Amanda Griffin, CFRE*

Education:
B.A., Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama

Prior to joining JFSG, Mrs. Griffin worked for over 15 years as a freelance journalist, public relations consultant, and fund-raising volunteer at Westminster Christian Academy, a school of over 900 students in south Louisiana. Her volunteer service included a five-year stint as a member of the school’s board of directors. From 1997 to 2003, she served as Director of Institutional Advancement at Westminster, where her experience included the oversight of a $1.7 million capital campaign, an annual fund drive of over $100,000, and the creation of a major gift program, “Pursuing the Vision….the Next 25 Years.” Her other responsibilities included directing the school’s admissions office as well as the institution’s public relations, advertising and marketing campaigns. She was the school’s first member of the National Planned Giving Council.

Mrs. Griffin’s association with the J. F. Smith Group began in 1999 as an occasional feasibility study interviewer and writer. She joined the company full time in 2003. In the spring of 2005, Mrs. Griffin achieved the Certified Fund Raising Executive designation.*

Mrs. Griffin is an honors graduate of Auburn University with a B.S. degree in journalism. She has written for The Baton Rouge Advocate, The Times of Acadiana, Chili Pepper magazine, and the New York Times News Service. She and her husband, John, are the parents of four children.

* The CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) designation is held by candidates who must pass a written examination testing the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of a fund-raising executive. Only 4,127 professionals around the world hold this designation.