Who We Are
Kathy Postel Kretman, Ph.D.
Kathy Postel Kretman, Ph.D., is the Waldemar A. Nielsen Chair in Philanthropy at the Center for Pubic & Nonprofit Leadership and Research Professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy. She has devoted most of her career to the development of leaders in the public, nonprofit and philanthropic sectors. One of the highlights of Dr. Kretman’s career has been directing Georgetown’s nationally recognized nonprofit executive certificate program, which now has more than 1,900 alumni across the globe. Additionally, she has directed customized leadership programs for organizations such as the USAID, the Qatar Foundation, United Way International, the International Monetary Fund, National Urban League, and the National Hispana Leadership Institute. Earlier in her career, Dr. Kretman advised chief executive officers on corporate social responsibility; researched community and economic development issues in New York City; and investigated discriminatory practices in employment, voting rights, and municipal service delivery for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. She holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Maryland, an M.A. in Public Administration from George Washington University, and a B.S. from the University of Texas at Austin. Click for more
Luisa Boyarski, Ph.D.
Luisa Boyarski, Ph.D. is Director of the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership and Associate Research Professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy. She is involved in developing and executing the Center’s many executive education and customized programs, and representing the Center at Georgetown University and in the broader community. She recently researched and wrote How to Lead Systems Change Work and Advancing Racial Equity Within Nonprofit Organizations. Luisa frequently conducts workshops and gives keynote addresses on NGO Management and High Impact NGOs to international delegations, including trainings in China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Mongolia, Panama, Romania, and St. Vincent. She has also co-taught an undergraduate course on Philanthropy and Social Change. Prior to working at CPNL, she was the Executive Director of a D.C.-based nonprofit, working on global warming prevention with Arctic indigenous people. She currently leads a coalition of grassroots groups in Virginia, representing over 15,000 residents. Luisa received her Ph.D. in Comparative Government from Georgetown University, with a research focus on the role of nonprofit coalitions in public policy advocacy. Click for more
Vyomika Gandhi
Vyomika Gandhi is the Program Coordinator at the Center for Public & Nonprofit Leadership. In her role, she will support the Center’s nonprofit executive certificate and customized programs. This past summer, she worked for the MEPI Student Leaders Program at the Center for Intercultural Education and Development, supporting students from the Middle East & North Africa regions throughout their exchange program in the U.S. Vyomika is also a graduate student in the M.S. in Integrative Neuroscience program at Georgetown University, where her research focuses on glial cells and drugs of abuse. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University’s College of Arts & Sciences in Psychology.
Lynsey Wood Jeffries
Lynsey Wood Jeffries is a Visiting Practitioner at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership and the CEO of Higher Achievement, which serves middle school scholars in three states with year-round, research-proven expanded learning and mentoring. After five years as a Higher Achievement volunteer mentor, Lynsey joined the professional staff in 2005 and has served as CEO since 2012. Prior to joining Higher Achievement, she served as a program officer for the Fannie Mae Foundation, and a congressional liaison at NeighborWorks. Her commitment to equity extends from education to affordable housing and full communities. Lynsey served as a National Fellow with the Kellogg Foundation, focused on racial equity and healing from 2014 – 2017. She is a founding board member and former board chair of Mundo Verde Public Charter School and a board member for the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh. Lynsey holds a B.A. in English and Sociology from Wake Forest University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh, with a concentration in nonprofit management.
Natalie Sandoval
Natalie is a second-year MPP candidate at the McCourt School of Public Policy, and a returning Pablo Eisenberg Public Interest Fellow. Over the summer, Natalie worked at General Services Administration within Public Building Services, where she helped manage federally owned and leased buildings. Before embarking on her graduate studies, Natalie spent a year in Germany as part of the 39th cohort of the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program for Young Professionals. Prior to her international experience, she served as a Consulting Analyst at Public Equity Group. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley.
Juan M. Menéndez
Juan M. Menéndez is a 2024-2025 Pablo Eisenberg Public Interest Fellow at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership and a second-year student at the Masters in International Development Policy at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy. He was born and raised in Chajarí (Entre Ríos, Argentina) and earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Torcuato Di Tella University in Buenos Aires. Professionally, Juan has served as a policy advisor to the Buenos Aires City Governor during the COVID-19 pandemic and to the Minister of Human Development of the same government later on. Most recently, he worked as a Summer Research Assistant at the Center for Economic Research in Pakistan (CERP), focusing on applying AI techniques to improve property tax collection in Punjab. Juan will also be a teaching assistant at the AI & Development course this year—his research interests center on AI policy in the developing world and the political economy of development.
Ryann Alonso
Ryann Alonso is a 2024-2025 Waldemar A. Nielsen Philanthropy Fellow at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership and a first-year student at the McCourt School of Public Policy. They attended the University of Arkansas and received a degree in Political Science and Communications, where they did research on presidential rhetoric and its effect on gun policy. While in Arkansas, Ryann engaged in political organizing, working on multiple local campaigns and registering over 500 students to vote during the 2016 election. They have spent the last four years living and working in Washington, D.C. at the Alliance for Justice as a Senior Program Coordinator, helping nonprofits and grant makers understand compliance laws around tax exempt entities’ ability to do advocacy and lobbying. Ryann is also a Harry S. Truman Scholar, and was part of the inaugural class of finalists for the Hillary Rodham Clinton Award for Peace and Reconciliation.
Mohamed Abu Jafar
Mohamed Abu Jafar (G’25) is a 2024-2025 Graduate Research Assistant at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership. Mohamed is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Global Health at Georgetown University. With extensive experience as a clinical nursing instructor at the Arab American University, he specializes in advanced nursing practices, including ICU and ER care. He serves as both the quality manager and a judicial officer at the Palestinian Ministry of Health, where he has led the development and revision of over 110 health policies aimed at improving health care practices. Mohamed is passionate about strengthening health systems in crisis and advancing global infection control. As a 2024-2025 Global Health Institute Student Fellow, he will work with Dr. Babatunji Oni on a project about patient satisfaction in Haiti.
Yasemin Sayar
Yasemin Sayar is the Office and Communications Assistant at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership. Yasemin is a sophomore at Georgetown University’s College of Arts & Sciences studying Sociology and is planning to minor in Tech, Ethics, and Society. She is from Istanbul, Turkey and resided there until she came to college in 2023. Yasemin previously interned at TED University in Ankara, Turkey focusing on social inequality and health sociology.