Features

Patricia Mcloughlin joins as General Manager for the Anthem Awards team. As the GM, Patricia will work to continue Anthem’s mission of celebrating groundbreaking social impact, while also working closely with existing entrants and partners to ensure a positive and dynamic experience year over year. 

She joins Anthem from consulting firm Orr Group, where she worked closely with nonprofits to strengthen their work and impact. Graduating from Penn State University with a degree in Community Environment & Development, Patricia knew that she wanted to focus her career on developing, implementing, and elevating best practices for social impact work. 

We spoke with Patricia about what drives her passion for social impact, vision for the Anthem Awards and more.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.

Growing up on Long Island, I never really knew what I wanted to do with my career. In my sophomore year at Penn State, I ended up falling in love with one of the smallest programs at the University- Community Environment & Development (CED). The CED major was highly flexible and our professors encouraged us to follow our passions and shape the work that we were doing to fit our interests. I found myself digging deeper into Environmental and Development Economics to better understand the issues that we were trying to develop solutions for. The skills and lessons that I learned during my time at Penn State have been instrumental in my career as a nonprofit consultant and also now as the Anthem Awards GM.

In college, I was also actively involved with the Penn State Dance Marathon (THON), an organization that raises $10M+ each year to support families impacted by Childhood Cancer. Being able to see the impact of THON’s work firsthand was life-changing and solidified my desire to work in the impact space.

What drives your passion in social impact work?

There are many things in life that we are unable to control, but by working in the impact space, I feel like I am able to have a small role in bringing about meaningful and sustainable change.

What experiences and expertise are you bringing to The Anthem Awards?

Before joining the Anthem Awards team, I worked as a nonprofit consultant. In my prior role, I was able to work with over 20 different nonprofit organizations doing work from development assessments to event production and campaign studies. I also served in several outsourced fundraising roles.

What are you excited to see in the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards?

We have a couple of fantastic new categories this year like the Best Use of AI, Community Outreach, and Book, Story or Feature. It is amazing to see social impact work take so many different forms.

What are your hopes for the future of The Anthem Awards?

I look forward to expanding the reach of the Anthem Awards! Our entrants are doing incredible work so I am excited to explore new avenues to promote their impact and also to invite more organizations into the Anthem community.

Connect with Patricia on LinkedIn, and learn more about the impact work honored during the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards.