Cathy Allen is The Board Doctor

Cathy Allen’s mission is to help volunteers who serve nonprofit organizations as board members to understand their unique role, embrace their responsibilities, and organize their work for maximum effectiveness and minimum headache. Cathy brings a solid grounding in nonprofit best practices, stays current in her field, and begins every project with a focus on the client group’s existing strengths.  

In her native Ohio, Cathy owned Creative Option C, LLC, a nonprofit organizational development firm, for almost 15 years before launching The Board Doctor, LLC in 2016.  She holds a Certificate in Nonprofit Board Consulting from BoardSource as well as a Certificate in Nonprofit Financial Management from the Nonprofit Leadership Center of Tampa Bay and a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Center for Nonprofit Resources (Toledo). She graduated from The Ohio State University in history and political science. She is a 2004 graduate of Leadership Ottawa County and a 2017 graduate of Leadership Brevard.  She joined her first board of directors at the age of 24 and has served in a variety of board roles, including all officer positions, fundraising chair, governance chair and advocacy champion.

Cathy works with clients on a per-project, hourly, or retainer basis.  Projects include board development, governance infrastructure, and strategic planning. She is also available to deliver workshops on a variety of board-related topics for individual organizations or at association gatherings.

​Prior to consulting with nonprofits, Cathy had a long career in state and local government, environmental advocacy, and candidate and issue campaigns. In her spare time Cathy enjoys reading, exploring nature, and watching history and science programs on TV. She lives in Virginia Beach with her brother, Tom.