Our Instructors
Daonese Johnson-Colón, founder of Coaching Amplifies, LLC, is an innovative leader with 20 years of experience in nonprofit administration and workforce management. She has dedicated her career to building spaces that promote leadership, inclusivity, and equity to foster personal and professional development in education, criminal justice reform, and media. Currently, Daonese serves as the Chief Operating Officer for PushBlack, a national non-profit media organization. Prior to joining PushBlack, she served as the Vice President of Operations/COO for JustLeadershipUSA (JLUSA). Daonese serves her community in a multitude of ways. She is an adjunct lecturer for John Jay College’s Accelerate Complete Engage (ACE) program and faculty mentor for the New York Giants Touchdown Fellowship and Justice Capital Initiative Fellowship. She is a faculty mentor for the mentor for the New York Community Trust Leadership Fellows program. Lastly, Daonese is a trained conflict resolution mediator and a certified professional coach. A recipient of the NAACP Minority Achievement Recognition Award, Daonese graduated Summa cum Laude with a Master’s in Legal Studies from Kaplan University and holds the SHRM-CP certification.
Expertise, Passions, and Pursuits
Non-profit Management and Governance, Organizational Management, Organizational Change, Workforce Development, Human Resources, Burnout Prevention
Technical Specialties
Executive Coaching, Curriculum Development, Mediation
Education
Master’s in Legal Studies, SHRM-CP certification, Certified Professional Coach
Don Waisanen (he/him) is the Marxe Faculty Director for the Leadership Fellows at the Trust. Don is a “pracademic” who teaches, researches, and consults on leadership and communication, and always striving to help others level up in these areas. He’s a Professor at Baruch College, City University of New York, an adjunct at Columbia and NYU, and the founder of Communication Upward, which provides workshops/coaching for professional development and expert facilitation for retreats and meetings. Don has authored seven books, including a book on the Leadership Fellows program itself, Leadership Standpoints: A Practical Framework for the Next Generation of Nonprofit Leaders (Cambridge University Press), Improv for Democracy: How to Bridge Differences and Develop the Communication and Leadership Skills Our World Needs (State University of New York Press), and received a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Southern California. Outside of work, Don is a lifelong tennis fanatic and sometimes performs improv comedy around town.
With a career dedicated to driving impact in the nonprofit sector, Edith has a deep commitment to mentoring nonprofit professionals who want to elevate their leadership and impact. She brings deep expertise in leadership, strategic planning, strategic communications, advocacy, and behavior design. Edith is the founder of Asibey Consulting, advising nonprofits, foundations, and humanitarian organizations to connect with supporters and run effective campaigns. Prior to this, Edith spearheaded UNICEF’s communications and public advocacy in Brazil during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the 2016 Olympics, and the Zika virus response, mobilizing millions worldwide. She is the former Chief Communications Officer at The Atlantic Philanthropies, where she led global outreach for the largest limited-life foundation in the world. Edith is fluent in four languages and has lived and worked across multiple countries.
Jamie Lonie is a nonprofit marketing strategist and digital communications leader with over a decade of experience helping mission-driven organizations expand their reach and engage supporters. As the founder of Amplifi Digital, Jamie equips nonprofits with digital skills and tools they need to thrive online – reaching more supporters and sustaining their engagement. Specializing in nonprofit marketing technology, donor engagement, and leadership development, Jamie is passionate about mission-driven social impact efforts in New York City. He holds a bachelors degree in public relations and a master’s degree in education.
Kary Perez is a nonprofit leader with a successful background in audience growth and engagement.
Her work today is focused on expanding Chalkbeat’s audience in service of the organization’s mission to ensure children across the country get fair access to education. This primarily involves being the go-to person for the toughest, most ambiguous problems in the organization. Her responsibilities include audience growth, research and development of new products, and managing Chalkbeat’s small donor program.
At DoSomething Strategic, Kary worked with over 20 clients to help them better understand and engage young people (millennials and Gen Z). She led the strategy and execution of social good initiatives for major brands like Google and ESPN, and for large-scale nonprofits like The JED Foundation and Feeding America.
Marti is a New York City based consultant, executive coach, blogger and speaker who specializes in taking the ‘scary’ out of career transitions and transforming managers into leaders. Since 2006, she’s worked with interns to CEO’s to board members, helping them successfully manage interpersonal communications, develop leadership skills, and get or craft the jobs they want. She offers individual coaching, staff and board trainings and retreats to create workplaces where everyone feels valued and heard. Marti came to this work after 15+ years in the advertising and television industries. When not working, she’s traveling, skiing, trying to hit a golf ball, or prowling around the Met. Marti lives in Harlem with her family.
Marvin Vilma (he/him) is a dedicated educator and social impact professional whose personal mission is to advance innovation in the education space. He is especially passionate about college and career pathways in K-12 schools and teacher education. He currently serves as Managing Director of Development for Let’s Get Ready and CEO of Bevy Studio.
Prior to this, Marvin worked at MIT Sloan, Babson College, and Noble and Greenough School. He founded an event planning company at Colgate and was on the founding team of a philanthropic fund. Marvin was born and raised in Queens, NY, and attended Colgate University where he studied Sociology and French. He completed a Certificate in Community Leadership and Social Change with the Institute for Nonprofit Practice and completed his M.S.Ed. in Entrepreneurship Education at Penn’s Graduate School of Education.
He is currently completing his MBA at Questrom School of Business. Marvin enjoys traveling, Netflix binging, improving his culinary skills, and spending time with friends.
Melissa Shillingford is the Founder of Make Ideas Work, a company that offers project management trainings and consulting to organizations committed to social change. Melissa is passionate about supporting organizations with big ideas and to help staff reach their goals. She has over 10 years of experience in designing, managing and facilitating cohort-based programs across the country. Melissa also has 15 years of experience facilitating skill-based trainings for a variety of industries. She is a proud mother of two, a wife to a fantasy adventure author and enjoys planning events. Melissa earned her Project Management Certificate from CUNY Baruch, graduated with a joint Masters from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and is a proud alum of CUNY John Jay College.
Odell Mays has managed and served on the board of nonprofits for over 27 years, and held the position of Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer. As a consultant, Mr. Mays has provided intensive financial management for several executive directors and CEO’s, including senior level consultations for organizations such as Amnesty International USA, The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), The Gay Mens Health Crisis (GMHC), National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW) and FilmAid International (an international film agency working with refugee communities in Kenya). He has also served as Treasurer and Chair of the board of Gay Mens Health Crisis in NYC.
Mr. Mays has a BA in psychology from Stanford University and an MBA in finance and taxation from New York University’s Stern School of Business. He also currently serves as an Adjunct Lecturer at Baruch College (CUNY) in the Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs where he teaches a graduate course in finance and budgeting. In addition he teaches in the Masters’ program at New York University’s Heyman Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising.