Nonprofit Center Staff
DAWN LOCKHART
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
DAWN LOCKHART
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
As the former Director of Strategic Partnerships for the City of Jacksonville, Dawn built the inaugural office of strategic partnerships, the first in the Southeastern United States and was responsible for developing a shared agenda between the private sector, philanthropy, nonprofits and government. Working across all sectors, she developed strategic partnerships which facilitated innovative collaborations and program policy reforms resulting in better outcomes for citizens. In 2023, her successful efforts were recognized by the Council on Foundations and the Secretary of HUD as a partnership awardee for Public-Philanthropic Partnerships.
She previously served as president and chief executive officer of Family Foundations of Northeast Florida, Inc., a nonprofit corporation which provides mental health, financial and housing counseling, asset building, financial literacy education and advocacy services in northeast Florida. During her many years of service, she led the organization and the community with the advancement of successful program initiatives that increased the quality of life for thousands of families and individuals.
She was recently selected as a member of the Leap of Reason Ambassador Community, a national network of accomplished social sector executives. She formally served as a member of the boards of directors of the Jacksonville Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and the 1000 in 1000 Leadership Council. She is former chair of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling board of trustees and has served in many local volunteer leadership roles with community organizations.
Dawn received a Bachelor of Science in Social Work from Florida State University and attended Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute, Center for the Study of Voluntary Organization and Service, Professional Continuing Education Studies. She has consulted with local, regional and national foundations and nonprofits to advance their collective impact strategies and is a Community Coach with the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida.
She received the Downtown Vision Achievement Award in 2022, the City Rescue Mission Difference Maker Award in 2021, the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities National Partnership Award in 2014, the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ DollarWise Award in 2014, the NFCC Housing Client of the Year Award in 2013, the NFCC Making a Difference Member Award in 2009 and the Mayor’s Commission of the Status of Women in 2009.
Dawn, her husband Bruce, and Winston, their fluffy golden retriever, live in St. Johns, Florida.
Contact Dawn if you need: information and resources for advocacy or lobbying local, statewide and national officials on issues concerning the nonprofit sector; recommendations for building alliances with people and organizations to advance your organization; and information on state of the nonprofit sector. Dawn facilitates the CEO Confidential member convening group.
DEIRDRE CONNER
VICE PRESIDENT
DEIRDRE CONNER
VICE PRESIDENT
E: dconner@NonprofitCtr.org
P: 904-425-8758
Deirdre Conner is Vice President of the Nonprofit Center. She leads programs, research, and consulting planning and supervises the successful execution and evaluation of these and other member resources. She previously served as Advocacy & Communications Director for the Jacksonville Public Education Fund, overseeing the organization's advocacy, communications and teacher leadership initiatives.
Prior to her career in nonprofits, she spent nearly decade as a print journalist. As a staff writer for The Florida Times-Union, she covered a broad range of issues, including nonprofits, urban and suburban affairs, education, demographics and race relations. Before moving to Jacksonville in 2007, Deirdre was a reporter for the Naples Daily News, writing about education and child welfare. Deirdre is a native of Miami, Florida, and earned a Bachelor's degree in Sociology and Anthropology from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. She lives in Jacksonville with her husband, Larry Hannan, and their son, Rowan.
Contact Deirdre for questions about programs and special initiatives, research, and consulting. Schedule a time to meet with Deirdre here.
CALLAN BROWN
SENIOR DIRECTOR, PARTNERSHIPS & PROGRAMS
CALLAN BROWN
SENIOR DIRECTOR OF PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMS
E: cbrown@NonprofitCtr.org
P: 904-425-1185
Callan is the Senior Director of Partnerships & Programs at the Nonprofit Center. She is responsible for leading, conceptualizing, and implementing program strategy that aligns with Nonprofit Center strategic goals. In her role she facilitates curriculum design, analyzes data and evaluations, and leads program revenue and expense strategies. She earned her Masters Degree in Public Administration at the University of North Florida with a focus in Nonprofit Management. Having worked for both small and large nonprofit organizations, Callan has experience in development, grant writing and management, and before joining the Nonprofit Center, was the Program Director for Take Stock in Children Clay County at the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast.
Callan first got involved with nonprofits while serving with AmeriCorps during her time at the Florida State University, where she earned her BA in Art History and Museum Studies. Her passion for the arts continues here in Jacksonville; Callan previously taught an arts enrichment program to youth in St. Johns County, and currently teaches dance to adults at Dance Trance Fitness.
Callan was born in New Jersey but calls Jacksonville her home; she loves exploring her Springfield neighborhood with her husband, Josh, and daughter, Marin.
Contact Callan with questions regarding programs such as our Professional Development Series, Ahead of the Curve Board Series, Clay County Outreach, and the Nonprofit Works Conference. Callan also manages program sponsorship and would be happy to discuss partnership opportunities with interested supporters.
DARIEN REYNOLDS
SENIOR DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS
DARIEN REYNOLDS
SENIOR DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
E: dreynolds@NonprofitCtr.org
P: 904-425-1935
AUTUMN LEE
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
AUTUMN LEE
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
E: alee@nonprofitctr.org
P: 904-425-1183
REBECCA MILLIGAN
MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR
REBECCA MILLIGAN
MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR
E: rmilligan@nonprofitctr.org
P: 904-425-1182
Rebecca is the Membership Director for the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida. She maintains nonprofit, partner, and foundation memberships and helps facilitate programming.
Rebecca grew up in Missouri and earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Truman State University, where she studied Romance Languages, Linguistics, and Psychology. During her time at Truman, Rebecca was a member of the national service fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega, and became an active volunteer at nonprofits in her community; she has volunteered with the Crisis Text Line and currently volunteers at Planned Parenthood, Paper Airplanes, and Women's March Jacksonville. Rebecca started her professional nonprofit journey in 2018 when she began working for the Community Action Partnership of Northeast Missouri, where she created and implemented programs to assist and empower individuals, families, and communities to achieve their greatest potential. After this, she became certified to teach English as a Foreign Language and taught adults in Virginia, and has continued teaching ESL to all ages in a variety or settings. Rebecca joined the Jacksonville community in February of 2021 and has worked with the Jacksonville Humane Society and Project Access, Inc. before coming to the Nonprofit Center in February of 2022.
Please contact Rebecca if you have questions about Nonprofit Center membership, its benefits, the member portal, or programming. Rebecca can speak basic American Sign Language and Spanish. Schedule a time to meet with Rebecca here.
Senior Consultants
LEAH DONELAN
LEAH DONELAN
SENIOR CONSULTANT
E: ldonelan@NonprofitCtr.org
P: 904-504-0309
Leah Donelan Senior Consultant for the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida. Leah’s nonprofit work began while attending the University of Florida where she chaired the UF Dance Marathon, an event that included 700 volunteers who raised over $175,000 for Children’s Miracle Network. After graduating, she worked for the American Cancer Society, providing cancer education to the community and coordinating ACS’ largest local fundraiser, the Cowford Ball. As an independent consultant, she worked with a variety of nonprofits including the Alliance for World Class Education, a group of business leaders whose focus is improving public education; Better Baymeadows, a transportation management organization; and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Florida.
Leah serves on the Governing Board for CISV International, an international peace education organization; the executive committee of JCCI Forward; is a co-founder of Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) Jacksonville; and was honored as the Jacksonville Business Journal’s Top 40 under 40. She is a Jacksonville native and graduate of the University of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in political science.
ISSIS ALVAREZ
ISSIS ALVAREZ
PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Issis is one of the Nonprofit Center's Senior Consultants. Issis earned a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Social Sciences at The Florida State University (FSU), She is an experienced researcher and data analyst, fluent in Spanish and has an impressive volunteer background that has allowed her to support the performing arts as a film and set assistant at FSU, co-director of make-up and costuming for Capital City Shakespeare, and the co-creative director for the Dream Defenders FSU Chapter. She’s trained in conflict resolution.
Her hometown is Tampa via Venezuela.