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SPEAKING
Inspiring Better Outcomes
With over 20 years of experience in branding, marketing, and communications within higher education and the nonprofit sector, I understand the pressures that come with keeping organizations relevant in rapidly changing environments. I offer engaging presentations, interactive workshops, and insightful interviews designed to help people break through stagnation, reconnect with their audiences, and more confidently navigate uncertainty. Grounded in hands-on experience, my approach challenges professionals to rethink strategies and embrace fresh but practical solutions that yield real outcomes.
Looking for a speaker, interview guest, or workshop leader to bring fresh insights to your audience?
Profile at a Glance
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Industry: Higher Education & Nonprofits
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Experience: 20+ years in agencies & in-house roles
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Expertise: Branding, Reputation, Advancement MarCom, Comprehensive Campaigns, Alumni and Donor Engagement, AI for Advancement, Integrated Strategic Marketing, Philanthropic Storytelling, Stewardship, Organization Design, Change Management, Cross-Functional Leadership, Building High-Achieving Teams, Successful Agency Relationships
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Formats: Presentations, Panels, Workshops, Podcasts, Articles
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Engagements & Appearances: AMA Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education (Nov 2024), Education Marketing Leader Podcast (Jan 2025), CASE District II Annual Conference (Feb 2025), CUPRAP Annual Conference (Mar 2025), Enrollify Pulse Check Podcast Season 1: AI for IA (Feb-Mar 2025), Enrollify Pulse Check Podcast Season 2: The Advancement MarCom Shift (Aug - Sep 2025), Volt article (Oct 2025), Higher Ed Storytelling Podcast (Jan 2026), CUPRAP Annual Conference (Mar 2026), CASE Currents Magazine (Fall 2026)
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In-House: Assistant Vice President of Advancement Communications & Stewardship at Drexel University (2017-2024)
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Past Partners: UCLA, UVA, Notre Dame, Penn, Cornell, Emory, Lehigh, Swarthmore, Loyola Maryland, Dayton (and many more)
Featured
Topics
In addition to the topics below, I offer customized content tailored to your organization's needs. Whether you're looking for a deeper dive into alumni engagement, development communications, comprehensive campaigns, institutional branding, or another area, I can adapt presentations and workshops to align with your goals. My sessions are designed to be both practical and engaging, ensuring participants leave with clear next steps they can use right away.
AI for IA
How Advancement teams can integrate AI into their work to enhance efficiency, improve alumni and donor engagement, and drive strategic decision-making.
Elevating Advancement MarCom
A practical roadmap for shifting from a reactive service team to a strategic growth partner.
Stronger Together:
Central MarCom + Advancement
Break down the silos and
uncover the power of aligned, effective collaboration.
Maximizing Agency Partnerships
How to structure smarter external relationships and drive stronger value from your investment.
Upcoming
CASE Currents Magazine — Fall 2026
"From Support to Strategy"
Explores why Advancement MarCom teams often struggle to become more strategic — and the shifts in structure, capacity, leadership, and organizational expectations that can help move them from downstream support to earlier, more meaningful influence.
Recent & Selected Contributions
CASE Summit for Leaders in Advancement — July 2026, Seattle WA
"Elevating Advancement Marketing & Communications as a Revenue Imperative"
Presented a focused provocation challenging advancement leaders to rethink how Advancement MarCom is positioned, empowered, and resourced — and how structure, authority, capacity, and integration into strategy can strengthen fundraising performance.
CUPRAP Annual Spring Conference — March 2026, Lancaster PA
“Stronger Together: Central MarCom + Advancement”
Examined what it takes for Central MarCom and Advancement to work as true partners — reducing fragmentation, strengthening brand and campaign storytelling, and building the trust, role clarity, and shared ownership that make collaboration work.
Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing — Winter 2025-26
"Elevating Advancement Marketing & Communications: A Strategic Imperative for Higher Education Institutions." (originally published by Henry Stewart Publications)
A peer-reviewed, data-informed case for repositioning Advancement MarCom as a strategic driver of donor engagement, philanthropic revenue, and long-term financial sustainability.
Download the full article (PDF)
Higher Ed Storytelling Podcast — January 2026
Joined host John Azoni to talk about the opportunity for better storytelling in Advancement, and why it's s one of the most overlooked — yet most critical — functions in higher education today.
Watch or Listen on YouTube
Volt (Feature): “The Advancement Manifesto” — October 2025
A call to reframe and affirm advancement’s role.
https://voltedu.com/features/donor-alumni-relations/the-advancement-manifesto/
Enrollify Podcast Series: "Advancement Amplified: The IA MarCom Shift" — Summer/Fall 2025
Produced and hosted a follow-up series on how to elevate the Advancement MarCom discipline.
CASE District II Annual Conference — February 2025, New York City
Led a senior MarCom track session on building effective Advancement MarCom teams.
Enrollify Podcast Series: "Advancement Amplified: AI for IA" — February & March, 2025
Produced and hosted a five-episode series on AI for Institutional Advancement.
Education Marketing Leader Podcast — January 9, 2025
Season kickoff with Chris Rapozo on shifting Advancement MarCom from reactive service to strategic partner. Topics included:
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Advancement as a revenue-generating powerhouse
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Building cross-campus collaboration
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Leveraging AI to streamline workflows
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Using data to prove impact and secure support
Listen on Apple | Spotify | YouTube
AMA Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education — November 2024, Las Vegas
Presented a session on elevating Advancement MarCom during institutional shifts.