Kevin Spears

About Kevin Spears

I have worked in the nonprofit sector for more than 25 years, serving organizations of…

Experience

1. Senior Director, Revenue & Operations (COO)

   Schoolhouse Connection

   Nov 2022 — Present

   Responsible for sustaining and increasing revenue from philanthropic sources and fee-for-service contracts in support of policy advocacy and technical assistance focused on the educational rights of children, youth, and young adults experiencing homelessness.Oversight of the organization’s finance, human resources, and operational functions, including supervision of a full-time controller and an external bookkeeper.Developed and coordinated fundraising and business development strategies that have increased annual revenue from $2M to $4M over a three-year period.In collaboration with the Executive Director, increased the number and size of six-figure grants to the organization from prominent national funders, both new and renewing.In collaboration with the Director of Education Initiatives, built internal systems that significantly increased the organization’s capacity to secure contracts with state education agencies, resulting in more than $3M in earned revenue over a two-year period.Introduced improvements to the organization’s financial oversight, including more secure asset management with higher earnings, use of a 12-month cash flow forecast, more efficient processes for annual budgeting and independent audit, and faster monthly close of books.Made improvements to infrastructure such as introduction of online timecards, more efficient centralized file storage, securing critical accounts in a password manager, and consolidation of employer registration and annual reporting in 15 states via a third-party platform.Led the selection and implementation of a more robust CRM for managing the organization’s donor data, digital communications, and advocacy engagement in one platform.Currently leading a comprehensive HR assessment/improvement project with emphasis on compensation and benefit analysis, annual evaluation and feedback practices, recruitment, and reconciliation of policies under diverse state regulations.

Education

• Emory University

  Master of Divinity, Theology

  1993 — 1996

• Furman University

  Bachelor of Arts, English

  1988 — 1992

• Georgia State University

  Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management & Social Enterprise

  2011 — 2014

Skills

• Workshop Facilitation
• Philanthropy
• Board Development
• Public Speaking
• Private Foundations
• Community Outreach
• Nonprofits
• Capacity Building
• Non-Profit Administration
• Fundraising
• Planned Giving
• Leadership
• Grant Writing
• Project Planning
• Non-Profits
• Volunteer Management
• Program Development
• Grants
• Stewardship
• Annual Giving
• Strategic Planning