About Us

Barber is a 20-year fundraising veteran who specializes in individual major gift training and campaign planning. She is the Co-Founder and CEO of Ask A Fundraiser, and the Founder and Principal Strategist at Barber & Associates, a boutique fundraising consulting firm. Under her leadership, Ask A Fundraiser and Barber & Associates have worked with a myriad of clients structuring campaigns ranging from $500K to $80M, and coaching organizations and their leadership on fundraising best practices.

Prior to starting the firm, Barber was the first Central Major Gifts Officer at the Smithsonian Institution, and a member of the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s (NMAAHC) fundraising team that surpassed its private philanthropic goal of $350M. In 2017, her work at NMAAHC was featured in The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

At NMAAHC, Barber secured $42M in leadership ($1M+) and major ($100K) gift support, highlighted by the closure of 22 individual one million-dollar gifts, 90% contributed by first-time donors to the Smithsonian. Leading into NMAAHC’s Grand Opening in 2016, she led the efforts to host a $1M per plate fundraiser at the home of Pauletta and Denzel Washington and a mid-level fundraising event that generated $5M from $25K donors. Prior to the Smithsonian, Barber spent 10 years working as a frontline fundraiser in intercollegiate college athletics.

Barber earned a Juris Doctorate (Intellectual Property) from Arizona State University and a Bachelor of Science (Political Science) from Howard University.

Ms. Petersen’s 20 year career has been built on expertise gained from leading major fundraising and development initiatives in Africa as well as expanding U.S. trade and investment in developing countries.

Working within the development departments of international nonprofits, she has been responsible for annual funding goals of over $16 million dollars in institutional funding and over $1.3 million dollars cumulative in unrestricted sponsorship dollars. In 2022, Ms. Petersen raised over $25 million dollars for clients in the United States.

Her steadfast focus on causes with strong community involvement and local impact enabled her to work with some of the major civil rights leaders of our time, including Ambassador Andrew Young, at GoodWorks International, an international management-consulting firm and she served as the vice-president for programs and business development at OIC International, this organization carries the legacy of the late Reverend Leon H. Sullivan.

Ms. Petersen is a noted speaker on topics related to international development, organizational development and local impact, fundraising, as well as the importance of diversity in international affairs, at conferences and events around the world.

Ms. Petersen holds an International Business degree from the University of Maryland. She currently serves on the advisory board of the University of Maryland’s Center for Global Business; is a member of Bridge Institute’s Africa Policy Group; active member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and a mentor for College Bound in Washington, D.C.