Michelle Ellison, CFRE, MPA, is a nonprofit and fundraising professional with more than 15 years of experience helping organizations build capacity, strengthen fundraising, and turn ideas into action.

Michelle’s career began in the arts, where she worked with museums, galleries, arts organizations, and cultural institutions in Pennsylvania and New York. That experience gave her an early appreciation for the relationship between mission, community, and philanthropy, and ultimately led her into broader nonprofit development and management.

Today, Michelle works with nonprofits across a range of sectors, including the arts, social services, healthcare, disaster relief, education, veteran-focused organizations, and community initiatives. Throughout her career, Michelle has helped organizations establish fundraising infrastructure, develop donor relationships, secure government and foundation funding, plan capital campaigns, and build partnerships that expand their reach. She has also helped organizations strengthen their operations, develop new programs, and create the systems needed to support growth.

Michelle holds a Master of Public Administration from Kutztown University, a BA in Arts Management with a focus in Art History from Chatham University, and a Certificate in Art Business from Sotheby’s Institute of Art in New York. She is also a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE).

Michelle enjoys working with organizations that are building something, whether that’s a fundraising program, a new initiative, a capital campaign, or the infrastructure needed to support the next stage of growth.