Staff Bios
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Henry L. Berman
Chief Executive Officer
Henry Berman brings to the CEO role a wealth of experience in managing people, projects, and budgets in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors.
Berman entered the field of philanthropy in 2003 as successor trustee for a longtime family friend who established a foundation to be funded upon her death. In his role as foundation president and co-trustee, he helped launch the foundation, working closely with grantees and evaluating funded programs. He remains a full trustee and continues to be involved in the foundation’s giving. He has also served as a trustee for a number of other charitable trusts.
An ASF member since 2003, ASF board member from 2008–2010, and ASF acting CEO for the past seven months, Berman has served on ASF’s development, membership, and governance committees. Through his experience as both a member and a leader within ASF, he brings a firsthand understanding of the needs of ASF members to his role as CEO. He is committed to a dialogue with members and to enhancing members’ learning opportunities, facilitating rich peer-to-peer exchanges and helping ASF provide members with insight and guidance on important issues, practices, and regulations affecting small foundations. See his full bio.
Kim Adkinson
Staff Editor
Contact Kim about Essentials, the ASF quarterly newsletter.
Kim joined ASF in 2005 to manage the editing, design, and production of materials for ASF members. Now staff editor and member of the Marketing & Communications Team, she focuses primarily on words, serving as “keeper of the ASF voice” and project manager for Essentials, the ASF newsletter. Kim is delighted to spend her workdays doing what she loves most: putting herself in the minds of readers to make communications clearer. Before coming to ASF, Kim was member services director at the Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers, philanthropy fellow at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and, during her graduate training, an adult education instructor. The first in her family to attend college, she proudly graduated summa cum laude from Cornell University and received a master’s in human development from Penn State University and MSW from the University of Maryland.
Kim lives with her husband outside of Baltimore, MD, where they combine their respective loves of education and Chesapeake Bay sailing to support the Living Classrooms Foundation, a Baltimore-based environmental experiential learning institution.
Sara Beggs
Senior Program Manager
Sara has held a range of positions within ASF over her 10 years with the organization. Currently, she focuses her time and energy on developing materials to help members make the greatest difference possible through the Getting to Impact series. In addition, she is passionate about making the Internal Revenue Code accessible and understandable – even in the areas of self-dealing and filing the 990-PF. Prior to joining ASF, Sara helped to implement a comprehensive economic development project in Hartford. Sara holds her B.S. in economics from Boston College. Sara now telecommutes for ASF from Bloomington, IN where her family resides.
Her greatest philanthropic joy is found in her work with a group called Blooming Kids for Kindness. With the goal to encourage their kids to care about their communities and instill the belief that each one of them can make a difference no matter how small they are, ten families engage in local and international volunteer and fundraising activities. Both the kids and parents love it!
Christa Carignan
Manager, Online Communications
As a member of the Marketing and Communications Team, Christa manages our e-newsletters and social media presence (Twitter), and edits and organizes our online content. Christa has more than 15 years of experience as a writer and fundraiser for nonprofit organizations in the Washington, DC area, including National Council of La Raza, Cultural Tourism DC, and the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital. Christa graduated magna cum laude from Elizabethtown College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology. She also completed continuing education courses in design, photography, and Web development. She is a member of the American Society of Association Executives and DC Web Women.
Christa is an active volunteer for the U.S. Botanic Garden, University of Maryland Extension, and Montgomery Parks.
Andy Carroll
Senior Program Manager
Contact Andy about the ASF Discussion List, and matters related to public policy.
Andy Carroll, Senior Program Manager, writes resources, designs workshops, and facilitates seminars and programs. He also serves as lead on foundation grantmaking issues for ASF. He enjoys talking with members about their questions and their plans for making a difference in their missions and communities. Prior to joining ASF, Andy developed programs at the National Center for Family Philanthropy, and before that at the Council on Foundations, where he helped the Council’s membership create the annual conference program. Andy has an MBA from the University of Michigan Business School, and has 25 years of experience in management, training, and program development for nonprofit organizations, including work at the Wolf Trap Foundation and Public Citizen.
He and his wife Valerie are proud parents of a daughter who attends middle school in the DC Public Schools, loves to play soccer, and do gymnastics.
Cathleen Gallagher
Development Associate
Contact Cathleen if you are a professional advisor and have questions about ASF’s Professional Directory. She also can field questions about membership in ASF.
As a member of both the Membership and Development Teams, Cathleen offers logistical and administrative support to both departments, oversees ASF’s Professional Directory of Foundation Advisors, coordinates special events, and handles all outgoing communication with new ASF members and ASF donors. Cathleen graduated in 2007 from Oberlin College with a B.A. in East Asian Studies and History and studied Chinese language and politics in Beijing.
Cathleen is a native Washingtonian and focuses her personal philanthropy on community based organizations throughout the city and human rights issues across the globe.
Sara Kalish
Program Associate
Sara Kalish joined ASF in May of 2011 as a Program Associate, assisting the Member Services Department. As a member of both the Educational Programs and Content Teams, Sara performs topical and member research in support of programs, resource and service development, and delivery. Sara graduated from Northwestern University with a B.S. in Education and Social Policy and Columbia University with a Master’s in Social Work.
Sara is most excited about working with members and learning about effective grantmaking.
Dori Kreiger
Director of Partnership Development
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Dori joined ASF in July 2011. Her philanthropic expertise has grown during her 15-year career in the field. Most recently, she served as Managing Director, Family Philanthropy Services, at the Council on Foundations, where she designed strategic and innovative programs and identified leadership trends for philanthropic families. Joining the Council in 2005, Dori served as Director of Community Foundation Services. She brought a unique perspective having worked for seven years at The Community Foundation Serving Richmond & Central Virginia in the program, finance, and donor services departments. Dori also worked at the American Red Cross National Headquarters as a major gifts officer.
Dori has a bachelor of business degree from James Madison University and did her graduate study at the University of Richmond. She has served on the boards of several nonprofits and was an inaugural class member of the Southeastern Council of Foundation’s Hull Fellows Program.
Lauren Kotkin
Senior Program Director
Lauren joined the educational programs team in 2007 and plans ASF conferences, seminars, conference calls and webinars. Previously, she worked at the Council on Foundations in the Family Foundation Services department. Before moving to DC in 2005, Lauren was the education director of a children’s museum near Boston, managing the facility and developing and delivering programs for educators, museum colleagues, children and families. Lauren holds a B.A. in cultural anthropology from Duke University and an M.Ed. from Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass., with a focus on using arts in education.
She is an artist and exhibits and volunteers for Artomatic, an annual month-long art festival in D.C.
Hanh Le
Director, Member Services
Contact Hanh about overall educational programs, written resources, research, and other member services.
As member services director, Hanh oversees ASF’s Member Services Department. Hanh joined ASF in March 2008 as an educational program director, focusing on initiatives such Katrina @ 5: Partners in Philanthropy, distance learning, and next generation engagement. Prior to ASF, Hanh directed training, grant, and technical assistance programs first for KaBOOM! and then for the Community Technology Centers’ Network – both national nonprofit organizations based in Washington, DC. Before moving to DC, Hanh served as a small business development volunteer for the Peace Corps in the Eastern Caribbean. Hanh holds a B.S. in Environmental Geology from the College of William & Mary and a Master’s in Urban and Environmental Planning from the University of Virginia School of Architecture.
Hanh enjoys learning about and from ASF members across the country.
Akilah Massey
Program Manager
Contact Akilah with questions about local programs or general educational program questions.
Akilah handles the registration process for ASF Educational Programs and plans seminars. She also works with ASF members and other partners on ASF local programs, small hosted gatherings around the country. She joined the staff of ASF in 2005, after working as a program coordinator at a Cleveland-area children’s rehabilitation hospital.
Akilah volunteers for and gives personally to several DC-based nonprofits focused on providing social services and increasing literacy.
Ruth Masterson
Senior Program Manager
Ruth creates written materials and training curriculum to support ASF members, and answers member questions on wide-ranging topics. In addition, she serves as the resource lead for board, governance and administration topics, and as the content team lead.
Ruth brings over 13 years of experience in the nonprofit sector prior to joining ASF in 2007, and she has consulted with nonprofit clients for Adler & Colvin, the Council on Foundations, and the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. Ruth earned her Masters in Public Policy at Johns Hopkins University with a focus in Nonprofit Management, a Certificate in International Development at JHU’s School of Advanced International Studies, and a BA at the Monterey Institute of International Studies.
An active life-long volunteer, she has served on several boards of directors, as a reviewer for “The Foundation Review” Journal, and as a review panelist for the Maryland Association of Nonprofits’ Standards for Excellence certification program. In her spare time, she volunteers with a Buddhist organization and a dog rescue group, and she enjoys home improvements and gardening.
Kathryn Petrillo-Smith
Managing Director
Contact Kathryn about strategy development at ASF as well as existing programs and services.
Kathryn oversees general operations at ASF. Among other things, Kathryn oversaw the initial development and launch of ASF’s Getting to Impact curriculum, a curriculum that helps ASF members define what they want to achieve, how they are going to get there and evaluation as a key tool for achieving that impact. Before ASF, Kathryn worked as an economic and policy analyst at the Environmental Protection Agency helping to reduce air emissions from the energy sector. Kathryn was also a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bulgaria. In 2004, Kathryn completed her M.B.A. studies at the Yale School of Management with a dual focus in strategy and nonprofit management. She also holds a B.S. in environmental engineering from Cornell University.
At ASF, Kathryn most enjoys the opportunity to engage with members – learning and gaining inspiration from them. Kathryn focuses her personal giving on mitigating the impacts of climate change.
Alana Placzkowski
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Contact Alana about the ASF website.
Alana manages the ASF website, and works closely with Linda on the database. She is an “accidental techie” who fell into her current role because she’s organized and knows how to Google. Alana joined our staff in March 2005 as a receptionist, and still enjoys fielding member Q&A calls. One of her favorite projects was the ASF Voices of Philanthropy videos. Before moving to DC, Alana worked as a massage therapist in Bloomington, Indiana. Prior to that, she taught English and drama in a Hungarian high school, where her students received several national achievement awards. Both former careers miss her very much. Alana graduated with high honors from the University of Illinois with a degree in English education.
Alana and her husband focus their philanthropy on environmental conservation, public and independent media, and performing arts organizations.
Janice Simsohn Shaw
Senior Program Manager
Contact Janice about Tear Sheets and next generation engagement.
Janice oversees ASF’s Next Generation work and edits Tear Sheets. She also writes for Essentials, the ASF Primer Series, and enjoys the opportunity to facilitate Next Gen programs and other ASF learning experiences. Janice joined our staff in January 2005 after relocating from Madison, WI. She brings 12 years of experience in the non-profit sector, and has coordinated Earth Day events at the United Nations as well as served as the sole staffer for a cross-country charity bicycle ride. Janice received her B.A. from Skidmore College and teaches yoga in her spare time.
Janice enjoys the opportunity to work with ASF’s inspiring and down-to-earth members as they leverage small assets for big impact in communities around the world.
Peter Tajat
Operations Manager
Contact Peter about office and conference space and any other building- related questions, as well as the ASF bookstore.
Peter keeps our building and systems running, and he’s often a voice you hear when you call us. In 2001 Peter moved to the DC area from Slovakia. After completion of 2 years of ESL classes at Inlingua and NOVA, he returned to Bratislava to finish his MBA in Management at Comenius University. After graduation, Peter received an internship offer in the US, where he managed students and temporary laborers from Europe. Prior to joining ASF in June 2007, he worked for Sunrise Senior Living in McLean as an Office Manager.
Peter enjoys the daily challenges that the ASF environment and nature of his work bring.
Tammy Yeldell
Receptionist
Contact Tammy with questions about publication orders.
Tamara (Tammy) joined ASF in December 2008. In addition to providing receptionist services, Tamara supports our office and building management. She also processes all publication orders. Tamara joined the American Bankers Association as an administrative assistant, and quickly worked her way to the publications manager in the communications department before leaving in 2005. Tamara has also started an at-home business, taken marketing courses at Strayer University, and has held various administrative positions. A native Washingtonian who returned to the workforce after raising two sons, Tammy holds a degree from the Community Business Center.
Philanthropy to her is the ultimate act of giving. It involves the giving of time, money, interest and self. Working for ASF is almost like a personal venture. You come to feel a connection not only to your co-workers but the members you work for.
Linda Zimmerman
Membership Manager
Contact Linda with all questions about membership status: dues payments, renewal forms or receipts, changing contact information, updating trustee listings, etc.
Linda is responsible for the day-to-day processing of all new and renewal memberships and maintaining ASF’s member database. Prior to joining ASF in 1997, Linda worked for Population Communications International as an executive assistant/membership specialist. She also held management positions at the University of Vermont and New York Life Insurance Company, where she worked for 16 years before relocating to Vermont in 1989. Linda is a graduate of Hofstra University with a B.A. in English and has completed course work toward an M.A. in English at the University of Vermont.
ASF’s longest-tenured member, Linda has interacted with many of its members through the years and enjoys learning about their giving interests and the motivation behind their philanthropy. Her personal philanthropy focuses on services for the blind, particularly organizations providing seeing-eye dogs.