NFF Assistant Board Secretary
Berit Ashla is Director of Philanthropy for Fremont Group, a San Francisco based family office, designing the family’s integrated philanthropy practice. Prior to joining Fremont, Berit led Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors’ West Coast advisory office managing client engagements with individual, family foundation, and corporate donors. She holds a wealth of experience in grantmaking, foundation governance, education, social justice, arts, and sustainability.
As Senior Advisor at the Tides Foundation, Berit led donor engagement, grantmaking, and fund development activities, and managed the Threshold Foundation. She was the Philanthropic Director of Foundation Source, and she served as Executive Director of the David Brower Center, an innovative arts and sustainability center. Earlier in her career, Berit worked at the Marin Community Foundation, KQED Public Television, and the UN Environment Program in Paris, France.
Berit has a Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College and currently serves on the boards of Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF), the Institute for the Future, and the Center for Social Sector Leadership (CSSL) at Haas School of Business. In past years, Berit served on the boards of Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Berkeley Rep, Nia Community Fund, the Schott Foundation for Public Education, the Abundance Foundation, Mal Warwick/Donor Digital, the Downtown Berkeley Association, and Ecole Bilingue, the French American School of Berkeley.
Mabel Alvarez is the Director of Investor Relations and Impact Investment Services at NFF, where she builds and manages partnerships with mission-driven investors that are dedicated to advancing community wealth and well-being. In her role, she also oversees the development, implementation, and management of over $100 million in community-centered funds, working alongside nonprofit and philanthropic partners to help move financial resources where they can make the greatest impact.
Mabel brings over a decade of experience in social impact work, including her time at EL Education, where she led multi-year strategic initiatives supporting school districts across the country. She holds a Bachelor of Science in marketing and management from The Pennsylvania State University and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in business analytics from Montclair State University.
Aoi Morel serves as a New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Director at NFF, where she supports the organization’s NMTC portfolio through a wide range of responsibilities. Her work includes compliance management, tracking pipeline, assisting with drafting, finalizing, and submitting NFF’s NMTC application, loan servicing, handling cash management activities, conducting financial reviews and reporting, and fulfilling reporting obligations to both investors and the CDFI Fund.
Before rejoining NFF, Aoi contributed to New Jersey Future’s Funding Navigator program, helping municipalities and water systems, particularly those serving overburdened communities, access the State Revolving Fund (SRF) for critical water infrastructure projects. She also worked with the Newark Water Coalition and 501CTHREE to advocate for clean water access in her hometown of Newark, NJ, and co-authored a publication in an environmental justice journal addressing Newark’s lead contamination issues.
Aoi is deeply committed to equity in community development and finance. The NMTC program’s emphasis on increasing access to capital in low-income communities, including communities of color, aligns closely with her personal and professional values. She brings a results-driven, strategic mindset to her work, informed by both lived experience and a strong foundation in finance. Aoi holds a Bachelor of Science in finance from Kean University.
Chiweta Rozaline Uzoka (she/her) is a Manager for NFF’s Consulting team. Chiweta supports the delivery of NFF’s services to clients through project management, financial analysis, and presenting NFF’s core messages through workshops and webinars. Prior to joining NFF, Chiweta served as a development associate at a nationwide education nonprofit focusing on work-based learning opportunities for high school students. Through her previous experiences, she developed a strong interest in public service and community engagement. Chiweta holds a Bachelor of Arts in politics (with double minors in African American Studies and Legal Studies) from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Public Administration degree from NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. She is passionate about access to affordable and sustainable housing.
Dominique Fortune is the National Senior Director of Investor Relations at NFF, overseeing the management and development of Funds from implementation to deployment for community-focused nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. In this role, she plays a crucial part in cultivating and maintaining relationships with investors, aligning with NFF’s strategic efforts.
Dominique brings a wealth of leadership expertise at the intersection of nonprofit finance, community development, advocacy, and executive leadership. Before joining NFF, she served as the Director of Charter School Programs for a National CDFI Developer and held the position of Chief of Staff for a Washington, DC public charter school CMO. Notably, Dominique is a public charter school co-founder and served as the Founding Board Chair.
In addition to her role at NFF, Dominique is actively involved in various organizations. She is a member of the Level Field Fund Board of Directors, the DC Office of State Superintendent of Education Department of Education Credit Committee Board and DC Bilingual Public Charter School in Washington, DC.
Dominique Fortune holds a Bachelor of Arts in communication from the College of Charleston and a Master of Arts from Georgetown University.
Dominique lives in Washington, D.C
Sarah (she/her) is a management professional with 25+ years of experience in arts administration, finance and budgeting, community engagement, strategic planning, and development. Since joining NFF in 2021, she has had the pleasure of supporting organizations and leaders across the country. Her work often centers smaller and emerging nonprofits, supporting them in gaining agency over their financial planning and systems. She serves on NFF’s full cost workgroup, helping to evolve the framework and expand its reach. Other areas of focus include deepening NFF’s impact in MA and the organization’s funder learning opportunities. Prior to joining NFF, she served as a Co-Founder and Managing Director of Boston’s Company One Theatre (C1) from 1998 to 2019. With C1, she worked with NFF consultants to implement the full cost framework, including multiple year budgets and in-depth projections models. She also developed artistic, education, and community programs centered on collaborations and partnerships. She holds a Master of Public Administration in nonprofit management from Suffolk University and a Bachelor of Arts from Clark University in environmental science and policy.
Preethi (pronounced pree-THee) Kumaran is a Manager in the Consulting Practice at the Nonprofit Finance Fund, based out of the Philadelphia office, and serves in project management, financial analysis, and client support capacities. While she supports client work nationwide, much of her work has centered around Colorado and New Jersey markets. Prior to NFF, she worked at the Satell Institute, the W.D. Palmer Foundation, and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is a volunteer with and on the board of Open Hearts Cafe, a community human services organization. Preethi completed a master’s degree in nonprofit leadership and bachelor’s degree in biology at the University of Pennsylvania.
Travis Ene joined NFF in 2021.
As a Manager on the Operations & IT team, John brings more than seven years of information systems experience and plays a key role in supporting organizational infrastructure and reporting. He oversees CDFI Fund reporting and certification, supports award applications, and leads the Compliance Working Group (CWG). John is also responsible for managing important partner and internal reporting efforts, including the annual Aeris rating and board survey. In addition to his operational responsibilities, John serves as a system administrator for both Salesforce and NFF’s intranet. He helps drive cross-functional technology projects, such as migrating the intranet to SharePoint or integrating NFF’s loan servicing platform with Salesforce. His work also includes developing solutions in Power BI to enhance data visibility and decision-making.
Yulin (she/her) leads impact data reporting at NFF by coordinating data collection from NFF’s portfolio, and leveraging systems to track output and outcomes data from clients. The data she provides supports grant applications, investors/funders compliance reporting, and evaluation of progress towards internal goals. Yulin has maintained and developed various data dashboards, including dashboards related to tracking enterprise goals and analyzing client loan intakes.
Yulin also plays an important role in operational and information technology projects where she analyzes business processes and systems to make recommendations that improve and streamline work processes.