Our Team

Lydia Sierra

Founder and Principal

Lydia Sierra is a Bronx native whose life experiences have given her a unique aptitude for understanding and addressing the needs of underrepresented urban communities.

She has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than two decades, and has hands-on experience with a variety of focuses, including youth development, juvenile justice, arts education, community organizing, and business improvement districts.

After finishing her graduate studies, Lydia Sierra worked to apply theory to practice by developing the social service arm of a church in the Bronx, NY.

That experience provided her with practical knowledge about starting nonprofit agencies, working with faith-based communities, developing community partnerships, designing and implementing community programs, and developing non-profit systems which allow organizations to operate efficiently and effectively to fulfill their community missions and visions.

Lydia Sierra has a Master's degree in Human Services Administration and has completed two years of doctoral studies in Human Services Administration at Capella University.

Megan Rozzerro

Accounts Manager

Megan Rozzero is an expert at project management, prospect research, proposal development, event planning, and customer service. Megan manages all accounts and maintains client records. Her background and experience include working at Brown University and Rhode Island College. Megan's expertise is utilized to conduct Prospect Research, Grants Management, and Proposal Packaging & Submissions.

Jamie Andersson

​Fund Development Manager

Jamie Andersson was formerly the Managing Director of The Council of Literary Magazines and Presses in New York, where she worked to support a large, vibrant community of independent publishers throughout the country.

In 2012, Jamie began working as a private consultant for non-profit clients in the US and abroad. With over 15 years of experience working in both administrative and development roles, Jamie has a comprehensive understanding of non-profit management at a variety of scales.

In addition to a strong background in grant research and proposal writing, her areas of expertise include individual donor cultivation and campaigns, fundraising events, community engagement techniques, as well as Board development strategies.

Jamie has a Master's of Fine Arts degree from Bard College's Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts and her original fiction has appeared in The Literary Review and elsewhere. She's also served on the Boards of several literary non-profit organizations in New York.

Jamie currently lives in Sweden with her husband and son, their cat, Strudel, and their tiny dog, Moose.

​J. Michael Denney

​​Prospect Researcher/Writer

​J. Michael Denney is a practitioner and scholar of international development. Since 2012, Michael has worked in the US and in Ethiopia on environmental sustainability, food security and agricultural systems, and economic development. His expertise includes project development and management, fundraising, field research, and participatory methodologies. He has worked extensively with the Ethiopian government, private investors, academics, and farming communities. He is also doctoral candidate in Global Governance and Human Security at UMass Boston and a NSF IGERT Fellow.

Sister Islah Abdul-Hafeez

​Institutional Development Consultant

Sister Islah Abdul-Hafeez holds a Juris Doctorate Degree and has over 25 years' experience as a non-profit consultant in the area of non-profit taxation, specializing in securing 501(c)3 for grassroots and faith-based organizations. Besides successfully securing 501(c)3s and providing technical management services to diverse groups, she has developed and implemented various successful cross-cultural youth programs in San Diego, including the ABA Intercultural Exchange Basketball Program, which has engaged different ethnic youth from City Heights in the 4-H State Leadership Conference. Sister Islah, a basketball coach, took Somalian, Eritrean, Hmong, and African American youth to participate in the World Scholar Athletic Games and represented their countries at the United Nations. In 1997 she received the Sports Ethics Fellow Institute for International Sports.

Sachin Prasad

​Salesforce Consultant

Sachin Prasad is a Salesforce certified app builder and has more than eight years of IT consulting experience. He holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Sikkim Manipal University. He is an expert at Salesforce configuration and customization for non-profits. He currently helps organizations to set up Salesforce for project management, donations/grants management, and custom applications. His focus is on helping non-profits spend less time on administration and more time on what really matters - delivering high-quality programs to their constituents and making an impact in their communities. Sachin sets up client Salesforce accounts for individual donor management, grants management, and additional customized applications.