Leadershipaasp is led by dedicated advancement services professionals who seek to strengthen their profession and those who work within it.The aasp Board of Directors is elected by the membership present at the organization's annual meeting, in accordance with the aasp bylaws. The Nominations Committee solicits nominations for the board from the membership and submits a slate of candidates at the annual meeting. Directors must be members in good standing of the organization. They are elected for three-year terms and are eligible to be reelected once, serving on the board up to six consecutive years. Board of Directors
Board Member Biographies
Anne Marie Halsey is Director, Donor Fund Compliance at The George Washington University, where she serves on the Donor Relations team within University Advancement. Anne brings extensive experience in nonprofit operations, finance, and donor relations. Before joining GW, she was Interim Senior Director, Finance and IT Operations at the Environmental Defense Fund. She served as Director, Foundation Business Operations at Children's National Medical Center and, before that, as Manager of Donor Relations at the Smithsonian Institution. Anne serves on the Association of Advancement Services Professionals (aasp) Board and previously completed two terms on the Board of the Association of Donor Relations Professionals (ADRP), where she chaired their 2017 International Conference. Anne is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). She holds a Certificate in Fundraising Operations from Rice University, an MS in Justice, Law and Society from American University, and a BA in Law and Society from Hood College. Becky Frantz, Vice President
Becky holds a PhD in Education and Human Resources from Colorado State University and a Master’s degree in Higher Education Administration from Penn State University. She is also trained specifically in applied statistics and was a National Data Policy Fellow sponsored by the NSF and Association for Institutional Research. Before UC Davis Becky spent time in the Development and Alumni shops at Stanford and Penn State. When not at work, Becky enjoys gardening, rock climbing, and watching all sorts of sports. Mark Walcott, Past President
Jeff Baynham, Director of Technology
Caroline Chang, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Secretary
I have a 30-year career as a practitioner in Advancement, the bulk of that time (over 20 years) in Advancement Services specifically. I was on faculty for the CASE Summer Institute for Advancement Services for seven years, four as chair. I was also on faculty for at least 4 Gift Processing and Records conferences for CASE, and have presented at aasp, BBCon, and the precursor to Ellucian Live. I was also an annual giving fundraiser for seven years. After a relatively short stint as a higher education consultant, I've spent the last six years working for UC Innovation, now Kindsight. I sit at the intersection of sales, product development, and implementation, which means that I've kept in touch with users and their needs for a CRM. What I am excited about bringing to the position – My professional work as a practitioner combined with my vendor experience provides a unique perspective because I've been on both sides of the aisle, as it were. I care about this industry and want to do everything possible to see it succeed. In this particular board position, having served as the Sponsorship chair for two years and working closely with Terry, I've been successful in helping to reach our goals, and recruiting new volunteers. I know that there are more responsibilities which come with being on the board, and I look forward to helping in a broader fashion. Wayne Combs, Director of Education
Heather Johnson, Director of Membership Operations
Jessica LaBorde, Director at Large
With nearly 25 years of experience in corporate sales, political and nonprofit fundraising, and philanthropy operations, Jessica is passionate about improving both internal and external processes to drive a leaner, more efficient business while supporting the UC Davis philanthropic goals and priorities. Jessica is active in CASE as both a speaker and an awards judge for Advancement Services Programs. She holds a BS in Mass Communications and a BA in English Literature from Appalachian State University and has completed her Executive MBA. When not fearlessly leading her team to new professional heights, she takes pleasure at home and abroad by gardening with her tween twins, supporting farm-to-fork initiatives, and sampling family-owned wineries and microbreweries with her charming husband. She is also a voracious reader who enjoys napping nearly as much as turning pages. Karen Latora, Director of Member Engagement
Kate Nimety, Director of Knowledge Base, Treasurer
Vered Siegel, Director of Diversity & Ethics
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Becky Frantz is the Assistant Vice Chancellor at UC Davis Advancement Services. In this role she oversees the Business Relationship Manager team, focused on user data and system needs, as well as the Service Desk and Training team, who supports getting users access and onboarded to the division-supported systems. She finds joy in having users engaged with data and systems so they can do their jobs more seamlessly. In addition to her other responsibilities, Becky serves as a campus expert in data security, risk assessment, and business continuity. Becky has been an active volunteer with aasp for six years and previously served as the chair of the Member Engagement Committee. Becky is looking forward to her service on the board to help promote the value of aasp in order to grow our membership and, thus, community of professionals. 
Dr. Mark Walcott has more than 20 years of experience in technology-related and advancement services roles focused on Data Analytics, Data Management, and technological innovation. He serves as the Assistant Vice President of Advancement Systems & Reporting Advancement and Alumni at the University of Houston. Dr. Walcott actively speaks on a variety of topics and has served on Blackbaud Higher Education Executive Advisory Board, Multicultural Leadership Institute (MCLP) Board, and other organizations focused on community and technological Advancement. Dr. Walcott is focused on continuing to build the profession through the strategic growth of aasp.
Jeff Baynham
Dr. Wayne Combs is a leader in campaign and advancement management with more than 25 years of experience supporting higher education and healthcare. He serves as Associate Vice President of Operations and Administrative Services for CHOC Children's Foundation. At USC Rossier School of Education, Dr. Combs teaches courses on Creativity and Innovation, Strategic Communications and Economics and Finance in the Organizational Change and Leadership program. In support of philanthropy, Dr. Combs delivers presentations on emerging trends and as Chair/Faculty for the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
Heather Johnson
Jessica Schrider LaBorde is the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Advancement Services for the University of California, Davis. Jessica and her team develop and provide advancement services solutions with the front-line fundraiser in mind.
Karen Latora is the Associate Director of Stewardship at Pomona College, in Pomona, California. Her career in advancement services has spanned more than 35 years and has included time in higher education environments, including four University of California campuses, and in the for-profit sector. Karen has built a career marked by leadership and collaboration across numerous boards, committees, and professional organizations. While at the University of California, Karen co-founded and managed the UC Data Managers group, which continues to bring campuses together to strengthen data and systems decision-making across the UC system. She was also deeply engaged in the Ellucian user community, serving as chair, participating in the product advisory group, and helping organize user conferences. A founding member of DRIVE, she served as both Chair and Sponsorship Chair before its transition to CASE. Over the years, Karen has contributed extensively to CASE, including faculty service for CASE SAIS, managing Circle of Excellence judging for CASE VII, and volunteering for CASE II. At UC Innovation and Kindsight, she further strengthened professional communities by cultivating user groups and successfully launching user conferences.
Kate Nimety (she/her) has been an active member in the nonprofit industry since 2010, and brings more than 20 years of systems and process development. She has been a people- and process-focused consultant for more than eight years, and was deeply involved in solution development and change management while in the Development and IT departments at Yale University for over five years prior. Kate is deeply engaged with the missions of all of her colleagues and clients in the nonprofit, higher ed, health care, and arts and culture verticals. She has made lasting connections with industry leaders across all sectors, including our other consultants and vendors. Kate has served aasp for seven plus years, first as a member of the Best Practices Review Panel (2017-2018), then with the Summit Program Committee (2019-present), and has orchestrated the Elevate pre-conference workshop at Summit for the last five years. Kate is a highly-rated speaker at aasp Summit each year, has recorded an aasp Podcast episode recently, and also presents at other industry events such as this year's 2024 CASE DRIVE pre-conference workshop. It is with this consistency and dedication to volunteerism and serving our industry that Kate approaches new opportunities to serve. Her breadth of experience, from process design expertise as a Certified Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB), to developing a holistic Organizational Change Management practice, to leading the Consulting practice at Zuri Group with a team of deeply experienced Management Consultants, contributes to her volunteer work in ways that support the growth of our industry.
Vered Siegel,