COLLABORATING CONSULTANTS
KATHLEEN E. LOEHR
Kathleen Loehr is a transformational leader known for revising what’s possible. She currently advises on Women in Philanthropy and capacity building for not-for-profit organizations and thrives on conquering big challenges, co-creating compromises and new solutions that others have not seen. Her skill set includes successful leadership of complex teams and budgets, strong relationship building with donors, leaders and staff, strategic solicitation for major gifts, positive volunteer engagement, expertise in women and philanthropy, creation of systems and best practices for fundraising operations, and mentoring/training of fundraisers.
Most recently, Kathleen published Gender Matters: A Guide to Growing Women’s Philanthropy, and is a consultant with Aspen Leadership Group.
Kathleen holds a BA in Government from Cornell University’s College of Arts and Sciences and is fluent in Italian. She serves as faculty for the prestigious Hallmark Presentation of the annual Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) conference, “Inspiring the Largest Gifts of a Lifetime.”
Her 30+ year career in fundraising also includes: the American Red Cross, political fundraising for congressional campaigns, grassroots fundraising for the child care industry, international fundraising (working with world leaders to eradicate wars and genocide in the Balkans, Indonesia, Central Asia, and Africa), major gift fundraising with women leaders at Cornell University, capital campaigns for various projects costing from $3 million to $65 million, and annual fund leadership in a comprehensive $1.5 billion campaign at Cornell University.
HADLEY A. SMITH, Ph.D.
Dr. Hadley Smith is President of The Nework Group, a Dallas based consulting firm that offers a systems approach and leading-edge guidance to corporations, educational institutions, and professional practices in the areas of leadership development, organizational learning, futures planning, and creative collaboration and design.
Key corporate and governmental clients include Cellular One, AT&T Wireless, Good$hare International, Leadership Council of Texas A&M University, NASA, Scott & White Hospital, Mobil Oil, Texaco, Digital, and IBM. Numerous other consultancies to individuals and professional societies are also ongoing.
Dr. Smith’s educational background includes a Doctorate of Philosophy in Human Systems Sciences from Saybrook Institute, graduate study in Visual Arts at New York University, and graduate study in Contemporary Western Philosophy at Harvard University. She has an MFA degree from the University of North Carolina, and a BFA degree from the University of Georgia.
Dr. Smith has held faculty positions at: Texas A&M University in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design and the College of Engineering; The University of North Carolina; The University of Georgia; Mississippi State University; and the Academie des Beaux-Arts, Luxembourg.
She also designed and directed the Office of Future Studies in the Mississippi Research and Development Center (the state’s planning agency), and has worked as a Senior Research Analyst with Russell Ackoff’s consulting firm, Interact—The Institute for Interactive Management. She has been a member of several professional societies, and is a permanent member of The U.S. Association for the Club of Rome.
Apart from authoring articles on design, planning, management, values, learning, and cultural change, she is currently writing a primer on the cognitive and behavioral readiness for shaping the shapers of change.
HELEN J. KESSLER, AIA,
LEED Accredited Professional
Helen Kessler is an architect and President of HJKessler Associates, a firm that provides sustainable design, energy efficiency, lighting design, and commissioning consulting services to building owners, architects and others. She is a Collaborating Consultant with International Planning Associates, contributing her distinguished career-long experience in managing energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Ms. Kessler holds an MBA from the Wharton School, a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Arizona and has led sustainable design and energy efficiency projects for many organizations, including the City of Chicago, State of Illinois, University of Chicago, McDonald's, and Lucent Technologies.
Ms. Kessler has worked on numerous Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) buildings, including the Chicago Public Libraries, the Cook County Domestic Violence Courthouse, LEED Platinum Chicago Center for Green Technology, and the Museum of Broadcast Communications.
Helen currently chairs the US Green Building Council Chicago Chapter's Education and Research committee, is a member of the Board of Directors of Chicago Real Estate Executive Women (CREW), is a Founding Director of the Global Abundance Alliance, and is a past Chair of the Chicago AIA Committee on the Environment. She recently chaired the Energy Code Committee, which created Chicago's first energy code.
In addition, Helen has sponsored mentorship programs with high school girls from predominantly African-American and Hispanic Chicago public schools. She has also been trained as a personal coach and has coached numerous people in both personal achievement and team leadership.