About Us

Dr. Anne Friesen

Activist. Researcher. Chief Strategy Consultant.

Chief Strategy Consultant, Dr. Anne Friesen, has earned a Doctor of Education in Leadership and has more than 20 years of professional experience in the social justice and human services fields. Anne is committed to fueling the engine for positive social and economic change in her own community and communities world-wide.

For  more than 12 years, she served as the Executive Director of Friend to Friend (a non-profit serving victims of Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking) located in Moore County North Carolina. During her tenure there, she led community and regional efforts to improve the safety, health & wellbeing of homeless & displaced survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault & human trafficking.

Anne is nationally recognized and award-winning in her fields, and is passionate about effecting social and economic change.

Having spent more than 20 years supporting foundations, local government, and  non-profit organizations, advancing issues ranging from education/prevention to direct support services to survivors. Anne offers training and support to non-profits and brings broad and unique expertise in:

• Consulting & Supporting Non-Profit Organizations in Leadership Transition

• Women Empowerment & Leadership Programing

• Survivor-Focused Advocacy, Support & Trauma-Informed Care

• Holistic Leadership Training

• Strategic Planning-Creating Non-Profit Long-Term Sustainability

• Evidence-Based Programming That Results in Self-Sufficiency for Women, Children, Men & Families in Crisis

• Creating Strength-Based Teams & Diverse Workplace Cultures of Positivity & Inclusion

• Crisis Intervention

ACTIVITIES & AFFILIATIONS

Anne recently completed a six year term on the Board of Directors and Co-Chairperson for North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Coalition Against Human Trafficking. She currently serves as President of the Board on the Board of Directors for Springs of Living Water, a non-profit helping women and children sex-trafficking survivors in Ethiopia. Anne is currently the Chief Strategy Consultant for Empowerment Now, a Holistic Leadership Coaching and Consulting service equipping leaders to create a more inclusive and just global community.

• 2016 Recipient of Moore County Citizen of the Year by the Rotary Club of Carthage (honoring community members who exemplify the Rotary motto of “Service Above Self”)

• 2019 Moore County Woman of the Year by the NC Community Foundation.

Anne is the author of

• HELP: Holistic Empowerment Leadership Program for Sheltered Victims of Interpersonal Violence;  and,

• The Empowerment Source: 10 Best Practices Principles That Empower Exceptional Advocates

Anne continues to present her research at conferences on human trafficking, trauma-informed/survivor-centered advocacy, and developing holistic empowerment leadership programing for survivors.

CERTIFICATIONS & EDUCATION

University of Kansas: B.A. and M.A.

Trevecca Nazarene University: EdD 

Harvard University, Kennedy School: Certification in Performance Measurement for Effective Management of Non-Profit Organizations

Duke University: Executive Education Program in both Non-Profit Management and in Non-Profit Leadership