Lynn O’Connell has more than 25 years working in the nonprofit sector as a staff person, a consultant, a trainer, and a volunteer. She was appointed Executive Director of Computer C.O.R.E. in Alexandria, Virginia, in January 2008. While there over a decade, she led a staff of five and more than 80 active volunteers in advancing its mission to help low-income adults acquire the technological and life skills they need to pursue career aspirations. Lynn took on the position following the founder, specifically to focus on broadening the organization’s outreach and to establish a structure for long-range sustainability of the program offerings.
Before coming to CORE, Lynn worked for more than a decade with healthcare foundations. From 2000-2008, she served as Executive Director of a national healthcare foundation in Alexandria, Virginia. In that role, Lynn directed 12 grant programs and broadened the foundation’s capabilities by conceptualizing, planning, and implementing two new grant programs, one of which is a Global Health grants initiative.
As a consultant, she has worked with numerous nonprofits with a focus on educational and healthcare nonprofit organizations. Many “young” nonprofits (i.e., those in existence less than a decade) have relied upon her services. In her work with The Claude & Mildred Pepper Foundation, she laid the groundwork for what has now been a successful $9.6 million capital campaign to fund a museum/conference facility. Working with AmeriCorps in New York City Public Schools, she led the group through an evaluation of the Project FIRST program in the City’s elementary and junior high schools. She has worked with numerous organizations in applying for 501(c)3 IRS determination, developing effective boards and obtaining seed money. Lynn has worked with various community-based nonprofit organizations on a contractual basis to initiate strategic planning, program development, board and organizational development, capacity-building, and project evaluations.
Since 1992, Lynn has been teaching seminars and workshops in fundraising and other nonprofit management topics. She also offers customized courses to organizations serving nonprofits. She frequently serves a presenter at regional conferences for nonprofit organizations as well. Her seminars range from 1.5 hours to 16 hours in length. Topics focus on writing a business plan, working with volunteers, major gift solicitation, strategic planning, proposal writing, team-building with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Internet and fundraising, special events planning, researching funding sources, budgeting and understanding the grant reviewer. She is the past long-term editor for two nonprofit publications: Development Director’s Letter and WealthEngine News.
Lynn holds an M.A. from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in Philanthropy. She also has a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University. Her undergraduate degree is a B.A. in Communications and French from David Lipscomb University. She was recognized as a Fulbright Scholar in 1983.
As a volunteer, she has served on the board of 23 organizations and, as a board chair, for seven of those. Some of her past board chair positions include Volunteer Alexandria, the Washington Literacy Council and Empowered Women International. She also was appointed as a Commissioner for the Alexandria Commission for the Arts. She currently serves as national board chair for Together Women Rise.
Besides her work in the nonprofit sector, Lynn has worked in two other professions. She served as a U.S. diplomat for eight years during which she was posted overseas as an economics officer. She has also been a teacher of business and economics in Normandy, France, and along the southern coast of England.
Certifications include:
- Interim Executive Director Training (The Support Center)
- Certification in Nonprofit Board Consulting (BoardSource)
- Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership (Duke University)
- DISC Certification – Professional as well as Faith Based (Christian Coach Institute)
- Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Master Practitioner (OKA)
- Certified Program Planner in Adult Learning (LERN)