Creative solutions to developing and uncovering your unknown donor base.  

About Anna Barber

Anna Barber is President and Principal Consultant for Barber & Associates, a boutique fundraising consulting firm focused on helping non-profit organizations achieve their full fundraising potential.

 Prior to starting Barber & Associates, Barber was a senior major gift officer for the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) where she worked for 8 ½ years. She was part of NMAAHC’s inaugural fundraising team that surpassed its $270M private philanthropic goal by $50M. Personally, Barber secured $42M in leadership ($1M+) and major ($100K) gift support, highlighted by the closure of 22 individual one million-dollar gifts, 90% contributed by first time donors to the Smithsonian. She also built and maintained a portfolio of high profile celebrities, including Pauletta and Denzel Washington, LaTanya and Samuel L. Jackson, Magic and Cookie Johnson, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, among many other national individual philanthropists. Leading into NMAAHC’s Grand Opening in 2016, she led the efforts to host a $1M per plate fundraiser at the home of Denzel Washington and a mid-level fundraising event that generated $5M from $25K donors.  

Prior to the Smithsonian, Barber spent 10 years working as a frontline fundraiser in big-time college athletics. She served as the director of major gifts for Michigan State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics where she was part of the team that successfully completed a $100M capital campaign, which was part of a larger $1.2B university-wide campaign. In addition to fundraising, she oversaw the athletics department’s endowment, planned giving and communication programs; and the led the fundraising team for the renovation of the University’s baseball, softball and soccer complexes.

Prior to working at MSU, Barber served as the assistant director of development at Miami University in Ohio where she participated in launching the athletics department’s $30M capital campaign, part of a university-wide $350M campaign. She started her career at Arizona State University where she was mentored under the legendary athletics director Gene Smith.

Barber earned a Juris Doctorate (Intellectual Property) from Arizona State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Howard University.

Barber is an avid traveler and scuba diver.  


About Shanté Alerté

Shanté Alerté supports Barber & Associates in their work to create and enhance fundraising strategies for non-profit organizations across the United States. Alerté has served as a development and public health communications professional in the nation’s capital for nearly a decade.

Prior to joining this firm, Alerté strengthened development and communications efforts at area non-profits including The Washington Home & Community Hospices, the Global Fund for Children, the Children’s Dental Health Project, and WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease. Stakeholder relations and CRM management, with a focus on social media campaigns, were key aspects of her position.

Alerté holds an M.P.H. in Public Health Communications & Marketing from The George Washington University and a B.S. in Psychology from Howard University. She has a deep passion for the arts and loves all things comedy. 


About Rashida Petersen

Rashida Petersen is the CEO and Founder of 1847 Philanthropic and a senior consultant for Barber & Associates. Her career has been built on expertise gained from leading major fundraising and development initiatives in Africa as well as expanding U.S. trade and investment in developing countries. Working within the development departments of international nonprofits, she has been responsible for annual funding goals of over $16 million dollars in institutional funding and over $1.3 million dollars cumulative in unrestricted sponsorship dollars. In 2022, Petersen raised over $25 million dollars for clients in the United States.

Her steadfast focus on causes with strong community involvement and local impact enabled her to work with some of the major civil rights leaders of our time, including Ambassador Andrew Young, at GoodWorks International, an international management-consulting firm and she served as the vice-president for programs and business development at OIC International, this organization carries the legacy of the late Reverend Leon H. Sullivan.

Petersen began her career at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where she served as the East Africa desk officer within the International Trade Administration. Additionally, she served as the acting senior commercial officer with the African Development Bank in Tunis, Tunisia. She was formerly the director of membership and marketing for The Corporate Council on Africa, a trade organization devoted to increasing U.S. trade and investment in Africa.

Petersen is a noted speaker on topics related to international development, organizational development and local impact, fundraising, as well as the importance of diversity in international affairs at conferences and events around the world including, Council on Foreign Relations’ Conference on Diversity in International Affairs, SXSW, Skoll World Forum, and Africa 2018 Forum amongst others.

Petersen holds an International Business degree from the University of Maryland. She currently serves on the advisory board of the University of Maryland’s Center for Global Business; is a member of Bridge Institute’s Africa Policy Group; active member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and a mentor for College Bound in Washington, D.C. 


About Delphia York Ridley

Delphia York Ridley is a senior nonprofit consultant with expertise in leading major organizations. She headed fundraising efforts for the Smithsonian National African American History and Culture, Girl Scouts of USA, and the United Way of Greater Houston, developing cutting edge fundraising strategies to successfully promote national and local initiatives.

Ridley is recognized for achieving results, knowledge of branding and cause marketing, strategic thinking, overcoming obstacles, motivating employees, and building effective teams.   


About Vicky Lech

Vicky Lech supports Barber & Associates in their work to create and enhance fundraising strategies for non-profit organizations across the United States. Lech has more than 13 years of non-profit fundraising experience, primarily in planned giving.

Prior to joining Barber and Associates, Lech served as a gift planning officer at the National Wildlife Federation. She also worked in development positions at the American Diabetes Association, Smithsonian Institution, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Lech holds a Master of Arts degree in Public Policy & Women’s Studies from The George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics & Philosophy from the University of Pittsburgh. She loves traveling, visiting Major League Baseball parks, and camping with her husband and pandemic rescue pup. 


About Samia Khan

Samia Khan assists Barber & Associates with their contracts and copy writing.

Khan has previously worked as a communications regulatory attorney, human resource professional for a community bank, and a writer. She has also worn several more unconventional hats in her career, working for artisanal foods companies and farmstead cheesemakers, volunteering as a zookeeper’s assistant with the Smithsonian National Zoo, and teaching cheesemaking classes for a community kitchen.

Khan holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law, and Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism and Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Kansas. She loves food, travel, long walks, exploring National Parks, and chasing fireflies with her two children.