Associate Professor, Seattle University

Maureen Emerson Feit is Associate Professor of Public Affairs & Nonprofit Leadership at Seattle University. Her research focuses on the nonprofit sector as a location for both challenging and reproducing social inequality, and she has published and presented widely on the racialization of nonprofit organizations. Her teaching and scholarship include a focus on participatory methods, and she regularly collaborates on research at the local and state level. For many years, she worked in community-based organizations focused on immigrant and refugee rights, community schools, and youth leadership. She earned her M.A. and PhD in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Michigan.

Graduate Student, Seattle University

Nicole is a second-year Master of Nonprofit Leadership graduate student specializing in community engagement and organizational leadership. Throughout her nonprofit career, she has brought a human-centered approach to her work, grounded in a commitment to understanding diverse cultural contexts and perspectives, authentically engaging stakeholders, and fostering sustainable community change. As a nontraditional student and woman of color who has held executive leadership positions, this research project aligns with Nicole’s interest in critical scholarship on the nonprofit sector, her passion for education, and her belief in the transformative power of community-driven initiatives.

You can sign up for an interview with Nicole using this link.

Graduate Student, Seattle University

Mary Richardson is a graduate student in the Master of Nonprofit Leadership program at Seattle University. She brings many years of experience working in education, philanthropy, and community engagement spaces. As a transracial adoptee and advocate for equity, Mary strives to work at the intersection between lived experience, social justice, and transformational leadership practices. This project aligns with her interests in the ways that organizations support shared leadership, participatory democracy, and collaboration as they build a solidarity economy. Through this work, she aims to contribute to a broader conversation about the challenges and possibilities of working for social change.

You can sign up for an interview time with Mary using this link.