Terri Mork Speirs
2716 Westover Blvd.
Des
Moines, IA 50322
Email:
terrispeirs@yahoo.com
Cell: 515-770-5155
Linked In: Terri
Mork Speirs
Portfolio:
terrimorkspeirs.blogspot.com
Twitter:
@TerriMorkSpeirs
Facebook: Terri Mork
Speirs
Pinterest: Terri
Mork Speirs
Curriculum Vitae
I am a writer, teacher, communicator, fundraiser and public relations
professional.
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Des Moines Pastoral
Counseling Center, Urbandale, IA
(Mental health organization providing counseling, psychiatry,
psychological assessment, and education for 4,000 people annually through 28
clinicians.)
Foundation for Children & Families of Iowa, Des Moines, IA
(The funding arm for a private, statewide agency delivering a
comprehensive range of mental health services serving more than 25,600 Iowans
annually.)
Senior Grant Writer, April 2012 – May 2015
I led a multi-disciplinary grants proposal teams to
annually cultivate and secure up to $3.5 million from public and private
sources. I have created a business plan to research, cultivate, secure, track,
and report annual revenue of $250,000 from corporations and foundations. My team and I develop budgets, write
narratives, ensure compliance, and submit reporting for more than 40 grant
proposals annually, ranging from $500 - $15,000,000. We increased private
revenue by 40 percent in our first year and met goal two months early in
second year.
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Des Moines Area Religious Council, Des Moines,
IA
(A collaboration of 150 metro congregations to promote interfaith understanding, supporting a network of 13 food
pantries in Greater Des Moines.)
Communications and Marketing Manager, March 2010 – April 2012
In this role I managed communications and daily office operations for
the organization. I worked with consultants to strategize digital media
marketing, including the launch of two websites, and build a cohesive social
media presence that maintained organizational voice. These efforts helped us
grow the mailing list from 2,000 to 4,000 households in two years for
purposes of engagement and annual gift cultivation. In addition to digital
communication, I edited DMARC’s magazine-style newsletter that won awards two
years in a row. To strengthen the food pantry identity, I led a team to
develop marketing materials to strengthen organizational brand identity
through consistent “look and feel” of language, color, logo, and talking
points through the “Move the Food” initiative. I had the pleasure of
collaborating with freelance talent, vendors, and consultants to successfully
complete communications projects.
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Lutheran World Relief, New
York, NY, and Baltimore, MD
(An international relief and development agency specializing in
building capacity for local agencies in 35 developing countries to enhance
agricultural projection, working on behalf of a constituency of five million
members.)
I worked with this group for 17 years, serving several roles in the
external relations department mostly having to do with donor relations,
professional development, volunteer management, and public relations. A summary follows:
§ Directed
alumni relations for a nationwide network of more than 250 returned study
tour participants, with membership growing annually.
§ Engaged
alumni in as volunteers in a speakers bureau and individual donors.
§ Created,
marketed, and moderated a live monthly webinar series with up to 70
participants, to educate on topics of international relief and development.
Coordinator, International Study Tours and National Speakers Bureau,
2001 – 2007
§ Managed
international study tour program connecting donors with grass roots partners
in developing countries for purposes of education.
§ Cultivated
individual donors to provide annual student scholarships for overseas service
learning tours, valued at $5,000 per year. Administered scholarship.
Communication Associate, 1994 – 2001
§ Launched
a nationwide campaign to introduce the fair trade business model as a
sustainable solution to poverty for small scale coffee and cocoa farmers.
§ Identified,
cultivated, and managed a nation-wide network 2,500 action groups who $15
million worth of in-kind gifts annually for global distribution.
§ Designed
a brick plaza fundraising campaign that blended landscape architecture with
organizational mission, generating a revenue stream valued at $500,000.
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Teaching and Writing
Adjunct and Freelance, 2007 – present
In early 2009 my unit was discontinued at Lutheran World Relief, due
to the recession. My position no longer existed and like millions of other
Americans, I was without a job. Because I was unemployed, others seemed more
open to telling me their experiences with unemployment and I learned a great deal.
I also used this time to work toward my MFA in Creative Nonfiction and build
my writing and teaching portfolio.
Some highlights include:
§
I expanded my freelance writing services and
continue to write for several national magazines in my denomination, relating
to editors based in Chicago.
§
I taught two semesters of composition at the
Des Moines Area Community College, and hope to have the opportunity to teach
again.
§
I published essays in two anthologies and
explored other writing projects.
§
I directed a Summer Arts Camp for children, at
the Evelyn K. Davis Park in Des Moines.
§
As a pro bono project, I produced an Annual
Report for Harbor of Hope, a residential center for men in treatment located
in Des Moines, IA.
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EDUCATION
M.F.A. in Creative Nonfiction Writing, Antioch University, Los
Angeles
Advanced Leadership Studies, St. Catherine’s University, St. Paul M.A. Secondary Education, University of South Dakota B.A. Political Science and Criminal Justice, University of South Dakota AWARDS |
·
Award of Excellence, 2010 and 2011 – Local
newsletter, The Voice, wrote and edited, DeRose Hinkhouse Award, Religious
Communicators Council
·
Academic Scholarship, 2010, Women of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Chicago, Illinois
·
Academic Scholarship, 2009, Antioch
University, Los Angeles, California
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TRAINING EXPERIENCE
2005 – 2009
Admittedly, this is one of my proudest
projects. I designed and delivered The
Virtual University, a low-cost, high-impact professional development
program for a nationwide body of 250 leaders who promoted global civility and
service in their homes, campuses, churches, and communities. We started out
as monthly conference calls, then evolved into webinars. The Virtual
University was one way we kept study tour alumni engaged (see next section).
Some of the topics included were:
·
Humanitarianism in Conflict Zones
·
Forgotten Disasters: Malaria, Sudan, Tsunami and the “CNN”
Effect
·
Water and Climate Change
·
Reconciliation in Israel and the West Bank
·
How Fair Trade Transforms Ghana’s Chocolate Industry
·
Arms to Farms: Conflict Resolution in the Philippines
·
Peace Building in Colombia, Sudan, and Northern Uganda
·
The Agricultural Value Chain
·
Empowerment of the Dalit, or “outcaste” Women in India
·
Bagdad Update
|
1994 – 2009
I was involved in a aspects of delivering global study tours including
marketing, recruiting, print production, sales, support, orientation,
managing travel vendors, collaborating with overseas partners, itinerary
development, educational goal setting, evaluation, and follow up. I
participated in varying levels of all trips including providing
administrative support, traveling as a resource guide, and leading the group.
Destinations and educational themes included:
West Africa (2 trips) – agriculture, food
security
East Africa (seven trips) –
agriculture, food security, HIV/AIDS, micro-business, fair trade
India (three trips) – Dalit human rights,
gender equity, healthcare, literacy
Central America (six trips) – coffee
farming, fair trade, sustainable development
Andean Region (three trips) –
micro-business, gender equity, healthcare, agriculture
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TRAVEL
Purpose: business, cultural, and educational
Domestic: extensively in the U.S.A.
International: Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Tanzania,
Kenya, India, France, the Netherlands, Canada, England, Scotland, Whales,
Northern Ireland
DIGITAL PROFICIENCY
|
·
Microsoft Office including Word, Excel,
Publisher, Outlook
·
Google Applications including Docs, Calendar,
Maps, Cloud Storage, Picasa, Blogger
·
Social Media Platforms including LinkedIn,
Twitter, Face Book, Instagram, Pinterest, Constant Contact, Mail Chimp, Flikr
·
Raiser’s Edge, Word Press, GotoWebinar
·
Website development including strategy and
content (narrative and image)
·
Original Photography, I-Stock Images, Getty
Images
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WRITING
I’m
pleased for the opportunity to contributed chapters in two anthologies
published in 2012:
·
Keeping the Faith in Seminary edited by Ellie Roscher
· Spring:
Inspiration for the Season of Hope and New Beginnings edited by Diane Glass and Deb Engle
I have completed 100 pages of manuscript of a
memoir about how our family coped with liver failure. This is about the fifth
draft, but I’m pretty sure I need to start over.
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Waiting an wrestling, Living Lutheran, December 2014
The
grace of “Wild,” Living Lutheran,
October 2014
The
delicate power of protein, Living
Lutheran, October 2014
The
little fish that could, Living Lutheran, August
2014
Grow
something, Living Lutheran, July 2014
At
once sorrow and joy, Living Lutheran, May
2014
The
cooking wounded, Living Lutheran, March
2014
The
pastor’s wife, Living Lutheran,
March 2014
Wrapped
in love, sent for service, Living
Lutheran, February 2014
Spirit
of protection, Gather Magazine,
December 2013
Sk8r
boy in bell choir, Living Lutheran,
November 2013
The
church according to dirt, Living Lutheran,
November 2013
School
office conundrum, Living Lutheran,
October 2013
If
summer were wishes and June were auspicious,
Living Lutheran, June 2013
Sisterhood, Living Lutheran, May 2013
Let’s
be lonely together, February 2013
A
bleak midwinter survival plan,
January 2013
Christmas,
a gift of time, Living Lutheran, December 2012
Why
I give thanks for mentors, Living Lutheran, November
2012
Stop
bullying, The Lutheran, November 2012
Back
to school: of notebooks and daydreams, Living Lutheran, August 2012
How
do you like your vacation? Living Lutheran, July 2012
Glad
you came, Living Lutheran, June 2012
Grace
for the kaput mother, Living Lutheran, May 2012
Doubting
mother. Expecting teens. Accidental devotion. Living
Lutheran, April 2012
Just
like a star, Living Lutheran, March 2012
The
color of youth, Living Lutheran, February 2012
The
curious office guest, January 2012
Do
not be afraid, Gather Magazine, December 2011
It
takes a community to raise a pastor, The Lutheran Magazine, November
2011
Teaching
teens about money, The Lutheran Magazine, June 2011
My
friend Heba, Living Lutheran, February 2011
Why
can’t we get along? Living Lutheran, January 2011
Rejected
by Santa Clause, Living Lutheran, December 2010
Rise
on up to the healing, For Good Magazine, May 2010
Baseball,
biking and buffalo, The Lutheran Magazine, May 2010
Meet
me at the freezer, The Lutheran Magazine, September 2009
A
cup of love, For Good Magazine, November 2008
In
the Valley of the Shadow, Lutheran Woman Today, 2007
A
Harvest of Crops and Compassion, The Lutheran Magazine,
August 2007
Pack
What you Can Fit in Your Heart, Lutheran Woman Today, 2005
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To Kill a
Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
The Things
They Carried
by Tim O’Brien
The Road by Cormac
McCarthy
This Boy’s
Life
by Tobias Wolff
The Lost
Origins of the Essay edited and introduced by John D’Agata
The White
Album
by Joan Didion
Tell it Slant by Brenda
Miller and Susanne Paola
Don’t Let Me
Be Lonely
by Claudia Rankine
Bird by Bird Anne Lamott
Crow Planet by Lyanda
Lynn Haupt
The Wisdom of
the Body
by Sherwin B. Nuland
Anatomy of a
Rose
by Sharman Apt Russell
The
Possibility of Everything by Hope Edelman
On the
Outskirts of Normal by Debra Monroe
The Situation
and the Story by Vivian Gornack
Notes from No
Man’s Land
by Eula Biss
Goat Song by Brad Hessler
The Road by Cormac
McCarthy
The Legend of
Colton H. Bryant by Alexandra Fuller
Forever War by Dexter
Filkins
Rooms of
Heaven
by Mary Allen
The
Experience of Night by Marcel Béalu
Blame by Michelle
Huneven
Black Elk
Speaks
by John G. Neihardt
Sastun: One
Woman’s Apprenticeship with a Maya Healer and Their Efforts to Save the Vani by
Rosita Arvigo
Speak, Memory by Vladimir
Nabakov
Best Short
Stories of Edgar Allen Poe
In Cold Blood by Truman
Capote
The Woman
Warrior
by Maxine Hong Kingston
Beloved by Toni
Morrison
The Immortal
Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
The Two Kinds
of Decay by
Sarah Manguso
The Year of
Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
Self Help by
Lorrie Moore
A Supposedly
Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again by David Foster Wallace
The Teachings
of Don Juan, A Yaqui Way of Knowledge by Carols Casteneda
Fired! Tales
of the Canned, Cancelled, Downsized, & Dismissed by Annabelle
Gurwitch
Life Among
the Savages
by Shirley Jackson
The Made-Up
Self, Impersonation in the Personal Essay by Carl Klaus
The Liars
Club by
Mary Karr
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Who’s Afraid
of Literary Theory? – Co-presenter
Fantastic
Authentic, A Nonfiction Approach to Magical Realism – Presenter
The Whale in
the Room, Herman Melville and Moby Dick
Writing as
Archeology
Plot Tension
as Thematic Opposition
Monsters on
Maple Street: an exploration of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
A
Handmaiden’s Tale: How Thirty Years of Teaching Writing has Made Me a Better
Writer
Homemade
Muse: Turning Your Living Space into an Effective Workspace
Family
Matters: Strategies for Writing from Family Experience
Writing on
the Bleeding Edge: Where the Arts, Technology, History and Future Collide
Navigating
the Literary Magazines Without Such a Well-connected Guide
Information,
Reflection, and Fragmentation in Creative Nonfiction
Writing
Learning Objectives for Creative Writing
A Look into
the Various Positions of Authority in the Creative Writing Process
An
Exploration of Carl Jung’s Ideas about Dreams and the Creative Process for
Writers
The Writer’s
Life: Creative Diversity in the Marketplace
How to Think:
Use your Mind So It Doesn’t Use You
Arts, Culture
and Society
Six Week
Poetry Translation Seminar
Blogging Nuts
and Bolts
Creative
Writing and the Internet
Feminist
Perverts, Punks and Pachucas
How to Get
Back your Creative Flow: Overcoming Writer’s Block
How to Be a
Genius: Infusing Fiction with Literary Greatness
Teaching
Academic Writing
But It Really
Happened: Writing Humiliating Scenes in Creative Nonfiction
Fabular
Histories: Metahistorical Romance’s Challenge to
The Critical
Paper
“Flesh
is Heretic. My body is a Witch. I am Burning it”: A look at Anorexia in
Poetry
The
Non-Linear Narrative: Conventional and Unconventional Ways to Tell a Story
American
Nature Writing in the 21st Century
Q & A
with Tobias Wolff
The
Fictionalized Memoir: Or How Not Write a Lying Memoir About Your Family
He Said What?
The Finer Brushstrokes of Characterization
Talking Books
Good Bones:
Exploring Structural Choices
Writing to
Change the World
Apocalypse
Soon: The Universal Nightmare of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road
Stop It, Stop
It—You’re Making a Scene
In the
Beginning: A First Page Seminar
How Growing
Up Football Made Me a Writer
Techniques
for Manipulating Distance in 1st-person Creative Nonfiction
Making a
Career as a Freelance Writer
The Devil IS
in the Details: Nuts and Bolts of Narrative Craft
We Can’t HEAR
You (And not just because of volume—though yes that can be an issue, too)
Literary
Omission
Moving Pen,
Quiet Mind—Writing as Meditation
The I of the
Storm: Writing Yourself in Political Commentary
Elaborate
Grotesquery: An Exploration of Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to
Find.”
Reading like
a Writer, and Then Some
Chew on This:
The Delicious and Diverse World of food Literature
Writing IS an
Action Word: The Creative Writing Play Date
“Song of
Myself”: A Creative Writing Class for Incarcerated Women
Who’s Telling
Your Story? Persona in Creative Nonfiction
The
Literature of Witness
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VOLUNTEER
Cooking Team
Leader, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Des Moines, IA
Marketing
Committee, Annual Youth Auction, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Des Moines, IA
Studio
Assistant, After School Arts Club, Des Moines, IA
Editor for
international students’ academic papers, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN
Newsletter Editor, Adams Spanish Immersion Elementary School, St. Paul, MN
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