2023 Winning Grant Proposal Judges

Cynthia Adams has been dedicated to helping nonprofit organizations identify and secure the funding they need to do their good work for well over 45 years. Cynthia founded GrantStation because she believes that grantseeking requires a thorough understanding of the funders and sound knowledge of the philanthropic playing field. Her life's work has been to level that playing field, creating opportunities for all nonprofit organizations, regardless of size or geographic location, to secure grant support.

Gayle Samuelson Carpentier is the Chief Business Development Officer at TechSoup. Upon joining the TechSoup Global in 2001 as the program’s founding Business Development lead, Ms. Carpentier developed the strategic structure of its product donation service. The service allows nonprofits to find a large array of donated technology in one place, while still reflecting each donating company’s unique philanthropic goals.

In her expanded role, Ms. Carpentier works with all sections of TechSoup to grow and maintain the unique focus of direct services and benefits to the nonprofit and civil society sector. Whether scoping business criteria for new international partners, negotiating multi-national donation programs, developing business strategies and structures for new initiatives or speaking out on the essential need for corporations to support nonprofit efforts, she continues to expand and stretch the market understanding and interpretation of the role technology plays in the overall health of the sector.

John Carpentier's (he/him/his) first job was as a community liaison at San Francisco Suicide Prevention. There he developed a steadfast passion for mental health advocacy. This work led him to study Clinical Psychology at NYU, where he would go on to teach and work in the field. Returning to San Francisco, a proud 3rd generation native, John was drawn to champion the rights and bring light to the suffering of the city's unhoused citizens. His volunteer work at places like St. Anthony's and the SF-Marin Food Bank deepened his empathy for those in need throughout the city and led him to accept the role of GLIDE's Corporate Engagement Lead in 2018. In this role, John worked alongside GLIDE's Development team to build a robust and evergreen corporate donor program. He now works as a Customer Success Manager at Box, where he is also the regional lead for Box.org. He sat on the Board of Directors of the Harm Reduction Therapy Center, and consults on social impact strategy. In his free time, John can be found wandering old bookstores, watching movies of questionable quality from the early 2000's, asking strangers if he can pet their dogs, and in search of the city's next great taqueria.

Deirdre serves as President of the BMI Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to encouraging the creation, performance and study of music through awards, scholarships, internships, grants and commissions.

Deirdre is also the Executive Director of BMI Classical, New York. Before joining BMI in 2010, she was a classical oboist, performing extensively in the U.S. and Canada with such ensembles as the Montreal Symphony, the American Symphony Orchestra, the Richmond and Harrisburg Symphonies, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Canadian Opera Company, and the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, where she served as principal oboe for seven years. She is also a founding member of Trio Encantar and has performed widely as a chamber musician. A dedicated teacher, Deirdre served on the faculties of Dickinson College and Susquehanna University, as well as maintaining private teaching studios in oboe and recorder. She has also held numerous administrative positions in academic institutions and private industry. She holds two performance degrees and the Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music.

Mike Chamberlain, MBA, CAE is the Chief Executive Officer of the Grant Professionals Association. He is responsible for the strategic operation of the association and works with the GPA Board of Directors and staff to ensure GPA is recognized as The Authority in the grants profession.

He is a member of the American Society of Association Executives, Association of Fundraising Professionals, and the Kansas City Society of Association Executives. He serves on several nonprofit organization boards in the Kansas City area. Mike is a Certified Association Executive with over 25 years of experience in association management in a variety of roles. Mike and his wife live in Lee’s Summit, Missouri with their adorable dog Rifkin.