Melinda Steffy

Founder & Principal

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Melinda Steffy (she/her) founded Concentric Strategy in 2020. She loves when creative practice and social impact collide, and her 20-year career in the nonprofit sector has been shaped by her perspective as an artist and educator. She brings innate creativity and nimbleness to her work, making complex ideas come to life through careful process, attention to detail, and abundant empathy. 

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Melinda currently serves as Co-Executive Director of CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia, a nonprofit that provides equitable access to management resources for the makers and preservers of culture. She leads the fiscal sponsorship program, which offers an alternate approach to nonprofit management for 90+ artists and social entrepreneurs across the arts, culture, heritage, and social impact sectors. Her role spans finance, fundraising, operations, legal/compliance, internal systems and policies, and organizational strategy.

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Previously, Melinda served as Executive Director of music nonprofit LiveConnections (now World Cafe Live Education), which created culturally relevant, community-centered educational programs, residencies, and concerts. From start-up phase through significant growth, Melinda built infrastructure and expanded programming, fundraising, marketing, and operations. She spearheaded major projects such as the two-year “A Song Everyone Can Sing” initiative, focused on accessibility for people with disabilities in choral singing, as well as the launch of the Philadelphia Lullaby Project in partnership with Carnegie Hall. 

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She previously held positions at The Music School of Delaware, SteegeThomson Communications, and Woodland Montessori School; volunteered with Tshwane Leadership Foundation; and served on the boards of the Wilmington Classical Guitar Society and Chestnut Street Singers. Melinda has an MFA in painting from University of the Arts and a bachelor's degree in religious studies with a concentration in justice, peace, and conflict studies from Eastern Mennonite University.

Melinda is a LEADERSHIP Philadelphia alum and Standards for Excellence Pennsylvania Licenced Consultant.