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Distinguished Adjunct Faculty

The University of Houston-Downtown’s Masters of Nonprofit Management program has the finest adjunct faculty in the discipline.  Meet them up close and personal.

Photograph of Cynthia Colbert CEO and President of Catholic Charities Cynthia N. Colbert
Instructor for POLS 6313 Governance, the Volunteer Board and Organizational Behavior; POLS 6317 Ethical Issues in Public Administration

President and CEO of Catholic Charities

Professor Cynthia Colbert is the President and CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston–Houston, a position she has held since 2012. She earned her bachelor’s degree from California State University, Sacramento, and her master’s degree in social work from the University of California, Berkeley.

Under Colbert’s leadership, Catholic Charities has significantly expanded its regional impact through innovative partnerships and large-scale initiatives to address poverty and economic insecurity. In 2015, she launched the kNOw Poverty Summit, bringing together cross-sector leaders to develop community-based solutions for individuals and families in need. Following Hurricane Harvey in 2017, Colbert led Catholic Charities’ disaster recovery efforts, providing assistance to more than 19,000 individuals across 246 zip codes in the first year after the storm. The organization’s Disaster Recovery Services program has since grown to include ten offices throughout the Greater Houston region, offering long-term recovery case management.

In recognition of her leadership, Colbert has received numerous honors, including being named Hispanic Female Executive of the Year by the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a finalist for the Houston Business Journal’s C-Suite Awards, and a two-time honoree on the Women Who Mean Business list. She was also named to the Women on the Move class by Texas Executive Women.

Previously, Colbert served as executive director of Catholic Charities in Austin and Wichita, Kansas, and held executive leadership roles at United Way Capital Area Austin. She serves on the boards of Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas’ Houston Branch, Texas Executive Women, United Way of Greater Houston, and Catholic Charities USA; is Treasurer of the Network of Behavioral Health Providers; and is a Senior Fellow of the American Leadership Forum.

Photograph of Adjunct faculty, Robert D. Sanborn Robert D. Sanborn
Instructor for POLS 6310 Leadership in Nonprofit Organizations; POLS 6312 Resourcing the Nonprofit Organization; POLS 6314 Leadership Trends/Topics in the Nonprofit Sector
sanbornr@uhd.edu

President and CEO of Children at Risk, Houston.

Dr. Bob is a noted leader, advocate, and activist for education and children and the President and CEO of Children at Risk. He earned his undergraduate degree at Florida State University and his doctorate at Columbia University in New York City. Before entering the non-profit sector, he had a distinguished career in higher education at institutions such as Rice University and Hampshire College.

Under his 17 years of leadership, Children at Risk has expanded its influence considerably. Notable achievements include opening up centers in Dallas and Fort Worth; launching the Public Policy & Law Center, the Children at Risk Institute, the Center for Parenting and Family Well-Being and the Center to End Trafficking and Exploitation of Children. Dr. Bob is the Executive Editor of two peer reviewed, open-access academic journals, the Journal of Applied Research on Children and the Journal of Family Strengths.

Photograph of MANPM adjunct faculty, Brian Greene Brian Greene
Instructor for POLS 6318 Management in the Public and Nonprofit Sector
greenes@uhd.edu

President and CEO of the Houston Food Bank

Professor Brian Greene is President and CEO of the Houston Food Bank, a nonprofit organization that uses donated food to better lives through a network of 1600 partnerships in 18 southeast Texas counties. Since taking the top post at the Houston Food Bank in 2005, Greene has led the organization to a fivefold increase in distribution. Houston Food Bank is now the largest food bank in the world and distributes more than two hundred million dollars of food each year to over 800,000 recipients.

In 2021 Nonprofit Times named Greene one of the 50 most influential nonprofit leaders in the US.

Prior to moving to Houston, Professor Greene was the Executive Director of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana for 12 years. Previously, he held the same position at the Second Harvest Food Bank in Knoxville, Tennessee for 5 years. Greene has an MA in Economics from The University of Tennessee and a BA in Economics from Humboldt State University.