Ivy Tech Northeast Appoints Executive Director
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowIvy Tech Community College Northeast has named Laura Edwards executive director of resource development. She will help develop and execute fundraising strategies for the Fort Wayne campus. Edwards most recently served as director of the Indiana University Health Arnett Foundation in Lafayette. November 7, 2013
News Release
(Fort Wayne, Ind.) – Ivy Tech Community College Northeast in Fort Wayne has selected Laura M. Edwards as its new Executive Director of Resource Development. She will assume her role on Monday, Dec. 16. In her role, Edwards will serve as chief advisor to Chancellor Jerrilee K. Mosier, Ed.D., in the formation and execution of fundraising strategies, grant applications, and other sources of potential development at Ivy Tech Northeast.
Edwards will develop, manage, and sustain a strong friend and fundraising program within the Ivy Tech Northeast nine-county region. She will identify and cultivate potential donors to the Ivy Tech Foundation; build partnerships with community groups, employers, customized training clients, foundations and individuals to further the mission of the College and bring in resources to support students, faculty, and programs; and develop and implement strategies to convert prospects to donors and to encourage continued giving by current donors.
“Economic development and retention of a well-educated workforce continue to be important issues facing Allen and surrounding counties,” says Edwards. “Ivy Tech provides our students educational opportunities in various fields that directly impact our ability to influence those initiatives. Philanthropy plays a strong role in providing the financial resources needed to reach these goals in our community.”
Edwards will serve as liaison between Ivy Tech Northeast and central Foundation staff for coordinated projects, reporting, guideline and procedure development, and campaign structure and implementation.
“I am very pleased to have Laura as a member of the leadership team at Ivy Tech Northeast,” says Chancellor Jerrilee K. Mosier, Ed.D. “The depth of her experience coupled with her personal attributes will elevate our interactions and relationships within our communities and with friends of the College.”
Most recently, Edwards was the Director for Indiana University Health Arnett Foundation. She joined the IU Health Arnett team in May 2013. Prior to this role, she served as the Senior Director of Development for the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University. Responsibilities included managing all annual, major, and planned gift development for a $10M program each year, including individual, corporate, and industrial engagement as well as all advancement related communications and management of the ME development staff.
Before joining the ME development operations, Edwards previously served as the Director of Development for WBAA Public Radio from Purdue, where she was responsible for annual and major gift fundraising, marketing, public relations, media sponsorships, management, and events. Prior to that, she worked with the Tippecanoe Arts Federation, where she planned, promoted, and managed the annual major fundraising event, the Taste of Tippecanoe. Edwards has also worked for the Lafayette Family YMCA and the Tippecanoe County Historical Association where her duties predominantly were focused on public relations, marketing, and development. Her experience also includes restaurant management and insurance sales.
Edwards is also a member of the Purdue University College of Liberal Arts Alumni Advisory Board.
Additionally, Edwards has developed curriculum for workshops that she facilitates statewide for the Indiana Nonprofit Resource Network and throughout the Midwest on development and marketing. She also participates with programs through the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP).
Edwards was a recipient of the Greater Lafayette Commerce’s “Top 40 under 40” inaugural young professionals award in 2007 and was named a top young professional in the “Discover Lafayette” magazine in fall 2009. A West Lafayette native and graduate of Purdue University, she will complete a master’s degreein Nonprofit Administration and Philanthropy from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI in May 2014.
Ivy Tech Community College is the state's largest public postsecondary institution and the nation's largest singly accredited statewide community college system. Ivy Tech serves nearly 200,000 students annually and has campuses throughout Indiana. It functions as the state's engine of workforce development, offering affordable degree programs and training that are aligned with the needs of its community along with courses and programs that transfer to other colleges and universities in Indiana. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association.
Source: Ivy Tech Community College Northeast