Exciting Expansion: New Positions Add Depth and Expertise to Membership Efforts

Shriners International is thrilled to announce the addition of two new professionals to fill vacant positions within the organization: Senior Membership Education Manager and Senior Membership Project Manager. These new employees bring special skill sets forward in demonstrating Shriners International’s investment into the temples success at the local level.

Welcome Erin DeStefanis

The Shriners International Education Foundation (SIEF) was created in 2017 to improve lives by promoting, supporting and fostering education, training, study, research and leadership skills for aspiring leaders within Shriners International and members of the Masonic family, including both men and women from appendant allied and affiliated bodies, and nonprofit organizations. Our new senior membership education manager, Erin DeStefanis, will play a key role in shaping educational offerings, ensuring they align with the needs and aspirations of the Shrine and members of the Masonic family.

“Erin brings a wealth of experience to her role as Shriners International’s senior membership education manager, with over 20 years of experience in education across public, private, corporate and nonprofit sectors,” said Bryan C. Harrison, chief membership development officer, Shriners International. “Her journey is marked by a commitment to excellence and continuous learning, underscored by certifications as a board certified career coach, leadership coach and certified diversity professional.”

Erin will spearhead membership’s education initiatives, including SIEF’s Noble Academy, while also serving as a valuable resource to Shriners International departments, offering support and guidance in education programming.

As senior membership education manager, Erin is responsible for developing and managing the education portfolio to specific member-driven outcomes and ensuring that Nobles have access to the best possible educational resources and opportunities. Erin will work closely with Shrine temples to understand their educational goals and develop programs that help them achieve these objectives.

Previously, Erin served in key positions at organizations such as the National Diversity Council, where she led strategic initiatives, and Freedom Mortgage Corporation, where she excelled as an operation development manager. She also made significant contributions as the director of professional development at the National Association of Colleges & Employers, and as an English language arts teacher in the DeSoto County School system.

Erin holds a Bachelor of Arts in education and a master's in education, both from the University of Mississippi.

Welcome Lacey Pope

Lacey Pope joins Shriners International as senior membership project manager. She will be tasked with managing the systems and processes for the successful initiation, execution, monitoring and closure of all membership projects, along with serving as a resource to other departments within Shriners International. Her role will provide the infrastructure needed to support several new projects, as well as enhancements to existing projects that will run in parallel.

“As Shriners International moves toward a project management office operating environment, the senior membership project manager becomes pivotal,” Harrison said.

Lacey comes to Shriners International from the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS), where she served as manager of IS programs, and led a team of five in developing solutions for incorporation into multiple interconnected projects and rectifying the impact of system changes on other systems and networks.

Her longest role at ONS was as director of customer relations, where she was instrumental in transforming customer service by optimizing the organizational systems for receiving customer inquiries. Prior to her tenure at the Oncology Nursing Society, she spent nearly seven years at the Association of University Programs in Health Administration in its membership department, focused on membership recruitment and retention.

Lacey holds a Master of Business Administration from Western Governors University and earned the distinguished credential as a Certified Association Executive (CAE).

“Lacey plays a crucial part in ensuring that the membership department operates efficiently and effectively, delivering the highest-quality outcomes for all temples,” Harrison said.

Looking Ahead

“The addition of these two roles marks an exciting time for membership development at Shriners International. We believe that these membership professionals will greatly enhance our ability to serve our temples and deliver on our commitment to help our fraternity succeed and prosper now and into the future,” Harrison said. “We look forward to the contributions that Erin and Lacey will make to our team, and to the temples around the world as we continue to grow and evolve to meet the needs of our temples.”