Pat Libby is a popular speaker, writer, and change management consultant who views her work with third sector organizations through the kaleidoscope of her experiences as a long-time nonprofit CEO, academic, board member, and consultant to innumerable organizations.
A self-described “recovering academic,” Pat founded and led the Nonprofit Institute at the University of San Diego for 14 years – creating graduate programs at the master’s and doctoral levels, an endowed research center, and community education programs serving hundreds of people and organizations each year. Alumni of these programs now lead many premier nonprofit/philanthropic organizations in the U.S. and abroad or serve on the faculty of third-sector focused academic programs. In forming the Institute, Pat realized a vision for an academic center that would interweave research, theory and practice.
Pat is the author of several books. The Lobbying Strategy Handbook (SAGE 2012), 2nd edition (Oxford University Press, 2021) is an engaging “how-to” guide for nonprofit practitioners who are seeking a simple blueprint for learning how to take part in the legislative process. She is co-author, with Laura Deitrick, of Cases in Nonprofit Management (SAGE 2017), and is a contributing author in Technology, Activism and Social Justice in a Digital Age (Oxford University Press, 2018), John McNutt, editor.
Pat’s largest readership is reached through a popular monthly blog where she writes on a variety of nonprofit leadership topics. The blog can be found at Patlibby.com/blog
A Boston native, Pat holds a graduate degree in Urban Planning from MIT and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and Sociology from Tufts University. Her complete CV and more information are available at Patlibby.com
