creativity, belonging, & respect

Kendra Chao is an experienced nonprofit professional whose accomplishments reflect servant leadership, creativity, and an entrepreneurial spirit. Her 25 years of nonprofit experience is complimented by work in the government and for-profit sector. 

Her strengths, which include the values of creativity, belonging, and respect, were evident within her positions as executive director and chief operating officer. Through these roles she engaged staff and board of directors, structured plans, and executed initiatives resulting in increased funding and resources. Her accomplishments have included securing 6-figure monetary gifts, doubling partnerships with employee resource groups and quadrupling volunteers, and re-branding an organization which led to an 80% increase in media attention.

In 2009-10, Kendra participated in the National Urban Fellows, a premier leadership development organization that cultivates leaders to become change agents in the public and nonprofit sectors. The fellowship program is a highly selective 14-month program results in a Masters of Public Administration degree.

An entrepreneur at heart, she founded Little Fish Swim School, a business that became profitable within 2 months. And, was the creator and author of Read Them and Eat Books, a solution for picky eaters.

One of the understandings Kendra lives by is that “People want to be intimately known, yet be part of a larger story.” Thus, volunteerism plays an integral part in her life, and is reflected within varied roles she's played.