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Colton Strawser Consulting is a consulting firm that specializes in working with nonprofit organizations, foundations, and other mission-driven organizations that seek to make a positive change in the world. We help clients develop the data, funding, and leadership skills necessary to create change.

Building upon years of service in the nonprofit sector, Colton C. Strawser, created Colton Strawser Consulting in 2012 to assist organizations to create change by using practical experience and academic perspectives. Since then, our firm has grown to offer services to clients in a variety of areas including organizational development, fundraising, philanthropy, research and evaluation, and leadership development.

Nonprofits have enough to worry about – let us help you address some of the things that may be keeping you up at night. Do any of these problems sound familiar?

We want to solve a community problem but don’t have enough data to make an informed decision to design an initiative or assess whether we are making any progress towards our goal.

Our community foundation wants to be a stronger community leader, but we don’t want to upset donors, nonprofits, or the local community.

Someone told us that we should apply for a government grant, but we have no idea where to begin or what it takes to be a government contractor.

Our organization feels like it is ready to move to the next level, but we are unsure what to do to get there.

Board members are not engaged, and we need them to help with fundraising, community relations, and show up to meetings.

Being a nonprofit executive is challenging and lonely at times, and I need to be supported and support my staff properly.

If any of these statements resonate with you, schedule a call with us to learn how we can support you – these are the types of problems that make us excited to get out of bed in the morning!
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Our Team Members

Colton C. Strawser, Ph.D.

President

Keith Ackerman, LMSW

Chief Operating Officer

Shay Feeney

Marketing & Partnerships Manager

Kristen Bitzegaio, MA

Associate Director of Client Engagements

Colleen Knight

Director of Operations

Lauren York

Consulting Services Coordinator

Jolene "JoJo" Strawser

Vice Pawsident

Don’t see what you’re looking for? We absolutely LOVE being a connector!
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Are you in the DFW Metroplex? Check out the DFW Nonprofit Resource Sharing Group directory for a list of businesses that serve mission-driven organizations.

  • Who We Are
Colton Strawser Consulting is a nonprofit consulting firm that specializes in helping organizations develop the data, funding, and leadership skills necessary to create change.
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Colton C. Strawser, Ph.D.

President

Colton C. Strawser, Ph.D. is the President of Colton Strawser Consulting, a nonprofit consulting firm empowering organizations to create change®. As a practitioner and academic, Dr. Strawser’s consulting work primarily focuses on organizational assessment, program evaluation, capacity building, and research. Most of his nonprofit experience involves working with foundations, education nonprofits, and social service agencies.

Dr. Strawser is a Certified Fund Raising Executive, AFP Master Trainer®, Certified Nonprofit Professional, and Certified Facilitator of the Core Capacity Assessment Tool®.

Strawser holds a B.A. in Philanthropic Studies from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, M.S. in Higher Education Administration with a concentration in online teaching and program administration, M.S. in Nonprofit Management & Philanthropy, and Graduate Certificate in Strategic Fundraising from Bay Path University. He received his Ph.D. in Nonprofit & Philanthropic Leadership from the University of San Diego.

Keith Ackerman, LMSW

Chief Operating Officer

Prior to joining Colton Strawser Consulting, Keith served as the Chief Operations Officer for Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County from 2016 – 2022. From 2014 – 2016 he served as the Executive Director of The Cottages at Hickory Crossing, a position he transitioned into after having served as the Chief Operations Officer for CitySquare from 2005 to 2014 and the CitySquare Community Health Services Practice Administrator from 2003 to 2005. From 1991 – 2003, he served in various capacities for Millwood Psychiatric Hospital in Arlington Texas, the last position being the Corporate Director of Human Resources. In addition, Keith has served as a consulting Social Worker to a Hospice Home Health agency, Youth Director for the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth and Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church in Arlington, served as an After School Tutor with the Boys and Girls Club of Arlington, a Shift Supervisor for the Volunteers of America Riverside Facility Halfway House in Fort Worth, a house arrest electronic monitor for Volunteers of America and has served on several community Advisory Boards in Dallas.

Keith is a Licensed Master Social Worker having received his BSW and MSSW from the University of Texas at Arlington. He also holds accreditation as a Human Services – Board Certified Practitioner and the Non-Profit Leadership Certificate from Southern Methodist University through the Center for Non-Profit Management.

Keith is active in the Boy Scouts of America, having been an Eagle Scout himself, and has served in various roles for units and districts in the Circle Ten and Longhorn Councils. He is a native of Charleroi (Pittsburgh), PA.

Shay Feeney

Marketing & Partnerships Manager

Shay joined Colton Strawser Consulting in October 2022 as the Marketing & Partnerships Manager. Shay has worked in the nonprofit realm for over five years, professionally serving numerous nonprofit organizations across the sector. She is a graduate of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, where she earned her B.S in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences. Shay holds a certificate in Nonprofit Management from the University of Texas at Austin and a certification from ToPs® in facilitation.

Active in the community, Shay has served as a board member for the Fort Worth chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and co-chaired various roles for both the Dallas and Fort Worth Chapters. In addition to her board service. Shay is passionate about serving her community through volunteering her time, treasure, talent, and testimony.

In her free time, she enjoys roller skating, frequenting local museums, and gardening. Shay and her husband, Patrick, currently reside in Fort Worth, TX. 

Kristen Bitzegaio

Associate Director of Client Engagements

Kristen Bitzegaio joined Colton Strawser Consulting in March 2022 as the Associate Director of Client Engagement. Kristen has worked in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors for 20 years. She launched her career at 17, becoming the lead anti-tobacco education trainer for her home county in rural Indiana. While in college to receive a BA in public relations, Kristen worked in marketing at the public television station on campus. Kristen has also been in marketing for a workforce development agency, community engagement for a public radio station and has served as a temporary program assistant at a community foundation, executive director of a free resource store for teachers, and has managed a nonprofit consulting firm that specialized in small to mid-size organizations.

Kristen moved with her husband and two boys to South Carolina in 2017, where she served as the program officer for grantmaking and community leadership at a community foundation with an asset pool of $30 million. In June 2022, Kristen moved back to the Hoosier State, living with her family and St. Berdoodle just north of Indianapolis.

Colleen Knight

Director of Operations

Colleen Knight serves as the Director of Operations at Colton Strawser Consulting where she oversees a variety of backoffice functions and ensures that projects are completed efficiently and on time. Colleen has a vast array of nonprofit experience including working in workforce development, education, and community philanthropy. Prior to relocating to San Antonio, TX, Colleen was the Executive Director of the Branch County Community Foundation, located in Michigan, for 22 years.


Colleen’s passion is helping people and she seeks to create positive change for people. She has done this through coaching individual team members to achieve their career goals, assisting donors in meeting their philanthropic goals, increasing organizational capacity for nonprofits and small businesses through process improvement, and connecting organizations and causes with community resources.

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Lauren York

Consulting Services Coordinator

Lauren joined the Colton Strawser Consulting team in January 2023 as the Consulting Services Coordinator. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University, where she earned a BBA in Business Management and Consulting, in addition to a Certificate in Nonprofit and Social Innovation. Lauren has previously worked at a fundraising consulting firm and a nonprofit organization focused on community engagement through volunteerism and leadership. Lauren has experience in a variety of different roles throughout the nonprofit sector, including donor and partnership relations, program and event management, and marketing.

Lauren has always had a passion for volunteering and even received the prestigious President’s Volunteer Service award in 2018 in recognition of her extensive volunteer work. Through her volunteerism, she gained a deep passion and interest in the strategies nonprofits engage in to create positive and impactful change in their communities. Lauren enjoys applying her business acumen to help nonprofit organizations better effectuate their missions. Lauren is still an avid volunteer who enjoys giving her time to a plethora of nonprofits in the animal welfare, human services, and education sectors.

Jolene "JoJo" Strawser

Senior Vice Pawsident

Jojo has been with Colton Strawser Consulting since August 2020, and serves as Senior Vice Pawsident. She attended PetSmart for puppy and intermediate training, as well as a special course on brain games where she learned her colors and how to read a few words. She is a fan of local parks, treats, spending time with her dog friends, and is training to become a therapy dog.

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