Increasing Diversity in the Nonprofit Management Executive Certificate Program at Georgetown University

January 2019

Since 2016, the Crimsonbridge Foundation has partnered with Georgetown University’s Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership (CPNL) on a shared goal to increase outreach to and participation of diverse nonprofit leaders from the Greater Washington region in the Nonprofit Management Executive Certificate Program. The Foundation actively participates in this combined effort as both a partner and a funder, conducting intentional and direct outreach to organizations and providing program scholarships for senior staff of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. The results of this strategy have been positive and successful. Over the past three years, the percentage of program participants from diverse backgrounds has increased by 36%.

Danielle M. Reyes, Executive Director of the Crimsonbridge Foundation, states the success and impact of the partnership is a result of more than funding alone: “Our hope is that by working with partners and deploying the foundation’s team, network, and funding resources, we can support the development goals of individual leaders and the building of a more diverse and representative landscape of nonprofit leadership in the D.C. region.”

To learn more about this innovative partnership, we invite you to follow the link below to read the report, “Three-Year Partnership with Crimsonbridge Foundation Leads to More Diversity and New Scholarships in Certificate Program,” written by Georgetown University’s Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership.

Reyna Sharp Joins the Crimsonbridge Team

September 2018

As a Program Officer at the Crimsonbridge Foundation, Reyna oversees the Foundation’s partnerships with organizations working in Education and Nonprofit Leadership Development.

Reyna brings a wealth of diverse personal and professional experience in education, leadership development, and philanthropy to the Crimsonbridge Foundation. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Reyna joined the El Pomar Foundation as a Fellow, where she worked on programs to encourage leadership and community development. She directed a college leadership program, partnering with universities across Colorado. She also worked as the Director of Special Projects at The Donnell-Kay Foundation, a private family foundation that works to improve public education in Colorado through research, policy, creative dialogue, and critical thinking. In her role there, she implemented a pilot training program to help new school leaders successfully open K-12 schools serving low-income communities.

While living overseas with her husband, Reyna worked as an instructor of English as a Second Language, teaching in K-12 schools and adult programs in Europe, Africa, and Washington, DC. Most recently, Reyna worked on projects with the Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School and the DC Bar Foundation, helping to address educational and other critical needs of immigrant and underserved communities in Washington, DC.

Reyna holds a master’s degree in Education from George Mason University and a bachelor’s in Political Science as well as a Certificate in Leadership from the University of Colorado. Reyna is a mentor for an adult immigrant through the Carlos Rosario School. In addition, she is a certified yoga teacher passionate about women’s empowerment. In her spare time, she is an outdoor enthusiast who loves to travel.