Nevin E. Kessler Email & Phone Number

Walnut Creek, California, United States

I provide leadership to a team responsible for raising private gifts in support of John Muir Health, a nationally ranked hospital system headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA.

New Brunswick, NJ

• Recruited to lead the completion of the Our Rutgers, Our Future Campaign, raising $1.036 billion. In six years, gifts and new commitments have increased 90% from $132 million in FY’13 to $251 million in FY’19, a new.
• Led the Rutgers University Foundation, with a budget of $32 million, and 215 employees. Provided oversight to an additional 40 individuals employed by schools and other units.
• Implemented new diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Increased number of POC employees from 17 to 45 and worked to develop new strategies and tactics to enhance the engagement of alumni and donors of color.
• Led the planning of Rutgers’ next multi-billion comprehensive campaign, which quietly launched in July 2019, and has raised $783 million as of June 30, 2021.
• Managed a portfolio of 30 principal gift prospects. Personally closed gifts of $6, $10 (2x), $15, and $41.5 million, for a total of over $115 million in principal and major gifts since FY’14.
• Implemented new high-impact programs including Big Ideas, Regional Programs, Talent Management, Data Analytics, Giving Day, Alumni Engagement Metrics, Grateful Patient and Family Program, and Crowdfunding.

Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina Area

• Recruited to build a best practices advancement program capable of successfully launching a $1.5 billion campaign focused on endowment fund raising and broader and deeper engagement of alumni and friends.
• Supervised four departments – University Development, Alumni Relations, University Communications and Advancement Services – with 120 staff, and provide leadership to another 80 staff employed by nine college-based.
• Managed $14 million annual budget. Built consensus to successfully implement gift assessment fee and new endowment fees to generate an additional $2+ million in annual operating support.
• Recruited a new senior leadership team to implement a turn around in the culture of advancement at NC State that resulted in a 125% increase in the number of documented face-to-face visits by fund raisers since FY09.
• Engaging Bruce Flessner and Bentz Whaley Flessner in conducting feasibility study for new campaign.
• Since implementing industry standard gift accounting policies in FY09, gifts and new commitments have increased 23% from $90.8 million in FY09 to $111.4 million in FY12.

• Recruited to build a development and alumni relations program capable of tripling annual gifts and pledges for Yale SOM within three years and implementing its first comprehensive capital campaign with a $300 million.
• Gifts and new commitments increased from $4.1 million in FY03 to $32.9 million in FY06. Cash revenue increased from $4.8 million in FY03 to $10.6 million in FY06.
• At a time when most business schools and universities were seeing declines in alumni participation rates, SOM alumni participation rates grew from 44% to 49% between FY’03 and FY’06.
• Recruited, supervised and coached a team of 14 individuals responsible for major gifts, annual and special giving, corporate and foundation relations, alumni relations, development communications, donor relations, and.
• Managed a personal portfolio of 50 donors and potential donors, two with gift capacity that exceeded $50 million.
• Traveled extensively – NYC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London, Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.

• Recruited to plan and implement a $300 million comprehensive capital campaign, build and lead a development program capable of raising increasing levels of private gifts to fund the University’s priorities, and manage.
• Under my leadership the UConn Foundation achieved a record breaking cash receipt total of $50.6 million in FY01.
• Managed an annual budget of $5.2 million.
• As an officer of the Foundation Board of Directors, provided staff leadership to the Development Committee, implementing strategies to more fully engage the volunteers in program development and fund raising.
• Managed the National Campaign Steering Committee.
• Managed a personal portfolio of 25 potential donors rated at $1 million or more.

• Promoted to the senior position within University Development to manage the final phase of the University’s comprehensive $250 million campaign. Exceeded campaign goal by 35%; raised $337.4 million.
• Under my leadership, University Development achieved record breaking cash receipt totals in FY98 ($48.9 million) and in FY99 ($71.4 million).
• Provided direct supervision to a staff of 21 individuals, and oversaw an organization of over 60 fundraisers and support personnel.

• Promoted to provide leadership to the University’s corporate and foundation fund raising program.
• Implemented strategic plans increased the number of corporations that identified Virginia Tech as a national “target” or “key” school.
• Almost quadrupled the number of proposals submitted to corporations and foundations.
• Developed proposal writing templates and conducted a proposal writing workshop for collegiate fundraisers, which resulted in an increase in the percentage of proposals funded from 40% to 50%.

Ma, College Student Personnel

Bachelor Of Arts, History