KDD Philanthropy is proud to partner with the following individuals who are leaders in their respective fields. Their expertise and experience strategically aligns with the needs of our clients, allowing us to provide a customized approach to help each organization grow and succeed.
Andrea Davidson
Fundraising and Leadership Coach
Andrea Davidson brings more than two decades of frontline and executive fundraising experience to her role as a Fundraising and Leadership Coach with KDD Philanthropy. Known for her strategic clarity, empathetic leadership, and ability to translate big visions into actionable plans, Andrea has spent her career building high‑performing teams and driving meaningful philanthropic growth.
Most recently, Andrea led the Los Angeles Region Individual Giving team at City of Hope’s LA Campus. Her career includes senior leadership roles at some of the country’s most respected institutions, including serving as Vice President of Philanthropy at Sanford Burnham Prebys and holding multiple leadership positions at the University of California San Diego. In her final role at UCSD, she served as Interim Associate Vice Chancellor, guiding a team of 75 development professionals and 17 direct reports through complex campaigns and organizational transitions.
Andrea is recognized for her ability to strengthen partnerships between development teams and institutional leadership, align resources around shared priorities, and champion sustainable fundraising strategies. She has a proven record of securing transformational gifts by pairing deep donor engagement expertise with a clear understanding of organizational needs and opportunities.
As a coach, Andrea is valued for her grounded, real‑world approach. She has lived the challenges her clients face: managing teams, navigating internal dynamics, building portfolios, and leading through change. She is a passionate mentor who excels at developing talent, fostering collaborative cultures, and empowering professionals to perform at their highest level.
Outside of her professional life, Andrea is an avid traveler who enjoys yoga, CrossFit, hiking, long walks, cooking, gardening, and exploring new food experiences with her husband. They are proud to call San Diego home.
Connect with Andrea on LinkedIn.
Leah R. Singer
Marketing Director
Leah Singer is a freelance writer and editor, with a background and experience in philanthropic writing. She is known for uncovering unique angles and hidden gems, and then creating clear and compelling communication that creates impact.
Leah has developed a niche within higher education, healthcare and non-profit organizations, writing content designed to engage donors, prospective students, alumni, and friends of universities and organizations. Leah writes cases for support, fundraising proposals, one-page fund language, appeal letters and emails.
Her higher education portfolio includes University of California San Diego, San Diego State University, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, DePauw University, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Indiana State University, and California Institute for Human Science. Included in her healthcare and non-profit portfolio are Sharp Healthcare, City of Hope, YMCA of the Wabash Valley, Wabash Valley Community Foundation, Maple Center for Integrated Health, Wabash Valley Road Runners, and California Charter Schools Association.
Leah worked more than 13 years in-house for both San Diego State University and UC San Diego. She was a speechwriter and communications manager for two college presidents at San Diego State, a writer in SDSU’s University Relations and Development Division, and Director of Communications for the Enrollment Services Department. Leah worked as a senior writer for UC San Diego Annual Giving, and in marketing and fundraising at KPBS public broadcasting station. She also taught a series of development writing classes for UC San Diego, including Foundations of Development Writing, Advanced Development Writing and Creating Donor-Centric Development Writing.
Her published writing has appeared in USA Today; Indianapolis Star; The Huffington Post; The Good Men Project; Edible Indy and Edible San Diego magazines; Terre Haute Living and Tribune Star; Thought Catalog; Medium; and numerous other national publications.
Connect with Leah on LinkedIn.
Marlene Shaver
Marlene Shaver is an advancement professional with more than 30 years in higher education. Her talents lie in board management, policy development, creating standardized procedures to help development offices run efficiently, gift processing management, and helping to build advancement shops from the ground up.
Marlene most recently served as Associate Vice Chancellor of Advancement Services at University of California San Diego and was CFO and COO of the UC San Diego Foundation. She played an instrumental role in the university’s exponential growth in size and reputation, particularly as it pertained to fundraising. She was heavily involved in strategic planning, policy development, process improvement, and implementation of the critical administrative functions of Advancement. This included the design and implementation of the resource funding models and mechanisms for $1 billion (2000-2007) and $3 billion (2012-2022) successful campaigns.
She is passionate about working with boards of directors and board members and has extensive experience in board operations, logistics and internal reporting. She managed the UC San Diego Foundation, which included board relations and management, corporate governance, financial accounting and reporting, and investment management as well as development and implementation of all related policies and procedures. Foundation assets grew from $50 million to $1.6 billion during her tenure. Ten-year average annualized investment returns of the Foundation’s endowment portfolio ranked in the top 50 in the nation at her retirement.
Marlene developed standards and procedures for gift agreements, assuring they followed university and IRS regulations. Her role was often an internal bridge between development officers and donors, as well as their financial representatives and attorneys, always assuring the gift language was perfect and procedures were followed. She also developed the centralized Office of Donor Stewardship and Reporting for the campus.
Marlene graduated summa cum laude and earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration (accounting) from San Diego State University. She is an active professional fiduciary through the State of California and an inactive certified public accountant.
Connect with Marlene on LinkedIn.
Erin Kathleen Jones, CFRE, CSPG
Planned Giving
Erin Jones has a passion for helping donors create their legacy through a strategic approach to planned giving. She is currently the Director of Gift Planing for The Salvation Army. Prior to that, Erin was Principal of Shamrock Philanthropy, where she provides planned giving consulting services for a variety of nonprofit organizations and universities. She also served as Regional Director for the University of Notre Dame. In this position, Erin worked with alumni, parents, and friends of the Fighting Irish to create lasting legacies.
Her engagement with higher education philanthropy did not start with Notre Dame. She spent five years as the Senior Director of Planned Giving at San Diego State University. During her tenure at SDSU, the planned giving program raised more than $75 million. Before SDSU, Erin served as the Director of Planned Giving at San Diego Hospice where she spearheaded the acquisition of a Gift Annuities License for the agency. Under her leadership, the organization raised over $40 million in planned giving efforts.
Erin also worked for the Catholic Diocese of San Diego, Grossmont Hospital Foundation, and the American Cancer Society. She began her 25-year fundraising career with a national consulting firm where she ran 42 capital campaigns over a five-year period, which raised more than $40 million, collectively, through her efforts. Erin also expanded the firm’s West Coast presence when she relocated to San Diego.
Erin earned her bachelor’s degree from St. John’s University in New York. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive, Certified Senior Advisor, and received a Certified Specialist in Planned Giving credential from the College of Continuing & Professional Education at California State University Long Beach.
Connect with Erin on LinkedIn.
KDD Philanthropy Affiliate Alumni
We are grateful to the individuals who gave their time and talent to KDD Philanthropy as affiliates and interns in the past.
- Allyson Heart, Administrative Support
- Amy Lomas, Special Projects
- Nicholas Mancuso, MFA, Strategic Talent Management
- Michelle Mason, Social Media Contributor
- Lilly Mullooly, Social Media Coordinator
- Isabel Ricon, Social Media Intern
- Lucille Schindler, Leadership Giving and Project Management
- Emma Sidell, Social Media Contributor
- Carol Spychalski, Fundraising and Leadership Coach