Nonprofit Innovation Summit: Board Leadership

As the Director of Governance Strategy, Dani leads the educational strategy for BoardSource, focused on developing and delivering relevant and engaging educational programs and products that strengthen board leadership functions and practices. Dani works across teams to ensure that BoardSource’s offerings are aligned with the organization’s leadership priorities, research findings, and sector-wide leading practices.  She oversees the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of educational programs, including the Board Support Program, BoardSource’s core board development program.

Prior to joining BoardSource, Dani served as the Director of the Nonprofit Administration graduate programs at John Carroll University where she taught nonprofit governance, leadership and management. She also founded and led Non Profit Evolution, a consulting firm providing nonprofit governance, strategy, and coaching services.

Her education includes a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University, and a Bachelor’s from Kent State University. She is also a graduate of Leadership Akron Class 22 and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Advanced Leadership Program, offered in conjunction with the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.

Dani has served as the chief executive of two domestic violence shelters/rape crisis centers and two Boys & Girls Clubs, and introduced the Women’s Coalition – the prelude to the Women’s Center – at Case Western Reserve University.

Dani received the Vision and Spirit Award from Boys & Girls Clubs of America in 2006 and was included as a Notable Women in Nonprofits by Crain’s Cleveland Business in 2019.

Dani is also a speaker and trainer, the co-author of the Innovative Leadership Workbook for Nonprofit Executives, the author of a blog on issues relating to nonprofit organizations, and formerly a Network for Good fund raising coach, the nonprofit expert on answers.com and an instructor at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at The Ohio State University.

Advancing social justice is her life’s work.

Angelyn has over 25 years of experience in movement and coalition building, human rights policy, racial and criminal justice advocacy, and project management & program development. At BoardSource, she focuses on BIPOC leadership transformations and helps identify and create relationships with networks and audiences nationwide to amplify BoardSource’s messaging and governance philosophy.

She previously served as the Director of State Legislative Affairs at the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and as the Executive Director at the National Network for Justice (NNJ), whose members focused on reducing the populations of jails, prisons, and detention facilities.

Angelyn is a trained End-of-Life Doula and the immediate past President of the International End-of-Life Doula Association (INELDA). She is the Founder and CEO of Heirloom Estate and Legacy Preservation LLC, a firm that provides consultation, webinars, and tools designed to educate individuals about the elements of end-of-life planning.

Angelyn received her A.A.S degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology, her B.A. from the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington, studied Spanish at the Universidad De Guadalajara in Jalisco, México and received Paralegal and Estate Planning certificates from The Center for Legal Studies. Angelyn has traveled extensively including Honduras–the homeland of her parents. She is also a licensed instructor of Zumba®, Zumba Gold®, Zumba Sentao™ and Aqua Zumba®. She lives in Delaware with her husband.

Dr. Derik Timmerman is the Managing Partner of Valtas, an advisory services firm guiding leadership transitions for social enterprises. For 15+ years Derik has been a nationally-recognized speaker and facilitator on a variety of nonprofit subjects including leadership effectiveness, fundraising, and board development, and is the author of The 40 Laws of Nonprofit Impact. In earlier roles, Derik was a management consultant at McKinsey & Company and a US Army Intelligence Officer with two combat deployments to Iraq. Derik earned a Bachelor’s in Computer Science from the United States Military Academy at West Point, as well as a Masters, PhD, and CFRE certification in fundraising.