Dominique “Nikki” Maffei is an experienced philanthropy and nonprofit leader with more than a decade of experience working alongside communities to tackle some of society’s toughest challenges. She has held roles at nonprofits, government, and philanthropic entities focusing on issues including social justice, youth development, public health, racial equity, and community development. Nikki currently serves as an independent consultant and part-time, temporary TPI Senior Philanthropic Advisor supporting social impact initiatives for several client engagements. 

Nikki most recently served as associate project director for the Healthy Start Technical Assistance & Support Center (the Center) at the National Institute for Children’s Health Quality. In this role, she spent over four years launching and growing the work of the Center. She designed capacity building and technical assistance offerings; partnered with grantees to overcome challenges (especially those during and beyond the COVID pandemic); and oversaw the Center’s team and daily operations. 

Prior to joining the Center, Nikki worked at TPI as a Senior Philanthropic Advisor. In this role, she worked with clients to design, evaluate, and implement philanthropic strategies and programs. Engagements included strategic planning, program design and planning, and management and evaluation of ongoing grantmaking activities. She has also held roles at the United Sates Peace Corps, the American Islamic Congress, and the Healthy Children Project. Along her journey, Nikki has gained expertise in authentic engagement, racial healing, and cross-cultural dialogue. While working at TPI, she obtained a master’s degree in Global Health from The University of Manchester and has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Boston College.