Our Founder
Shavonn Richardson, MBA, GPC
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"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Relieve the oppressed."
Isaiah 1:17
About Shavonn Richardson MBA, GPC
Shavonn has over 20 years of experience as a grant writer, nonprofit leader, grantmaker, and federal grants reviewer. She started her career as co-founder of the nonprofit organization, Blue Flowers Org, after losing her grandfather to prostate cancer. Shavonn also worked as a Corporate Social Responsibility Program Manager for a corporate foundation, reviewing over $1.3 million in grant applications annually. Now, as Founder and CEO at Think and Ink Grant Consulting®, Shavonn leverages her experience as both a nonprofit leader and grantmaker to help organizations transform their grant-seeking strategies. She and her team provide customized, real-world solutions to help organizations "think" strategically and "ink" winning grant proposals.
Shavonn is also a Forbes-published author, speaker, and industry voice on LinkedIn through her bi-weekly newsletter, Get.Grants.Better.® Shavonn holds a Grant Professional Certified (GPC) credential - an achievement earned by fewer than 1,000 grant professionals nationwide. Administered by the Grant Professionals Certification Institute (GPCI), the GPC certification is based on rigorous standards and ongoing research to meet the real-world demands of grant professionals. She is also a GPA Approved Trainer, demonstrating a grant professional skillset as well-prepared, credible, and skilled in helping people build their grant knowledge base.
Shavonn is a member of the Grant Professionals Association (GPA). Shavonn is committed to giving back to the grant professionals industry. She currently serves as the national President of the Grant Professionals Association (GPA) and was the past Vice President. She has volunteered as the Corporate Giving/Sponsorships and Grants Chair for the Junior League of Atlanta. In 2017, she was recognized as an Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Diversity Fellow. In 2023, she received the "Business Women to Watch" Award from the Atlanta Business League.
Shavonn earned an MBA in Finance from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, and a BBA from Howard University in Washington, DC. She is a mother of two and the wife of Dr. Hugh Richardson.
