Kia Croom is a 25-year frontline fundraising veteran who has raised over $1 billion for nonprofits advancing justice and equity across the globe. Her thought leadership equips nonprofit executives and fundraisers alike with the tools to build enduring fundraising resilience, secure transformational gifts at the five-, six-, and seven-figure levels, and elevate fund development strategies across networks of both emerging and legacy institutions.
Through her dynamic keynotes, panel engagements, and workshops, Kia offers bold, equity-centered insights grounded in real-world practice, shaping how the philanthropic sector meets this moment. She is a sought-after strategic partner to organizations such as the Association of Fundraising Professionals Global, the African American Development Officers Network (AADO), Bonterra, and Arreva.
Kia has delivered hands-on fundraising coaching to more than two dozen nonprofit organizations nationwide in partnership with Bonterra. Over the past two years, she has provided intensive fundraising capacity-building support to nearly 30 nonprofits in Los Angeles and Detroit through philanthropic partnerships with Southern California Grantmakers and the Detroit Residents First Fund. These partnerships focused on supporting emergent organizations with budgets between $250,000 and $1 million.
In addition to her fundraising leadership, Kia is a traveled folk herbalist who integrates wellness into her pedagogy, encouraging nonprofit leaders to center self-care and healing as essential practices for sustaining their mission-driven work.
Recognized for her visionary voice in fundraising and philanthropy, Kia has been invited to share her insights on some of the sector’s most influential stages.
Kia is a sought-after visionary, thought leader and keynote speaker known for inspiring fundraisers and social impact leaders globally.
She has been a featured speaker at major conferences and events including the Bridge Conference, Arreva Driven by Cause Philanthropy Summit, AADO & CASE, Nonprofit Technology Conference, and the Maryland Nonprofits Conference.
Through her engaging and insightful webinars, Kia brings her signature Liberatory Fundraising™ approach to the virtual stage—equipping hundreds of nonprofit and philanthropic leaders with the tools to reimagine fundraising as a liberatory practice. Her sessions, often described as part strategy and part soul work, center justice, community, and sustainability in every ask—helping participants reconnect to purpose while sharpening their fundraising edge.
