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Leadership of Standards for Excellence

 

Heather Iliff, President and CEO

Heather Iliff is President & CEO of the Standards for Excellence Institute and its sponsor, Maryland Nonprofits, and is responsible for advancing both organizations’ vision to create a highly effective, ethical and accountable nonprofit sector that drives change through collective action and advocacy. 
Read her complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

443-438-2314
Amy Coates Madsen, Director

Amy Coates Madsen is the Director of Programs for Maryland Nonprofits and the Director of the Standards for Excellence Institute.
Read her complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

443-438-2323
Kate Hull, Accreditation and Recognition Program Manager

Kate Hull manages the accreditation and recognition program of the Standards for Excellence Institute.
Read her complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

443-438-2343
Rachel Mygatt, Program Manager

Rachel Mygatt provides program support to the Standards for Excellence Institute.
Read her complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

443-438-2344
Darryus Johnson, Member Relations Manager

Darryus Johnson is the Member Relations Manager at the Standards for Excellence Institute and its sponsor, Maryland Nonprofits.
Read his complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

443-438-2327
Juliana Thomas, Finance Manager

Juliana Thomas supports the Standards for Excellence and Maryland Nonprofits.
Read her complete bio on the Maryland Nonprofits website.

Governing Body

The Standards for Excellence Institute is governed by members of the Maryland Nonprofits Board of Directors and its Standards for Excellence Committee, and individual volunteers who serve on the Standards for Excellence Council.

The Standards for Excellence Board Committee provides oversight and support to the staff of the Standards for Excellence Institute in the implementation of its goals and objectives. The Committee acts as a liaison between the Standards for Excellence Institute and the Maryland Nonprofits Board of Directors. The activities of the Committee include: maintaining the Standards for Excellence certification of the Corporation, and ongoing compliance of the Corporation with the Standards for Excellence code; serving as an advocate for the Standards for Excellence program as a whole and helping to inform the Board of Directors of the program’s features.

The National Standards for Excellence Council is charged with overseeing the Accreditation and Recognition Programs of the Standards for Excellence Institute. The Council’s main roles and responsibilities include: Providing advice and guidance to staff regarding the periodic review and evaluation of the application policies, procedures, and processes; providing advice and guidance to staff regarding the periodic review of content of the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector; and reviewing and approving or denying all Accreditation or Standards Basics Enhanced applications.

Maryland Nonprofits Board of Directors

CHAIR
Walter Simmons, Employ Prince George’s

VICE CHAIR
Will Pass, Park Heights Renaissance, Inc

SECRETARY
Katy McGuire, The Arc Baltimore

TREASURER
Cheryl Thomas, CPA, Thomas and Associates

AT-LARGE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBER

Veronica Cool, Cool & Associates LLC, Maryland Latinos Unidos

Erica Joseph, Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore

MEMBERS

Chloe Bernardi, LICSW, LCSW-C, Hearts & Homes for Youth

Nona Carroll, Maryland Business Roundtable for Education

Helen Kim, Hoffberger Family Philanthropies

George Leventhal, Kaiser Permanente

Jarred M. Ricks, Greater Washington Business Banking Group, M&T Bank

Tom Riford, Formerly with the Maryland Department of Commerce

Dana Vickers Shelley, ACLU of Maryland

Rebecca Teaff, Notre Dame of Maryland University

Duane Yoder, Garrett County Community Action

Zosia Zaks, Zaks Autism Consulting

PRESIDENT & CEO

Heather Iliff

 

Standards for Excellence Council

Edward (Ted) Bilich

Before founding Risk Alternatives, a risk management and process improvement consultancy based in the DC Metro, Ted was a Distinguished Visiting Professor from Practice at Georgetown University Law Center. Before that, Ted spent more than 20 years in the Washington DC office of the international law firm of Jones Day.  He is a member of the American Law Institute, where he serves on the Member Consultative Group for the ALI's current project on Principles of the Law: Compliance, Enforcement, and Risk Management for Corporations, Nonprofits, and Other Organizations. He has served on the Arlington Economic Development Commission and the boards of the Leadership Center for Excellence, Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, Northern Virginia Conservation Trust, Latino Student Fund, Washington Humane Society, and the Hispanic Bar Association of DC Foundation. He also was a member of the DC Bar Litigation Section Steering Committee.  Ted speaks regularly before large and small groups throughout the United States on risk management, board governance, civic engagement, ethics, and numerous other issues. He is the author of three editions of a leading law school casebook on class actions and other multi-party dispute resolution.  Ted received his B.A. in economics summa cum laude from Wake Forest University, and his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School.  

Marla Bobowick

Marla has more than 20 years of nonprofit experience and a history of creative problem solving. Specializing in nonprofit management and leadership, she has extensive experience with board governance, strategy, and publishing. She has worked with nonprofit organizations of all types and sizes, including regional healthcare and social service providers, educational institutions (independent schools and colleges and universities), family and other private foundations, and local and national offices of federated organizations and professional associations.

Marla is affiliated with BoardSource as a senior governance consultant and Standards for Excellence® as a licensed consultant. She is the co-author of Assessing Board Performance: A Practical Guide for College, University, System, and Foundation Boards (Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges © 2018).

Previously, Marla was a Vice President of Products at BoardSource, where she oversaw publications, online products, and research. During her tenure at BoardSource, she was an active consultant and trainer, developed educational curriculum, managed regional capacity building projects, oversaw the global program, and coordinated the annual conference.

While at BoardSource, Marla managed the “Nonprofit Governance Index,” a research project that gathers baseline data about board practices in the United States. She was also a member of the working group for The Source: Twelve Principles of Governance That Power Exceptional Boards (BoardSource © 2005) and developed a corresponding online survey. She managed “Governance Futures: New Perspectives on Nonprofit Governance” a multiyear research project that culminated in publication of Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards (John Wiley & Sons © 2005).

Previously, Marla was an acquisitions editor at John Wiley & Sons, where she developed Wiley's Nonprofit Law, Finance, and Management Series and the Association of Fundraising Professionals Fund Development Series.

Marla holds a bachelor's degree in English from Amherst College, a master's degree in business administration and a certificate in nonprofit management from Case Western Reserve University. Marla is the past board chair of Maryland Nonprofits.

Stephanie Cory

Based in Wilmington, Delaware, Stephanie Cory has dedicated her career to the nonprofit sector since 2003. She has served as an executive director for a health advocacy organization as well as held development and program management roles for nonprofit organizations serving seniors and people with disabilities. Stephanie has also consulted for a variety of educational organizations. Stephanie has been a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) since 2008 and received her designation as a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®) from the American College in 2007. A graduate of the Association of Fundraising Professional's Faculty Training Academy, she has been an AFP Master Trainer since 2010. Stephanie is a Certified Governance Trainer through Board Source. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Southern California. Stephanie is a frequent trainer on a variety of fundraising and nonprofit topics. Her own service as a board member includes officer roles for the local chapter of a professional association, district representative on an international board of directors, board member for a grassroots community redevelopment organization with no paid staff, and president of her local Junior League. Stephanie has worked for a Standards for Excellence® accredited organization and has volunteered as a peer reviewer for Standards for Excellence replication partner Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations (PANO) since 2010.

William Gorman

William "Bill" Gorman is the founder and managing principal of Alacritas Advisers, LLC. Bill has served as a chief operating officer in a large nonprofit and a university for over a decade.

Furthermore, he has worked with numerous non-profit organizations, including faith-based institutions, human and social services, assisted and independent living, workforce housing, advocacy groups, foundations, primary and secondary education, higher education, and government.

Areas of Focus

·         Strategic Planning

·         Executive Leadership

·         Fundraising

·         Operations

·         MarCom

Experience

Passionate about cause sector organizations, William has provided strategic counsel to dozens of organizations regarding their strategic planning and implementation efforts. Additionally, William has participated in or led advocacy efforts on behalf of people with developmental differences, migrants and refugees at the local and national level, better access to health care, and services for children, youth, and families at the local and state level.

William has furthered and been responsible for a university, a system of 98 K-12 schools, operations in 215 locations, 23 subsidiary corporations, two newspapers, and two hotels in the United States and one in Austria (with restaurant and brewery), along with functional areas such as Finance, Advancement, Communications, Real Estate, Information Technology, Admissions and Enrollment, Human Resources, and Public Affairs. 

Education

University of Leicester, England
MBA: Marketing

University of Leicester, England
PgD Management

Joan Harrington (Chair)
Julie Hart

Julie is the Senior Director of Museum Standards and Excellence. She has been involved with accreditation and efforts to nurture institutional excellence throughout her 20 + year tenure at the American Alliance of Museums. Her access to, and assessment of thousands of museums’ operations, plans, governance, and policies during her two decades at AAM—plus service on other non-profit certification review panels—provides her with unique and holistic insight into the best practices and challenges faced by museums and non-profits. Julie is regularly sought after by other countries and industries as an expert to advise and speak about the US/AAM museum accreditation model. She has delivered numerous presentations and trainings on accreditation and museum standards across the U.S. and at international venues including Italy, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, China, Taiwan, and Canada. Also, she recently led a comprehensive, five-year reinvention of the Accreditation Program, which included everything from streamlining forms and processes to creating a new economic model to developing new preparatory programs.

Julie has been an Ethics Standards Committee Member for the Maryland Nonprofits’ Standards of Excellence Program since 2015, and served as a Peer Reviewer for eight years prior to that. She holds an M.A. (1996) in Art History from The George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Andrea Hill

Andrea Hill, Chief Program Officer, Tennessee Nonprofit Network

Andrea Hill has received her Bachelor of Science in Human Services Management from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and her Master in Public Administration from Kennesaw State University. She is certified in Volunteer Administration through the Council for Certification in Volunteer Administration. She served as the 2018-2020 President of Directors of Volunteers In Agencies (DOVIA). She is also an appointed member of the Volunteer Tennessee board.

She has been named one of the 2017 Top 40 Under 40 Urban Elite professionals. She was also named one of the 2018 Memphis Business Journal Top 40 Under 40 professionals. She was awarded the National Urban League Young Professionals Inaugural Heroes In The Movement Award. She is the 2017 Junior League of Memphis- Provisional of the Year, Community Foundation of Greater Memphis- GIVE 365 member, Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement Board member, Leadership Memphis Alumni, and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. Andrea is also a proud supporter of WKNO.

Johanna Licharowicz
Joanne Randolph

Joanne Randolph is the former President & CEO of The Catalyst Center for Business & Entrepreneurship and the Women’s Business Center of North Alabama (WBCNA), which she helped launch in 2000. She was also the CEO of BizTech, Huntsville’s technology incubator which she helped launch in 1997. She retired in June 2020 after a 48-year extensive career in aerospace and defense, nonprofit leadership, entrepreneurship, and business incubation.

Ms. Randolph spent the first 20 years of her career in the IT industry, working for NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center and Grumman Data Systems. Ms. Randolph began exploring small business opportunities in the early 90’s, an adventure that equipped her with experience in entrepreneurship, business management, international marketing, and telecommunications consulting. In the late 1990’s, Ms. Randolph applied her diverse background and expertise to the non-profit industry serving entrepreneurs.

Under Ms. Randolph’s leadership, WBCNA was selected as the Alabama 2010 “Women’s Business Center of Excellence” by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the 2010 BBB of North Alabama Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics, and the 2007 “Non-Profit of the Year” by the Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce. The SBA selected Ms. Randolph as the 2007 “Women in Business Champion” for the State of Alabama and 6-state region. She was also selected as the 2006 Small Business Advocate of the Year by the National Small Business Association (NSBA) for the Lower South Region comprised of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Puerto Rico, and Texas.

Ms. Randolph was honored in 2016 as the Huntsville Association of Small Businesses in Advanced Technology (HASBAT) "Small Business Advocate of the Year" for her “exemplary service to the small business community over the last two decades.”

In 2012, Alabama Lieutenant Governor Kay Ivey appointed Ms. Randolph to the State Personnel Board, the State Employee’s Insurance Board, and the State Flexible Benefits Board, where she served for three years. Ms. Randolph received her most prized recognition in 2019 when she was chosen as the “Entrepreneur Champion of the Year” by The Catalyst and the Board of Directors named the award in her honor. She is a graduate of the 2000 Huntsville-Madison County Leadership Class and the 2003 Leadership Alabama Class.

 

 

Cyrus White

Cyrus N. White (Russ) is a consultant, speaker, and facilitator. He works with the CEOs and board chairs of foundations and other nonprofit organizations in healthcare, education, the arts, and social services. Russ has extensive experience as a nonprofit CEO and as trustee of private operating and community foundations. In addition to private clients, he is a Standards for Excellence® Licensed Consultant and a BoardSource® Certified Governance Trainer. Russ was in the inaugural 2019 class of the Sociocracy Academy, discovering how sociocracy and dynamic community governance can enhance the performance capacity of nonprofit organizations.

Russ is an active member of the Governance Section of the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA), BoardSource, the Standards for Excellence Institute, and multiple state nonprofit associations.  For more information, please visit SCGnonprofits.com or LinkedIn.com/in/CyrusNWhite. Pronouns he/him.