Vanessa Waserman

Vanessa Waserman is the Senior Vice President of Development at After-School All-Stars. Vanessa has over 15 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, with a focus on strategy, partnership development, and grant writing.

Vanessa began their career as a Congressional Affairs Assistant in the Office of Congressional Affairs for the U.S. Department of Education. In this role, they supported the Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations with special projects, meeting logistics, and communications.

Vanessa then transitioned to the nonprofit sector, taking a position as the Senior Director of Strategy & Partnerships at United Way of Metropolitan Chicago. In this role, they oversaw the development and implementation of the organization-wide strategic plan, which resulted in year-over-year revenue growth and achieving programmatic outcomes ahead of schedule. Vanessa also cultivated and managed relationships with corporate and foundation donors, resulting in over $5 million in new revenue for the organization. Additionally, Vanessa launched the first-ever grant writing department for United Way of Metropolitan Chicago, overseeing the development of Promise Neighborhoods grant applications.

In October 2017, Vanessa joined Taproot Foundation as National Director of Strategic Partnerships. In this role, they were responsible for developing and executing Taproot’s corporate partnerships strategy and managing a portfolio of relationships with Fortune 500 companies.

Most recently, Vanessa has assumed the role of Senior Vice President of Development at After-School All-Stars, where they lead all fundraising efforts for the organization.

Vanessa Waserman has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Relations & International Studies from Loras College and a Master of Arts in Mass Communication/Intercultural Communication from North Dakota State University.

Vanessa Waserman reports to Ben Paul, CEO. Some of their coworkers include Rebecca Hill - Senior Director of Individual & Planned Giving, Tess Wachter - Digital Content Producer, and Kristy McCarthy - Chief of Staff.