Alayna founded her nonprofit consulting and grant writing firm, Elevate, in 2013 to make the highest-level development expertise accessible to small and medium nonprofit organizations. Since then, she has overseen Elevate’s growth to a leading grant writing firm in DC, serving dozens of the region’s most established nonprofits, as well as many ambitious new organizations. She has a deep knowledge of the region’s private funding community, as well as a proven record in securing national and federal funding, and uses this knowledge to support Elevate’s staff in their work with clients. Today, Alayna continues to oversee Elevate’s staff, consult with clients to draft private and federal proposals, and develop new products that will improve the lives of nonprofit leaders. She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and American Grant Writers Association and has served as a grant reviewer for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and Serve DC, the Mayor’s Office on Service and Volunteerism. Alayna graduated from Stanford University with a BA in Philosophy and Public Policy and Honors in Ethics in Society in 2006. In 2009, she was elected to serve a one-year term as the Chair of the Women’s Information Network (WIN). In 2013, she was sworn in as a Commissioner for Serve DC in 2013. Finally, in 2015, she became a licensed consultant by the Standards of Excellence in 2015, was named ‘40 under 40’ by Leadership Arlington, and became a member of EO (Entrepreneurs’ Organization), the global thought leader on entrepreneurship. Alayna is a life-long fan of the Washington Professional Football Team, and became a Nationals fan as soon as they moved back to DC. She has an adorable rescue dog, a Shar Pei and Pit Bull mix named Tucker Q. Buckner. Tucker is a frequent visitor to the office and has his own email address, from which he frequently emails his friends to request treats. She can most often be found at Wydown Cafe, Pleasant Pops or one of DC’s other local coffee shops.