NEDRA Directors Roundtable (In-Person)
Thursday, January 29, 2026
12:30PM- 2PM ET
Boston Children's Hospital Trust
Landmark Newton Conference Room
401 Park Drive, Suite 602
Boston, MA 02215
Optional Networking to Follow
Trillium Brewing - Fenway (right outside 401 Park Drive)
2PM-3PM
Join us for the return of the in-person NEDRA Directors Roundtable! Our esteemed panel will discuss the challenges and opportunities facing managers working in the prospect development field.
The Directors Roundtable is recommended for all those in a supervisory role (assistant directors, managers, etc.) or who are involved in departmental decision making. Registration is limited to nonprofit professionals in the prospect development field.
Key Topics May Include:
Advocating for your team
Trends and evolution in the prospect development field
Ethical and responsible use of AI tools
Balancing management with other responsibilities
Staff hiring, training, and retention
And more!
What's on your mind? Attendees are encouraged to submit questions before the program through the registration form.
PANELISTS:
Bill Gotfredson has over 20 years of experience in complex fundraising environments. For the last 11 years, Bill has served as the Director of Prospect Development at Boston Children’s Hospital, leading a team of analysts to design technology solutions to screen patient families, identify major gift prospects, map patient donor journeys, and analyze fundraising programs. He is an experienced designer and project leader in implementing AI programs, building portals between patient and donor databases, developing predictive models for qualification, measuring model ROI, and leading process improvement task forces. Prior to joining Boston Children’s Hospital, Bill spent 9 years in prospect research at Harvard University focused on the University’s largest transformational initiatives. He is the former Vice Chair of the New England Development Research Association (NEDRA). Bill is a graduate of Hobart and William Smith Colleges and completed graduate studies in non-profit administration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Cornell University’s School of Public Policy.
Kaelin Holland is the Senior Director of Research and Pipeline Development at Year Up United, a national workforce development organization. She leads a cross-functional research team that uniquely supports both Year Up United's fundraising and internship sales teams. Her team operates at the intersection of traditional prospect research and revenue operations, delivering strategic insights, new business intelligence, and portfolio management services that drive growth across both philanthropic and earned revenue streams. Kaelin joined Year Up United in 2019 as a Prospect Research Manager, following her start in the prospect research field at Northeastern University in 2014. She brings deep expertise in prospect management, prospect identification & new business development, and a variety of donor segments including corporate, foundation, and international donors. Kaelin earned her BA in English & Environmental Studies from Santa Clara University in 2011 and her MBA from Northeastern University in 2017. She lives on the South Shore of MA with her husband and daughter.
Chris Lawler is currently the Director of Development Research at Harvard Medical School (HMS). Prior to joining HMS in 2017, he spent more than ten years as a prospect researcher in Harvard’s University Development Office. He began his career in fundraising at the Union of Concerned Scientists where he worked in a variety of roles, including prospect research and planned giving. Outside of his professional life, Chris enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons as well as trying to squeeze in time playing the drums and riding his bike.
MODERATOR:
Emily Donohue has been Senior Director of Prospect Management and Research at UMass Boston since 2019. Previously, she was Director of Prospect Development at Simmons University. Emily has also been Director of Development Research and Prospect Management at Emmanuel College. She began her career in advancement as a Development Officer for Research at Combined Jewish Philanthropies. Emily is a former Vice President of the NEDRA Board of Directors and past co-chair of the Programming Committee. She currently serves on NEDRA’s Advocacy and Professional Development Committee. Emily has presented programs for NEDRA, AFP Massachusetts, Women in Development, and the Northeast Annual Giving Conference. She received a BA in History from Kenyon College and an MLS from Simmons University.
COST:
$35 Members
$60 Non-Members
LOCATION:
This program will take place in person at the offices of Boston Children's Hospital Trust on the sixth floor of the Landmark Center/ 401 Park Drive.
401 Park is easily accessible by public transit, either the MBTA Green Line (Fenway stop on the D Line) or the commuter rail (Lansdowne Station on the Worcester Line).
Validated parking is available in the 401 Park Garage for visits to Trillium Brewing; validated rate is $10 for three hours. After three hours, normal parking rates apply. NOTE: The minimum daily (unvalidated) rate for the 401 Park garage is $75. We recommend either validation from Trillium Brewing or other parking options (such as SpotHero).
More detailed directions will be sent to registrants.
DEADLINES:
Deadline for registration will be January 26th at 3PM.
Securities 102: Reading the Fine Print
Friday, January 30, 2026
1:00PM - 2:30PM ET
Online
A wealth of concrete information that can reliably can reliably shape capacity assessments is available to the intrepid prospect researcher through stock-related filings published on company web sites and by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but that information is frequently conveyed via dense footnotes and specialized coding that may obscure the overall picture. This session will cover such terminology and their underlying concepts and will be best suited to researchers who have had some experience with looking over such documentation as Form 4s and DEF 14As, but it will be accessible to the extent that prospect researchers who are new to the field will stand to learn a great deal as well! Topics will include:
What’s on your mind? Attendees are encouraged to submit questions before the program through the registration form.
PRESENTER:
Jon Keane is a Director of Prospect Management and Research for the Academic Medical Centers at Mass General Brigham. He is a former Assistant Director of Research for Boston University’s Development and Alumni Relations office, and earlier in his career, he worked in legal conflict resolution at a Boston-based law firm and wrote reviews of greasy spoon college town eateries for an Easthampton, MA-based weekly alternative newspaper. Jon is currently Board President of Turning Point of Windham County, a recovery center based in Brattleboro, VT, and he is also a certified yoga teacher who teaches a weekly vinyasa flow class at Inner Heat Yoga Studio, also in Brattleboro, VT.
$25 Members
$50 Non-Members
This program will be held as a Zoom meeting. Attendees will receive a Zoom link a day before the event. The program will NOT be recorded.
Deadline for registration will be Thursday, January 29th at 4PM.
High Finance for Prospect Researchers: Hedge Funds, Private Equity and Venture Capital*
*minimum 2 years in Prospect Research required
Friday, March 6, 2026- Friday, April 3, 2026 (4 sessions, online). No class on March 20.
CLASS SCHEDULE
Friday, March 6, 11:00AM – 12:30PM (ET)
Friday, March 13, 11:00AM- 12:30PM (ET) - NO CLASS ON MARCH 20 -
Friday, March 27, 11:00AM – 12:30PM (ET)
Friday, April 3, 11:00AM – 12:30PM (ET)
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:
The US Financial Services industry creates, maintains, and perpetuates a disproportionate number of personal fortunes. Its activities touch virtually every affluent major prospect on the donor and prospect lists of every nonprofit organization. It can also present an intimidating challenge for prospect researchers stymied by artful industry jargon, organization and fee structures, and eye-popping deal figures. Still, the more researchers understand this world, the more opportunities they can potentially identify for the organizations they serve.
This four-week survey course examines investment managers in the “alternatives” subsector: private equity (“buyout” and venture capital) and hedge fund businesses and will feature:
Class Descriptions (order of coverage subject to change):
Class 1
Class 2
Class 3
Class 4
FACULTY:
Nhu Huynh, University of Chicago, Booth School of Business
Nhu (she/her/hers) is currently the Director of Prospect Development and Campaign Management at the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business. In this role, she oversees prospect research, prospect management, and assists with capital campaign strategy. She previously worked at Loyola University of Chicago as the Director, Prospect Management & Research. Prior to that, she spent seven years at Harvard where she started as a prospect research analyst and eventually pivoted to overseeing more prospect management responsibilities under the title of Associate Director, Prospect Management. One of her greatest accomplishments includes helping implement a prospect management program in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. She was a member of APRA International's Nomination Committee (2022). Nhu has a bachelor’s degree from Boston College and a master’s degree from Harvard University. She resides in Chicago, Illinois.
Tara McMullen-King, The Helen Brown Group
Tara is Director of Research & Consulting at The Helen Brown Group, where she manages a team of consultants who provide prospect research, prospect management consulting, fundraising analytics, training, and due diligence research for nonprofit organizations across the country. She began her career in development in the early 2000s at Simmons College, where she ultimately served as Assistant Director of Prospect Research. Since that time, Tara has worked as a Senior Research Analyst at MIT, Associate Director of Prospect Management & Research at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and Director of Development Research at Combined Jewish Philanthropies.
Tara served on NEDRA’s board of directors from 2010–2016 and has been a member of the Research Basics Bootcamp faculty since 2020. She has also been actively involved with Apra as a volunteer, previously serving on the Membership Committee, Chapters Committee, and Bylaws Task Force. In 2022, she was awarded NEDRA’s Ann Castle Award, which recognizes outstanding effort or achievement in the field of development research and related disciplines.
In addition to her work in prospect development, Tara is also a professional wedding officiant based in Salem, Massachusetts. She is a founding board member of the Sisterhood of Salem, a membership-based networking and empowerment organization for women and nonbinary people, and serves as president of the board of the Salem Playhouse, a former church now reimagined as a vibrant home for the performing arts.
Sanda Soltan, Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP)
Sanda Soltan (she/her/hers) is the Director of Prospect Management and Research at Combined Jewish Philanthropies, where she oversees prospect strategy, portfolio systems, and research practices supporting fundraising across the organization. Previously, she spent seven years at Harvard University on the Research and Prospect Management team, most recently as Assistant Director and Training Manager, where she led training and onboarding for research analysts, supported the research needs of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and contributed to prospect management systems implementation. She began her tenure at Harvard as a Research Analyst and started her career in development at Boston Children’s Hospital as a Development Associate. Sanda has experience analyzing complex wealth structures and financial entities, including private equity and hedge fund firms, and interpreting public disclosures, compensation models, ownership structures, and investment activity in a prospect development context. She holds a master’s degree from Boston University, a bachelor’s degree from Smith College, and has completed coursework in corporate finance, private equity, and hedge funds through Harvard Extension School.
$225 Members
$275 Non-Members
Are you a current or recently lapsed NEDRA member and want to attend this program for free? Deadline to apply for the need-based NEDRA Community Scholarship is the end of the day on Friday, February 20, 2026.
Attendees will receive a Zoom link in advance of the first class. Please note, NEDRA's High Finance sessions are not recorded.
Registration for this event closes on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 at 5PM.
Virtual Book Tour for Prospect Management: The Essential Guide by Ruthie Giles
Thursday, March 12, 2026
1:00 PM - 2:00 PM ET
Join us for a special stop on the virtual book tour of Prospect Management: The Essential Guide for a High Functioning Nonprofit Prospect Management System, the first comprehensive guide of its kind in the nonprofit sector, written by longtime NEDRA member and former NEDRA board member, Ruthie Giles. Ruthie is an internationally recognized expert on the topic of prospect management, and her book offers a deep dive into key areas such as portfolio optimization, managing donor pipeline stages, and effectively partnering with gift officers. With decades of hands-on experience, Ruthie brings clarity, structure, and actionable insight into a critical area of fundraising operations.
During this engaging session, Ruthie will share the story behind writing the book, explain her passion for building sustainable prospect management systems, touch of some key topics from the book, and share her vision for what she thinks is on the horizon for the prospect development field.
Whether you’ve already read the book or are just discovering it, this is a valuable opportunity to learn more about the topic. There will be ample time for questions and discussion - so bring your questions, challenges, and curiosity. You can also submit questions in advance while registering.
A renowned thought leader in the field of prospect management, Ruthie Giles has worked in prospect research and prospect management since 2000. She is the author of Prospect Management: The Essential Guide for a High Functioning Nonprofit Prospect Management System (2025). Ruthie has held positions with Springfield Technical Community College, University of New Hampshire, Westfield State University, Amherst College, Mount Holyoke College, Harold Grinspoon Foundation, The Loomis Chaffee School, and the Williston Northampton School. She is a former NEDRA Board member and a current NEDRA Committee Volunteer for NEDRA’s 3-5 Learning Network. Originally from coastal Maine, Ruthie resides in western Massachusetts with her husband, their sweet lazy dog, and their five neurotic cats.
Free for Members
$25 Non-Members
Attendees will receive a Zoom link before the event; this will be held as a Zoom meeting and a recording will not be available.
Registration for this event closes on Wednesday, March 11th at 5pm.
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