Greenlights was founded in 2001 by leaders in the nonprofit, business, education, government, public and philanthropic communities, with direction from a large group of advisors from all these sectors. Our conversations with the field indicated that community leaders in Central Texas were frustrated by the lack of a coordinated network of support services for nonprofits, and were hungry for services which could directly address capacity building needs in our sector.

Greenlights values collaborative learning, peer-to-peer relationships, and providing leaders at all levels with access to developmentally appropriate management tools that are customized to best meet the client's learning styles. Founders believe that the voice of the nonprofit sector can and should be unified and strengthened, to allow area nonprofits to maximize their collective impact on improving the lives of Austin residents.

Cindy Kozmetsky, Chair / Civic Volunteer
Libby Malone, Past Chair / Grande Communications
Anna Sanchez, Treasurer / Wells Fargo
Dave Wenger, Secretary / ID University
David Balch / United Way
Carmel Borders / Tapestry Foundation
Marcia Choo / City of Austin
Mike Clifford / Whole Foods
Toya Haley / Winstead Sechrest & Minick
Patti Halliday / InterSource
Lynn Meredith / Civic Volunteer
Nigel Prentice / Stream Studio Web Architects
Lynn Sherman / LCRA

Terri Buchanan / Sustainable Food Center
Susan Eason / The Arc of the Capital Area

Deborah Edward, Start-Up Manager
Deborah Edward, Start Up Manager, (Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Texas) brings to Greenlights 16 years as founder and executive director of the Austin Children's Museum. Edward has provided board development, planning, executive search, evaluation design, grant development, and organizational consulting for public agencies, health care and human service agencies, and education and cultural groups. A trained mediator and frequent speaker and writer, Edward has taught consulting and organizational psychology at undergraduate and graduate levels.

Michael Nellis, Program Director
Michael Nellis, Program Director, (M.A. in Social Work from the University of Michigan) brings to Greenlights more than eight years of experience in capacity building, organizational development, financial management, human resources management, and fundraising. In his previous position at the Tides Center, a nationally recognized management service organization for nonprofits, he managed a portfolio of organizations in the areas of finance, human resources, and risk management. Nellis has worked with health care, criminal justice and nonprofits of all sizes and focus, as well as in policy analysis.