Shannon McCracken

President & CEO

Shannon McCracken is the founding President & CEO of The Nonprofit Alliance (TNPA), a national nonprofit infrastructure organization launched in 2018 with unprecedented support to promote, protect, and strengthen the nonprofit sector. Under her leadership, TNPA has successfully advocated for key legislative priorities, convened sector leaders on emerging challenges, and established itself as a trusted resource for policymakers and nonprofit organizations alike. She has been named to The NonProfit Times Power & Influence Top 50 for the last four years.

With three decades of nonprofit leadership experience, Shannon spent two years as Charity Navigator’s Chief Development Officer, facilitating communication with nonprofit organizations and increasing resources to ensure the successful implementation of a new strategic plan, and subsequently served on Charity Navigator’s board of directors. Shannon previously spent 17 years with Special Olympics International, most recently serving as Vice President of Donor Development, where she led a national program that generated the majority of unrestricted funding for both the organization’s headquarters and more than fifty state affiliates. While at Special Olympics, she served as the DMA Nonprofit Federation Advisory Council Chair and Chair of the Ethics Committee.

She currently serves on the Fundraising.AI Advisory Council, the Fundraising Effectiveness Project Steering Committee as Government Relations Chair, and the Generosity Committee as the Public Policy Subcommittee Co-Chair. Shannon is a Certified Association Executive with a master’s degree in Nonprofit and Association Management.