FAE Briefing Room: Nonprofit Edition - Nonprofit Finance in Action: Connecting Budget Decisions to Mission Strategy

Nina Bahazhevska, CPA, is an Audit Partner at NCheng LLP with over 20 years of experience exclusively dedicated to serving a diverse array of not-for-profit organizations, including social service agencies, cultural institutions, educational entities, and religious organizations. Nina is widely recognized for her deep expertise in audit quality, regulatory compliance, and governance matters affecting the nonprofit sector. Educated at the Zicklin School of Business, Baruch College, Nina serves as a board member of the Baruch College Fund and sits on its Audit and Risk Committee. She is the Vice Chair of the NYSSCPA Not-for-Profit Community and chairs the NYSSCPA Not-for-Profit Industry Conference. Nina has written for The CPA Journal and AICPA publications and has spoken at numerous webinars and conferences, including the FAE Annual Nonprofit Conference, with a focus on Uniform Guidance and Single Audits. She was named one of City & State New York’s 2025 Responsible 100 honorees, recognizing socially responsible leaders across New York, and one of City & State’s 2025 Above & Beyond: Social Services honorees. As of 3/20/2026

Megan Allen is CEO of the New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc. (NYCON), a nonprofit organization working to promote a vibrant nonprofit sector across New York State through advocacy, education and leadership. With more than 3,200 members and three regional offices, NYCON is the largest nonprofit member organization in New York State. NYCON supports nonprofits through its experts in legal, human resources, governance, fundraising, finance, strategic planning and more. Through its affiliates, NYCON members can access all types of insurance, health benefits, and additional board support. Megan also serves as CEO of Board Strong, Inc., a NYCON affiliate that helps nonprofit organizations achieve the highest standards of board leadership, governance and oversight. Megan joined NYCON in 2022; she has a master’s degree in business administration and lives in the Capital Region with her husband Andy and daughter Veronica.

Faizan Younus is the Managing Principal of NCheng LLP, a New York-based CPA firm that has specialized exclusively in serving the nonprofit sector for more than 35 years. Since assuming leadership of the firm in 2025, he has continued to build on NCheng's longstanding reputation for delivering high-quality audit, accounting, and financial management services to nonprofit organizations throughout New York City and beyond.

Faizan leads the firm's Audit and Financial Management Services (FMS) practices, working closely with a diverse range of nonprofit organizations, including social service agencies, foundations, and government-funded providers. He advises clients on financial reporting, regulatory compliance, and cost-reimbursable contract management, serving as both a technical resource and a strategic advisor.

Known for his forward-thinking and data-driven approach, Faizan integrates business analytics and data science into nonprofit financial management, helping organizations gain deeper financial insights and strengthen decision-making. In his role as Managing Principal, he also oversees firm operations, staff development, and client relationships, with a focus on leveraging technology to improve efficiency and enhance financial transparency.

Faizan is fluent in Urdu, Hindi, and Punjabi and is an active participant in the nonprofit finance community, regularly engaging with professionals and organizations dedicated to advancing best practices in nonprofit financial management.

Roderick L. Jones is a visionary leader with a record of strengthening and transforming settlement houses across the United States. Jones grew up in the Cypress Hills public housing project in East New York, Brooklyn. After studying for a career in law, he found himself drawn to youth work instead. Starting as a frontline youth counselor, he worked his way up through the ranks of settlements in the Rochester, NY area. After rising to management, he helped guide three century-old institutions through a merger, then became president and CEO of the resulting organization. In 2010 he headed west to lead the historic Grace Hill Settlement House in St. Louis in 2010, where he was named Not-for-Profit Leader of the Year by the Regional Chamber of Commerce and The St. Louis American. When Jones returned home to New York City to take the reins at Goddard Riverside in 2017, he looked forward to helping young New Yorkers rise up from poverty, as others had helped him: “I grew up in poverty … I know firsthand that although there is opportunity for people in a broad sense, the ability to capitalize on that opportunity is rarely possible without interventions. Settlement houses provide those interventions and make the community a better place for everybody.” Over his tenure, Jones has grown Goddard from a $32.5 million budget to $110 million-plus, expanding services to the community while creating economic efficiencies. He oversaw the completion of a merger with the neighboring Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center in 2017, then launched a merger with the Stanley M. Isaacs Center on the Upper East Side that became official in 2025. The latter helped diversify Goddard’s programming for young people, adding the Isaacs Center’s expertise in workforce training to Goddard’s tutoring, college access and Learning to Work programs. This allows the agency to offer young people multiple pathways to adulthood. The Isaacs Center also brought significant strength in food preparation and delivery, helping the combined organization expand its Meals on Wheels services and consolidate food operations across all programs. Jones has carried out a number of internal reforms designed to make Goddard a fairer and more rewarding place to work. He has regularized salaries across the agency, removed academic degrees from job requirements to increase the employment of local community members in the change effort where possible, and instituted a system of internal job listings to encourage employees to rise within the organization. Jones’s leadership has been recognized by numerous awards and board appointments. He has served on the boards of two major settlement house organizations—United Neighborhood Houses (NY) and the International Federation of Settlements—as well as Homeless Services United. In 2024 he was appointed to the New York City Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy and the national board of PFLAG, the nation’s largest organization for LGBTQ+ people and those who love them. He has been honored as a Nonprofit Trailblazer by City and State Magazine for two years in a row (2024 and ‘25) and was named a Nonprofit Power Player by PoliticsNY and am New York Metro in 2024. He was named a 2021 Whole Health Hero by Empire BlueCross BlueShield and Crain’s New York Business, and received the 2022 Gay City News Impact Award.

Marvin Webb is a fractional CFO and CHRO and the founder of Marvin Webb Micro Consulting, where he partners with social justice–driven nonprofits to strengthen financial strategy, human resources, and organizational infrastructure. With more than 13 years as Chief Financial Officer at Funders for LGBTQ Issues, he developed a reputation for balancing strong financial stewardship with equity-centered leadership, helping organizations grow with resilience, clarity, and purpose. His work integrates finance, HR, and technology to improve decision-making, streamline operations, and align resources with mission. He is known for designing thoughtful people strategies grounded in employee engagement, total compensation, learning and development, and performance management, all viewed through lenses of race, gender, transgender inclusion, and disability. Before transitioning into finance and HR, Marvin spent 17 years as a professional modern dancer in New York City, an experience that continues to shape his creativity, adaptability, and leadership style. He holds an MFA in dance, an MBA in HR and Marketing, and an MS in Accountancy. In addition to his consulting practice, Marvin founded Nonprofit Operations, a job platform and newsletter that analyzes nonprofit financials to support more informed, equitable hiring across the sector.