and director for two major Montgomery County nonprofits, Interfaith Works and Montgomery Housing Partnership. In those roles she has expanded the organizations’ social media presence and helped manage rebrands and website relaunches. Strengths include branding/messaging, communications strategy/planning, social media content development, and media relations. She believes in the power of a simple, declarative sentence to tell a good story.

George Washington University

BA in Journalism; Political Science Minor

Charlotte is an avid recreational runner. She also enjoys gardening, cooking, kayaking, and exploring the Chesapeake Bay.

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky

Grant writing, board development, program design and evaluation, and strategic planning.

kristen@capacitypartners.com

Kristen is a nonprofit leader with experience at all sizes of nonprofits, from startups to established national associations. Her 17 years in the fields of arts and education provide her with solid expertise in growing nonprofit organizations and helping them thrive.

She currently serves as the Director of Strategic Operations at ArtsUP! LA, a small theatre company in Los Angeles. She began with ArtsUP! as a teaching artist in 2003, helped the company incorporate as a nonprofit in 2007, and served on the board of directors until 2021. Her work at ArtsUP! has a laser-like focus on accessibility and inclusion in the arts.

Prior to becoming a full-time staff member of ArtsUP! in 2016, Kristen served as the Arts Education Policy Manager at Americans for the Arts for five years. There she was responsible for promoting public policies that advance arts education throughout the country. She was a prolific blogger, a frequent speaker at national conferences, the author of numerous white papers and e-books, and was the mastermind behind the brand of publications, videos, and toolkits called the Arts Education Field Guide and the Arts Education Navigator.

Before moving to DC, she served at several arts organizations in Los Angeles, including the Music Center and the LA County Arts Commission. She has also been a teaching artist with several education organizations. Her passion lies in transforming schools, communities, and lives through the power of the arts.

Harvard Graduate School of Education, Master of Education, Arts in Education

University of Southern California, Bachelor of Arts, Dance, Kinesiology, and Education

Dixie College, Associate of Arts, Music and General Studies

Arts for the Aging, Montgomery Coalition for Adult English Literacy

Kristen works remotely for all of her current clients from her home in Takoma Park, Maryland with her daughter and dog, where she is an active volunteer with the Girl Scouts and an avid explorer of the U.S. National Parks.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

Nonprofit Management, Development Strategy, Board Development, Leadership Coaching, Event Strategy

amys@capacitypartners.com

Amy Selco’s career spans 20 years of experience in external affairs, strategic partnership development, and major fundraising initiatives for social change and non-profit organizations in the arts, youth development, public diplomacy, sports diplomacy and higher education. Previously Amy has held executive positions with Venture Philanthropy Partners, Meridian International Center, PeacePlayers International and Round House Theatre.

Ithaca College, Bachelor of Arts, Media Studies

Harvard University, Masters in Education, Administration, Policy and Planning

NextStop Theatre, Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Laureus Sport for Good NYC

Amy is the Secretary of the Board of Trustees at Round House Theatre, where she also chairs the EDIA committee. She also serves as the representative to the Montgomery County Public Schools Bethesda-Chevy Chase Cluster.

Amy loves spending time with her husband Kevin Keeley and their two sons. Her favorites things include “ah-ha” moments, eating good food, dancing and exploring cities.

“Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Grant writing, board development, program design and evaluation, and strategic planning.

kristen@capacitypartners.com

Kristen is a nonprofit leader with experience at all sizes of nonprofits, from startups to established national associations. Her 17 years in the fields of arts and education provide her with solid expertise in growing nonprofit organizations and helping them thrive.

She currently serves as the Director of Strategic Operations at ArtsUP! LA, a small theatre company in Los Angeles. She began with ArtsUP! as a teaching artist in 2003, helped the company incorporate as a nonprofit in 2007, and served on the board of directors until 2021. Her work at ArtsUP! has a laser-like focus on accessibility and inclusion in the arts.

Prior to becoming a full-time staff member of ArtsUP! in 2016, Kristen served as the Arts Education Policy Manager at Americans for the Arts for five years. There she was responsible for promoting public policies that advance arts education throughout the country. She was a prolific blogger, a frequent speaker at national conferences, the author of numerous white papers and e-books, and was the mastermind behind the brand of publications, videos, and toolkits called the Arts Education Field Guide and the Arts Education Navigator.

Before moving to DC, she served at several arts organizations in Los Angeles, including the Music Center and the LA County Arts Commission. She has also been a teaching artist with several education organizations. Her passion lies in transforming schools, communities, and lives through the power of the arts.

Harvard Graduate School of Education, Master of Education, Arts in Education

University of Southern California, Bachelor of Arts, Dance, Kinesiology, and Education

Dixie College, Associate of Arts, Music and General Studies

Arts for the Aging, Montgomery Coalition for Adult English Literacy

Kristen works remotely for all of her current clients from her home in Takoma Park, Maryland with her daughter and dog, where she is an active volunteer with the Girl Scouts and an avid explorer of the U.S. National Parks.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

Capital campaign planning and implementation; Major gifts fundraising; Volunteer recruitment and training; Annual renewable fundraising campaign planning, design and implementation; Prospect identification, research, cultivation, solicitation, acknowledgement and stewardship; Staff recruitment and training; Writing – proposals, case statements, direct mail

barbara@capacitypartners.com

Barbara Wille has over 30 years of fundraising and administrative experience, serving educational, medical, social service, LGBTQ, and animal welfare non-profits, as well as running the executive search division of a national consulting firm and serving as founding head of a Quaker elementary school. Currently, on a part-time basis, Barbara heads fundraising efforts at Greenwell Foundation, a non-profit that designs and implements inclusive, outdoor therapeutic and environmental programming for people with and without disabilities.

BS – Political Science
BS – Communication
BA – Early Childhood Education
Northwestern University

Avalon Theater Project, Thornton Friends School, Grace Episcopal Day School, Many Voices, Manna Food Center, Foxie G Foundation

Chairperson – Northern Virginia Area Special Olympics Soccer program, serving more than 700 athletes
Side Walker – Lift me Up Therapeutic Riding Program
Fundraising Co-Chair, Campaign for Friends School Haverford, Campaign for Stratford Friends School,
911 Call to the Community – Narberth Community Ambulance
Board Member – Northern Virginia Friends School, Thornton Friends School
Active in local, regional and national political campaigns

Barbara has been immersed in non-profit fundraising since college, where she first interned in the Development Office. She met her husband at Northwestern, and is mother to 3 wonderful, very different young men. Her oldest has developmental disabilities, which fueled her dedication to Special Olympics.  Her middle son is Brooklyn-based, an international consultant like his Dad and her third is currently spending 6-months in a tent in the Idaho wilderness with AmeriCorps. Favorite things to do include hiking with family and dog, working out, reading, yoga, and sailing on the Patuxent River and the Chesapeake. Barbara has always worked in politics, and is committed to social justice for individuals with disabilities, for animals, for young children and for the LGBTQ community. She’s been lucky to have many of her professional experiences overlap with her passions and looks forward to additional opportunities.​

“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm”

juliem@capacitypartners.com

Julie Meyer has worked for over 30 years in the non-profit sector as volunteer, staff, management, founder, and board member for small to medium-sized organizations in the areas of social services, international development and policy, health care, and education. She has worked with grassroots and activist organizations, the community service sector and the philanthropic community. In addition to her extensive management experience, Ms. Meyer has helped found numerous organizations and re-structure others to better fulfill their goals. Most recently, she was the Executive Director of The Next Step Public Charter School in Columbia Heights, DC’s oldest charter school, for thirteen years. TNS is a bilingual GED and ESL program for older “disconnected” youth ages 16-24 with full-time day and part-time evening programs and extensive wraparound services. Ms. Meyer oversaw the school’s rapid growth in size and program offerings, facility acquisition, re-chartering and re-accreditation, and rise to “tier one” rank. She has been a tireless advocate for disconnected youth and immigrants. Ms. Meyer founded the New England Central America Network and represented the New England region for CISPES. She helped found and direct The Lambi Fund of Haiti and Grantmakers Without Borders. She is fluent in Spanish and has worked primarily in the areas of Latin American policy and development, the local, DC Latino community, and education issues.

Leadership, nonprofit management, board governance, and site development

dan@capacitypartners.com

Daniel Wacker is a management consultant, negotiator and attorney with a backgound in organizational leadership, board governance, and site development. Dan has over thirty years of leadership experience as an officer in the Air Force, both active (1971-1980) and reserve (1980-1998), and as an attorney with the Office of General Counsel of Mobil Oil Corporation (1981-2000). During both his military and Mobil careers, Dan spent much of his time on postings outside the United States in France, Korea, Japan, Germany and England. While in the Air Force, Dan served as a Judge Advocate involved in investigations and litigation in Asia and Europe including a two-year assignment as a circuit prosecutor in countries throughout NATO. While in Mobil, Dan negotiated major development projects throughout the world, conducted due diligence investigations, served on the boards of foreign affiliated companies, and led the legal departments of several affiliates. When Dan retired from Mobil after its merger with Exxon Corporation, he was the Deputy Worldwide Managing Counsel of Mobil’s 230+ lawyer worldwide legal department.

Cert. de Scolarite, 1970, L’Ecole de l’Air (The French Air Force Academy)
B.S., Distinguished Graduate, U.S. Air Force Academy, 1971
J.D., cum laude, Harvard Law School, 1974
Visiting Fellow, East Asian Legal Studies, Harvard Law School, 1981
Member of the bars of Wisconsin and New York

School for Friends, Chesapeake Montessori School, BoardMatch Montgomery

Dan is a former board chairman and capital campaign co-chairman of the Washington Waldorf School in Bethesda, MD, where he negotiated a 30-year lease with Montgomery County for a school building and oversaw a $7 million renovation of the leased facility. Dan regularly volunteers at Shepherd’s Table in Silver Spring that serves daily meals to the County’s homeless population and other less fortunate members of the community.

Dan is a member of the Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs which meets twice a month to discuss major issues of foreign policy with members of the Washington foreign policy establishment. When not traveling internationally or serving his Capacity Partners clients, he will often be in his woodworking studio designing and building pieces of furniture using Asian techniques of joinery.

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

Development, Capital Campaigns, Strategic Planning, Nonprofit Management

stephanie@capacitypartners.com

Stephanie brings a diverse nonprofit background with experience in strategic planning, fundraising, board leadership, leadership development, program and volunteer management. At Capacity Partners, Stephanie has worked on strategic planning and fundraising projects for clients, including strategic planning for Loudoun Youth and Loudoun Commission on Women and Girls. She managed a year-long individual giving campaign for Arts for the Aging, worked with another Capacity Partners consultant to provide a development plan to NextStop Theatre Company in Herndon, VA, and conducted a capital campaign feasibility study for The Puppet Company. Stephanie has a strong interest in leadership and organizational change, and she currently facilitates an online course titled Leading Healthy Teams for National Arts Strategies’ Executive Program in Arts and Culture Strategy.

In previous roles, Stephanie managed a capital campaign and annual fund for a small private school and served as Leadership Development Program Manager for the national arts advocacy organization Americans for the Arts. In a volunteer capacity, she has co-chaired the DC Emerging Arts Leaders Network, participated as a grants panelist for both the Arts Council of Fairfax County and Alexandria Commission for the Arts, and chaired the board of directors and development committee for Arts on the Horizon, a theatre company that produces interactive and non-verbal performances for children ages 0 – 6 and their families.

Stephanie holds an undergraduate degree in Music Performance from Miami University of Ohio, and an M.A. in Arts Management from American University. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and two young children.

Miami University of Ohio, Bachelors in Music Performance
American University, Masters, Arts Management

Arts for the Aging, Chevy Chase Recreation Association, The Child Care & Learning Center, Dumbarton House Museum, EveryMind, Loudoun Youth, Loudoun Commission on Women & Girls (LCWAG), Manna Food Center, Montgomery Coalition for Adult English Literacy (MCAEL), NextStop Theatre, The Puppet Co., Virginia Women’s Equality Coalition

Development Committee, Washington Waldorf School

A favorite day for Stephanie includes an early morning hike, spending time with her husband and young children at home or in their hometown of Vienna, VA, and ending the day with yoga and a good book.

“Never regret a day in your life; good days give happiness, bad days give experience, worst days give lessons, and best days give memories.” – Anonymous