Julie Sharpe, Executive Director

With over three decades of experience leading client relations, business development, and staffing operations, Julie Sharpe is excited to bring her collaborative leadership style and entrepreneurial drive to the Women’s Fund as Executive Director. Believing firmly in the WFET mission, she looks to share her successes in forming strategic corporate partnerships, building deep client trust, and developing high-performing teams to the WFET organization.

Julie thrives in people-centered environments that value growth, resilience, and connection – core values of our organization.  She launched her early career in real estate financing/residential mortgage lending, with a special focus on guiding clients through complex decisions and investments. Julie was able to utilize her training, along with strong organizational, interpersonal, and managerial skills to co-create and launch StaffSource, a local business focused on staffing and recruiting, particularly in the accounting, finance and IT fields – and recognized on both a local and national level for its rapid growth and success within the industry.

Divesting her interests in the company in 2020, Julie took a brief respite to train as a certified Private Life Coach and Consultant, all while relocating her family back into Knoxville post-pandemic. She continues a life-long commitment to service, community impact, and collaboration in East Tennessee through her involvement in the following organizations: East Tennessee Children’s Hospital Fantasy of Trees, Knoxville Symphony Orchestra Member and Event Committee, Knoxville Museum of Art, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Helen Ross McNabb, and the Knoxville Challenger Tennis Tournament.

Julie is a proud Knoxville native and single mother to Brittni and James, which makes her feel especially connected to the Women’s Fund mission.

Mary Grace Isaacs, Program Coordinator

Mary Grace Isaacs launched her career directly from university studies to join the staff as Program Coordinator at the Women’s Fund of East Tennessee. As a graduate of the University of Colorado, where she majored in Psychology and minored in Media Studies, Mary Grace utilized inherent talents in communications and strategic planning in leadership roles at her sorority, as well as during selective internships and volunteer roles throughout her collegiate experience. During that time, her efforts were already leaning to community outreach, where she directed media campaigns in literacy advocacy and refugee relations, while also tutoring low-income students after school at a Family Learning Center (all of which are areas that she is lending her expertise through the Women’s Fund Grants Committee). She also spent time as a Media Team Intern at WATE 6 in Knoxville, learning the ins and outs of daily newsroom and digital production from every angle – a skill that has made a significant impact on the Women’s Fund website, social media, and print media since she joined the team.

Mary Grace initially came on board as a Social Media and Event Management Intern in late Fall of 2025. With very little training, she made herself an invaluable member of the team almost immediately, all while immersing herself in the language and operations of a non-profit in record time.  She is a Knoxville native from a large family, where the importance of civic responsibility, collaboration, and community outreach were modeled well and encouraged in her home growing up. She credits her upbringing, instructors, and the large, local non-profit base and generous community for significantly influencing the path of studies and strong work ethic that ultimately led her to the WFET.

In her free time, Mary Grace enjoys spending time with her friends, family, and two rescue cats and a dog. She loves all things creative, such as photography and design, and has enjoyed utilizing these skills in her role as the WFET Program Coordinator.