THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH BACKGROUNDER | 1
Executive Director for Alumni Relations and Constituent Engagement
The University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
https://www.utah.edu/
The Opportunity:
As the state's flagship institution, The
University of Utah is classified as one of the
highest-ranking universities in the country. A
member of the Pac-12, the University is home
to nine on-campus performance venues, the
finest art and natural history museums in the
state, and top-ranked centers for academic
achievement, innovative technology and
research.
The University of Utah is seeking an energetic
and experienced Alumni Relations leader to
assume the role of Executive Director for Alumni Relations and Constituent Engagement. This individual will
lead a team of 26 alumni, annual giving, and parent giving professionals who will support key initiatives for
current and future alumni support and engagement.
The ideal candidate will be passionate about the mission of academic and alumni excellence and enjoy
collaborating with faculty, alumni, parents, and volunteers to create the vision for impactful multi-
disciplinary initiatives that will unlock the greatest aspirations for its alumni and friends. This position is best
suited for a thoughtful, organized, responsible professional who has a strong work ethic, has a sense of
humor, and is interested in creating and building a special team, mentoring and grooming staff, and
building careers. The University is seeking a leader who will contribute to a culture based on alumni
objectives that are meaningful, challenging, realistic, and metric- and action-oriented.
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The University of Utah is preparing for the launch of a record-breaking capital campaign and they are in the
midst of a comprehensive university-wide feasibility study.
The University of Utah
Located in Salt Lake City, a progressive, urban and high-tech industrial center with a population of 191,000
(the population of Salt Lake County is 1.1 million), The University of Utah is the higher education hub of a
region stretching from the Rockies to the Sierras. Frequently described as Utah’s economic engine, it
generates more than $600M annually in non-tax revenue, is one of the state’s largest employers (with more
than 3,300 faculty and more than 23,000 full-time and part-time employees), and has been a catalyst for a
research corridor through northern Utah that is a hotbed for research and development activities. The
University provides graduate, undergraduate, and professional education to more than 31,000 students from
all 50 states and more than 100 countries.
The University offers nearly 100 major subjects at the
undergraduate level and more than 90 major fields of
study at the graduate level. Its academic divisions
include: The University of Utah is a strong research
center, ranking 36th on the NIH Ranking List of
universities receiving federal funds for research.
Classified by the Carnegie Foundation as one of 50
comprehensive research universities, research is a
major component in the life of the University,
benefiting students as well as the region.
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The University of Utah Facts:
Founded: 1850
Enrollment: 31,860
23,789 Undergraduate
8,071 Graduate
Degree Programs: Undergraduate: 100 major subjects
Graduate: 90 major fields of study
Degrees Awarded: 7,783
5,167 Bachelor’s
1,901 Master’s
715 Doctorate
Faculty: 3,300
Staff: 23,000 full- & part-time
Colleges and Academic Units: https://www.utah.edu/academics/colleges.php
Architecture and Planning
Business
Cultural and Social Transformation
Dentistry
Education
Engineering
Fine Arts
Health
Honors College
Humanities
Law
Medicine
Mines and Earth Sciences
Nursing
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Pharmacy
Science
Social and Behavioral Science
Social Work
Endowment: $1.02B
Operating Budget: $3.7B
The University of Utah Alumni Association
Mission:
The University of Utah Alumni Association is dedicated to forging and preserving lifelong relationships with
alumni, students and the community.
The Past and Future:
With close to 270,000 alumni, The University of Utah Alumni Association
provides ways for alumni to connect with one another, engage in fun and
rewarding activities, foster education and advance their careers. The
Alumni Association was founded in 1886 by a small group of “normal”
teaching alumni—the only graduates the University could claim at the
time (a “normal school” was the term used in the late 1800s and early
1900s for an institution that specialized in training public school
teachers). They wanted to promote general interest in education and
strengthen ties with the University and each other.
Now, after more than 130 years of involvement with the University, the
Alumni Association continues to develop new programs and ways to
serve alumni and students. Guided by a Board of Directors, the
association also has four affiliated boards: the Emeritus Alumni
Board, Young Alumni Board, Student Alumni Board and Beehive Honor Society. The Association also
manages The MUSS student athletics fan club and its board. Each is governed by its own by-laws and is led
by alumni or student volunteer board members.
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The role of the Alumni Association has expanded significantly since its founding. The association has
become an integral part of the University campus community and acts as a bridge to local, national and
international communities. The Alumni Association provides opportunities to participate in community
service projects, raise scholarship funds for students, advocate to the state Legislature on behalf of the
University and higher education, and to join other graduates in alumni chapter activities across the country
and alumni clubs around the world. There are 17 chapters across the country and 11 international clubs.
Membership in the Alumni Association affords special benefits that are available only to dues-paying
members. In turn, members give back to the University and its students by supporting the association’s
initiatives and programs, including the student scholarship fund, which now awards more than $700,000
each year to deserving students.
The Alumni Association is just completing a $11 million campaign for the renovation and expansion of the
Alumni House. The 35,000 square-foot project will be completed in the early summer of 2018.
The University of Utah Advancement
The University of Utah employs 144 development staff and 75 alumni relations staff located in the central
development office, the Alumni Association, the Health Sciences Advancement Office, and in 16 schools and
colleges and 8 cultural units across campus. The chief advancement officer for The University of Utah is the
Vice President of for Institutional Advancement.
The Executive Director will oversee a team of approximately 22 alumni relations staff and four annual giving
and parent staff. Reporting directly to the Executive Director are an Associate Director, two Alumni Relations
Directors, a Manager of Alumni Career Services, a Marketing Director, the Editor of the university magazine,
a Development Specialist, and the Director of Annual Giving. The Executive Director reports to the Vice
President for Institutional Advancement.
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The following chart reflects total philanthropic support of The University of Utah for the past four fiscal
years:
Fiscal Year Number of Donors Total Support
2018 FYTD (10.31.17)) 9,287 $49,799,017
2017 35,054 $215,366,171
2016 35,987 $212,748,327
2015 35,052 $210,019,220
2014 35,398 $204,288,778
The following chart reflects total philanthropic support of University of Utah Health for the past four fiscal
years:
Fiscal Year Number of Donors Total Support
2018 FYTD (10.31.17) 1,685 $15,179,708
2017 6,180 $80,783,808
2016 6,011 $70,298,762
2015 6,363 $62,125,561
2014 6,876 $53,436,355
Position Overview – Executive Director for Alumni Relations and
Constituent Engagement
Working closely with deans, directors, and the central administration, the Executive Director oversees the
University’s alumni and parent engagement programs and activities, annual giving programs, and leads its
Alumni Association. She/he is responsible for engaging alumni and parents with the ultimate goal of
advocacy for and philanthropic support of the university. Included in these responsibilities are staffing, fiscal
accountability, human resource development, quality management, effective programming. The Executive
Director is a key leader in cultivating a community of some 270,000 alumni and parents throughout the
United States and across the globe. This position reports to the Vice President for Institutional Advancement
and is a member of the Vice President’s senior leadership team.
Qualifications:
The Executive Director must be an exceptional communicator with outstanding management and
relationship-building skills, along with the advancement, development, and alumni relations experience and
talent necessary to engage alumni and parents. Must also have a solid understanding of annual giving
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fundraising and current best practices in this area that is considered a critical element of the University’s
alumni and parent engagement efforts. The incumbent must have the ability to perform well in stressful
situations and to handle conflict with poise and diplomacy. Must also have the maturity, perspective, and
credibility necessary to work effectively with philanthropy colleagues, senior university administrators, and
key alumni volunteers.
Applicants must demonstrate the potential ability to perform the essential functions of the job as outlined in
the position description. A minimum of five years higher education experience, ten years preferred; and a
Bachelor’s degree required; graduate degree preferred.
Duties and Responsibilities:
• Establish and nurture the association’s mission and values, which are to promote engagement and
lasting relationships with the university that lead to volunteerism, advocacy, and philanthropic
support.
• Hire, retain, mentor, and supervise a team of approximately 26.
• Focus alumni activity around regional and national work, alumni and parent engagement, attention
to affinity and diversity networks, support of student experience from student recruitment to career
development, and the development of closer ties to alumni efforts in individual colleges, athletics
and major institutes and centers at the University.
• Recruit, train, motivate, and retain a professional staff, boards, and volunteers dedicated to the
association’s mission.
• Manage a $3.2M budget and raise approximately $800,000 to support various programs and
priorities. Oversee fund raising programs and events that increase scholarship support for university
students and other institutional priorities. These include the parent fund, annual giving, license plate
revenue, chapter and club giving, and other activities that lead to financial support for scholarships,
among others.
• Create and implement best practices to build a robust annual giving program inclusive of giving
circles, direct mail, phone-a-thon, donor cultivation, and a parent giving program as well.
• Build and cultivate a collaborative and innovative environment for alumni relations, annual giving,
and parent giving.
• Work closely with student enrollment to support the Deans and University’s initiatives.
• Partner with Athletics and the Athletic Director to set priorities for current students and athletic
alumni.
• Establish and nurture strong relationships with deans, directors, and senior administrators across
campus to create a collaborative team environment and to advance alumni and parent engagement
at all levels within the university.
• Strengthen chapters and clubs nationally and internationally.
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National: http://ulink.utah.edu/s/1077/16/interior.aspx?sid=1077&gid=1&pgid=365
International: http://ulink.utah.edu/s/1077/16/interior.aspx?sid=1077&gid=1&pgid=717
• Foster positive relationships with central development and across campus.
• In all relationships with staff, board, volunteers, and university peers exercise the highest standards
of ethics, integrity, and respect.
• Cultivate a culture of inclusion that assures the staff and boards are sensitive to and representative of
the diverse students and alumni of the university.
• Work in collaboration with career services and continuing education on joint priorities to yield
stronger alumni engagement.
• Cultivate a collaborative leadership style that establishes a culture of optimism and a customer-
oriented, solutions focused approach in both internal and external relationships.
• Establish and effectively manage a budget that supports the mission and goals of the University.
• Work collaboratively with University Marketing and Communications in the publication of
Continuum magazine and other print and electronic materials that advance parent and alumni
engagement and philanthropy.
• In concert with other stakeholders, plan and conduct student, parent and alumni events and
activities that increase engagement and philanthropic support. These include annual giving
programs, local, national, and international chapters and clubs, homecoming, legislative advocacy,
Founders Day, and other events and activities as appropriate.
• Strengthen the engagement with the 6,000 MUSS (Mighty Utah Student Section) members.
http://ulink.utah.edu/s/1077/16/interior.aspx?sid=1077&gid=1&pgid=941
• Create a robust student giving and engagement program for current undergraduate and graduate
students.
• Establish and nurture board and volunteer structures that support and advance the association’s
mission and goals. Presently these include boards for the association, young alumni, student alumni,
emeritus alumni, and the Beehive Honor Society.
http://ulink.utah.edu/s/1077/16/interior.aspx?sid=1077&gid=1&pgid=475
• Other duties as assigned by the Alumni Association Board and the Vice President for Institutional
Advancement.
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Leadership
Fred Esplin
Vice President for Institutional Advancement
Fred Esplin is Vice President for Institutional Advancement at The University of
Utah. His responsibilities include oversight of the Alumni Association,
Development, Red Butte Garden, and the University’s public television station.
Prior to his assignment as VPIA, Fred served as the Vice President for University
Relations (marketing, communications, government relations, public
broadcasting, and Red Butte Garden). Much of his early career was in public
broadcasting, where he was manager of KUED Channel 7, having earlier worked
in marketing and development for WITF-TV-FM, the Pennsylvania Public Television Network ,and for PBS in
Washington, D.C. He has degrees from Southern Utah University and The University of Utah, and has taught
courses at The University of Utah and at the Pennsylvania State University.
Esplin has served on boards of Regence Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Utah, the Utah advisory board to the Trust
for Public Lands, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), the Utah Shakespearean Festival, the Utah
Humanities Council, the Utah Arts Council and United Way of Salt Lake City. Fred is a first-generation
college student, having grown up in a cattle ranching family in southern Utah.
Joe Sargetakis BA ‘80
President, Board of Directors 2017-2020
The owner of Frog Bench Farms in Salt Lake City, Sargetakis is committed to
providing organic fruits, vegetables, herbs and micro greens for farm-to-table
restaurants in the city. He previously held vice president positions at Paine
Webber and Morgan Stanley. His involvement with the U also includes
membership in the Copper Club at the Natural History Museum of Utah and
being a longtime member of Red Butte Garden. His other volunteer work
includes serving on the boards of the Swaner Nature Preserve, Ronald McDonald
House Charities, and Ducks Unlimited, and being on the founding board of the
Sugar House Farmers Market. As the association’s board president, Sargetakis also serves on the U’s Board
of Trustees.
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Location
Salt Lake City, Utah:
Salt Lake City lies in a mountain valley, with the
Wasatch Mountains to the east and north, rising above
the city to 11,000 feet. The Oquirrh Mountains border
the western edge of the valley. The University of Utah
campus sits on the valley’s east bench, with a backdrop
of towering mountain peaks and captivating views of
the valley and the Great Salt Lake.
A beautiful, safe, and vibrant community, Salt Lake City
combines the amenities of a major metropolitan area
with the friendliness of a small city. With a population of approximately 1 million, the Salt Lake metropolitan
area is listed by national magazines and websites among the “best places to live” due to its recreational
options, the business environment, climate, and low crime rate. The Salt Lake International Airport is just
minutes from downtown and offers non-stop flights to Europe, Mexico, and Asia. The city’s ever-expanding
light rail transit system runs through campus to the University Hospital, the airport, and surrounding areas.
More information about the Salt Lake City area is available at www.visitsaltlake.com and www.ci.slc.ut.us.
More information about the state of Utah is available at www.utah.com.
Background Checks:
Prior to submitting your resume for this position, please read it over for accuracy. LLLS does verify academic
credentials for its candidates, and the University will conduct background checks prior to finalizing an offer.
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To learn more, call
Lisa Abair Vuona, Vice President at
617-262-1102
or send nominations or cover letter and resume to
All inquiries will be held in confidence.
Setting the Standard in Development Search
LOIS L. LINDAUER SEARCHES, LLC
420 Boylston Street, Suite 604, Boston, MA 02116
617.262.1102
www.LLLSearches.com