OUR TEAM
NPC is proud to work with the following independent consultants when additional expertise or capacity may be required. These experts have worked closely with NPC and provide outstanding service to clients while maintaining NPC's standards of professionalism, proficiency and work ethic. Their services can be accessed as part of the scope of work for an NPC project or accessed individually through their own websites.
Karrie Zuccarello
Philanthropic Consultant
As an experienced frontline fundraiser within large and small organizations, Karrie has a unique understanding of donor development across sectors. By focusing on relationship management with a process and data-driven approach, Karrie helps organizations bring their full potential to fruition.
Prior to nonprofit consulting, Karrie served as Chief Development Officer at Conner Prairie where she led the development team of nine professional fundraisers in securing the organization’s largest foundation grant, largest corporate partnership agreement and oversaw the completion of major gift fundraising for capital projects.
Previously, Karrie worked in higher-education fundraising at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business during the university’s $4.5 billion campaign. During her tenure, she served as Associate Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations and later as Associate Director of Major Gifts. Following her work at the University of Chicago, Karrie served as Director of Development at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs with a focus on major gift development and the school’s first unit-based annual fund program.
Karrie started her fundraising career at the March of Dimes where she served in two offices: Allentown, Pennsylvania and Chicago, Illinois. With the March of Dimes, she mastered the “soup to nuts” mindset of grassroots nonprofit before honing her skill as a focused fundraiser, eventually managing one of the national organization’s top-grossing special events.
Karrie has BS in nonprofit administration from Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and has completed executive education programs through the Chicago Management Institute at the Booth School of Business and the Center for Creative Leadership.
Karrie can be contacted at Karrie@EvolvePhilanthropy.com.
William C. Riley
Strategic Counsel and Writer
William C. “Bill” Riley is an NPC associate and the founder and president of William C. Riley and Associates, a communications consulting firm focused on branding, public relations, and strategic communications in education and healthcare.
Bill has a unique perspective on higher education, including experience as a fundraiser and a ten-year career as a college faculty member that includes directing the Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods College professional writing program. He has experience serving higher education development offices, including Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, DePauw University, and Franklin College, through creating case statements for major initiatives.
Most recently, Bill served as the Director of Communications for Indiana's tenth-largest public school district. Bill lives in Franklin, Indiana, and holds a bachelor’s degree from DePauw University and a Master of Fine Arts from The Ohio State University.
Bill can be contacted at WilliamCRiley@gmail.com.
Dana S. Cummings, EdD, CFRE
Philanthropic Consultant
Dana S. Cummings, EdD is a nonprofit and higher education fundraising and advancement leader with two decades of experience. She most recently served as Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Franklin College where she oversaw all development, alumni engagement, and communications functions for the institution. Prior to her time at Franklin, Dr. Cummings worked for DePauw University and Indiana University, leading teams and raising funds in support of scholarships, capital projects, endowment, and operating needs.
Dr. Cummings is an alumna of DePauw University, where she majored in anthropology and received a Bachelor of Arts degree, and then went on to receive a Master of Public Affairs (MPA) degree from the Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University. Dr. Cummings completed her doctorate in education (EdD) in May of 2024 at Creighton University, and also holds a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential from the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP).
Dr. Cummings has served on a number of nonprofit boards over the course of her career, including President of Girls Inc. of Monroe County, the Owen County Community Foundation, and the American Council for Education Women’s Network of Indiana. She is passionate about supporting those who need it and making a positive contribution in the world is her continued career goal. She and her husband live on 20 acres outside of Franklin, Indiana, with their three children, where they happily raise Katahdin sheep and chickens.
Dana can be contacted at Dana@DanaStarrCummings.com.
William E. Pike, M.Div.
Writer
Bill Pike has been working with higher education, not-for-profits, government, and ministry for over 25 years. He spent over a decade working in both stewardship and planned giving at DePauw University, much of that time in close coordination with colleague Melanie Norton. He currently manages the marketing efforts of a design/build firm specializing in churches.
An Ohio native, Bill received his bachelor’s degree in Government from Harvard University and, after a short stint on Capitol Hill, spent nearly four years working for the South Dakota State Legislature. He then completed a Master of Divinity degree magna cum laude from Duke University’s School of Divinity. He is an ordained minister and pastors a rural United Methodist congregation in west-central Indiana.
Writing is Bill’s forte and avocation. He reviews books for Kirkus and has published over two dozen magazine articles. Bill believes deeply in the power of philanthropy and the importance of higher education. A past president of the Harvard Club of Indiana, he has also been an active leader in the John Harvard Society, Harvard’s planned giving organization.
Cathy R. Sheffield
MBA, CAP®, CFRE, CSPG
Philanthropic Consultant
Cathy R. Sheffield is a fundraising executive with over 20-years experience, specializing in major gifts and gift planning. She is President of ThinkGiving, a consulting firm based in Fort Worth, Texas, which specializes in strategic philanthropy for nonprofits and individuals and in providing leadership and comprehensive major and planned gift consulting services to nonprofit organizations of all sizes. Cathy is also a Vice President with Thompson & Associates, offering estate planning services to nonprofits. Cathy has experience in healthcare and education for organizations such as All Saints Health Foundation, Texas Health Resources Foundation, Cook Children’s Health Foundation, Texas Christian University, The University of Texas at Arlington and the American Diabetes Association. Prior to living in North Texas, Cathy lived in Washington, DC and worked on Capitol Hill for United States Senator Byron L. Dorgan of North Dakota.
Cathy is the immediate Past-Chair of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners (formerly the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning), served as the 2015 Chair of the National Conference on Philanthropic Planning. Cathy is also a member of the CGP Leadership Institute, a program that provides education, networking and service opportunities for the nation’s most experienced charitable planners. Locally, Cathy is a member and past president of the Lone Star Council of PPP (Fort Worth) and a member and past officer of the North Texas Chapter of PPP (Dallas). In 2015, Cathy was honored by the Fort Worth Metro Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals with The Ben Franklin Award for the Outstanding Professional Fundraising Executive. In May, 2017, Cathy was given the Star Award from the Lone Star Council of Charitable Gift Planners for outstanding service to the council and profession.
Cathy received her MBA from Texas Christian University’s Neeley School of Business and a Bachelor of Science from North Dakota State University. Cathy is a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®), Certified Specialist in Planned Giving (CSPG), and a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE).
In her personal life, Cathy is a member of the Fort Worth Women’s Club and the Fort Worth Club. Cathy is a past-president of the board of directors for Camp Sanguinity, a camp for children with cancer and blood disorders. In addition to serving on the board for Camp Sanguinity, Cathy and her husband, Scott, volunteer as camp counselors for the week-long summer camp. Cathy and her husband reside in Fort Worth, Texas where they enjoy spending time with their 10-year old grandson.
You can reach Cathy through her website, www.ThinkGiving.com.
Lynn Malzone Ierardi, JD
Philanthropic Consultant
Lynn Malzone Ierardi, J.D. has been in the estate and gift planning field for more than 30 years. She has served as Director of Gift Planning for the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) since 2005 and as an independent gift planning consultant (www.GiftPlanningAdvisor.com, founded in 2002). Prior to joining Penn, she held gift planning positions in health and higher education, served as Vice President with the Merrill Lynch Center for Philanthropy and practiced estate planning and real estate law.
Lynn served as the 2019 Board Chair of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners (CGP), is a member of the CGP Leadership Institute, and a regular faculty member for the Planned Giving Course. She has been a member of CGP since 1993. She is a past board member and past President of the New Jersey Council of Charitable Gift Planners and a current board member of the Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia (PGCGP).
Lynn is the author of Storytelling: The Secret Sauce of Fundraising Success. As a dynamic and highly rated speaker, Lynn has presented at conferences and meetings internationally on a variety of gift planning topics. Lynn is a graduate of Lycoming College and Fordham University School of Law, and is a Proud Penn Parent - times two!
You can reach Lynn through her website, www.GiftPlanningAdvisor.com.
Alexandra Pia Brovey, JD, LLM
Philanthropic Consultant
Alexandra Pia Brovey, JD, LLM is the Senior Director, Gift Planning at Northwell Health Foundation in New Hyde Park, New York. Alex has worked in gift planning for over twenty years at four non-profit organizations (Penn State, Pace University, Stony Brook and Northwell). Earlier in her career she focused on estate planning and charitable gift planning as a member of the Delaware, Pennsylvania and New York bars.
Alex is a President Emeritus and mentor of the Philanthropic Planning Group of Greater New York in New York City. Alex is a past Board member and Treasurer of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners, where she served as Chair of the Leadership Institute in 2018-2019. She is a frequent lecturer across the United States on topics related to charitable giving, and has had articles published in several national publications.
Alex earned a B.A. from The Pennsylvania State University, Phi Beta Kappa, a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, and an LL.M. in Estate Planning from the University of Miami School of Law. Alex has a published trilogy of books: Zen and the Art of Fundraising: 8 Pillars of Success, and Zen and the Art of Fundraising: 8 More Pillars of Success, both published by CharityChannel press in 2018, and Zen and the Art of Fundraising: The Pillars in Practice, published by CharityChannel Press in 2019.
In her spare time, she enjoys blogging (LinkedIn or alexandrabrovey.com) and is working on a young adult series based on the 16 pillars of success.
You can reach Alex through her website, www.AlexandraBrovey.com.