Robin launched The Callahan Collaborative in 2022 as the next step in her calling to make the world more equitable and just for all. For more than 25 years, she has served in nonprofit leadership across a variety of staff and volunteer roles. These experiences have provided her with deep insight, empathy for the challenges nonprofit leaders face, and a robust toolkit to help organizations and their leaders build clarity, capacity, and confidence.
While Robin is passionate about many nonprofit sectors, she is a nationally recognized expert on K-12 Philanthropy. She co-authored “Roadmap for Education Foundations: A Practical Guide to Building and Growing K-12 Support” with her longtime friend and colleague, Gail Rothman. Robin previously led the National Schools Foundation Association (now the National Association of Education Foundations), an organization dedicated to ensuring that students in K-12 education have equitable access to opportunity. She developed tools and resources to strengthen education foundations and worked directly with members to understand their challenges and opportunities. She is currently an instructor in the CEFL (Certified Education Foundation Leader) course.
Robin served as the Executive Director of the Issaquah Schools Foundation (WA) for 16 years. Beginning as a board member of an all-volunteer board in 1998, she collaborated with staff, board, and district leaders to create a culture of philanthropy in which the entire community values and invests in public education.
Before launching The Callahan Collaborative, Robin was the Vice President of Philanthropic Services at the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation. There she led a team focused on increasing philanthropic impact through planned giving and family philanthropy, as well as helping nonprofits establish or grow their endowments. She led the 2020 Transfer of Wealth study for Pierce County, cementing her belief in — and commitment to — helping nonprofits build strong planned giving programs.
Robin currently serves on the boards of AFP South Sound and South Sound Planned Giving Council. She is a Past President of the Rotary Club of Gig Harbor, and a founding member and co-convenor of both the Washington Public Schools Foundation Network and the Issaquah Nourishing Network. A Past Board Chair and Leadership Eastside graduate, Robin is deeply committed to the principles of adaptive leadership.
She lives with her husband on beautiful Puget Sound in Washington and cherishes time with her three grown sons and their families. They inspire her passion for helping communities and future generations thrive.