Dr. Almarie E. Donaldson is an internationally recognized leadership strategist, executive consultant, and organizational capacity-building expert with more than 25 years of experience advancing leadership excellence, organizational sustainability, and cross-sector collaboration. She specializes in helping organizations strengthen leadership capacity, develop strategic talent pipelines, and build resilient, high-performing cultures that create lasting community impact. As Senior Capacity Specialist at Maryland Latinos Unidos (MLU) and a licensed Standards for Excellence® Institute consultant, Dr. Donaldson leads the Leadership & Sustainability Institute (LSI), where she designs and facilitates bilingual (English-Spanish) executive leadership, organizational development, executive coaching, and strategic planning initiatives for nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, healthcare organizations, and community leaders throughout the region.
A globally respected scholar and practitioner, Dr. Donaldson was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Scholar appointment to the Chinese University of Hong Kong School of Business, where she designed executive education programs in Women in Leadership and collaborated on international leadership research throughout mainland China. Her work reflects a deep commitment to developing leaders who can navigate complexity, lead across cultures, and create sustainable organizational change.
Dr. Donaldson has contributed to several influential leadership publications, including the internationally recognized GLOBE Study on global leadership. She is the author of Top Management Teams, which examines executive leadership dynamics across Latin America, and contributed the chapter on Global Leadership in Dr. Richard Couto’s Civic Leadership volume.
Throughout her career, Dr. Donaldson has served in executive leadership and higher education roles while advising organizations on strategic planning, organizational effectiveness, leadership development, succession planning, governance, and capacity building. Her work is distinguished by an ability to integrate leadership theory with practical application, equipping organizations to lead effectively while building long-term sustainability.
Dr. Donaldson is the recipient of the Hampton Roads Hispanic Trailblazer Leadership Award and the President’s Volunteer Service Award, recognizing her commitment to leadership, service, and community impact.
Originally from Guatemala, she earned her Licenciatura en Psicología from the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala and her Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from the School of Global Leadership & Entrepreneurship at Regent University.
Beyond her professional work, Dr. Donaldson is a classically trained pianist, flutist, and lyrical vocalist. She believes that leadership, like music, is both an art and a discipline—bringing together vision, creativity, and purpose to inspire transformation across organizations, communities, and cultures.
