SPRINGFIELD, Mo., July 13, 2021 — Drury University is pleased to announce the appointment of Marie Muhvic as executive vice president of University Advancement. Muhvic begins her duties at Drury in early September.
In her new role, Muhvic will oversee all aspects of Drury’s advancement program including annual giving, major and principal gifts, planned giving, corporate and foundation relations, prospect research, alumni relations and stewardship.
Muhvic is a Midwest native who has spent much of her career in successful fundraising roles at private universities on the east coast. Muhvic’s experience in higher education fundraising is broad, and includes experience cultivating major gifts for campus facilities, athletic programs, the arts, and annual fund campaigns for student scholarships.
She began her career in fundraising at the University of Tennessee, where she was a development assistant for athletics. At Princeton University, Muhvic also focused on athletic fundraising and was the sole solicitor of annual funds for the school’s 38 varsity and 36 club sports. Muhvic was a major gifts officer, associate athletics director and director of athletic development at Fairfield University in Connecticut. She was a major gifts officer at St. John’s University in New York City, where she cultivated donors nationwide. As vice president of advancement for New England College in New Hampshire, Muhvic led efforts to land the two largest gifts in school history and exceeded multimillion dollar comprehensive campaign goals. At the University of Bridgeport, Muhvic led a team that set all time fundraising records.
Muhvic comes to Drury from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, where she held roles as president of the SHU Community Theater Foundation and chief development officer for the Jack Welch College of Business and Technology.
As a student-athlete, Muhvic was recruited to play soccer at the NCAA Division I and Division III levels.
“We are excited to bring Marie on board to lead our advancement team and continue the momentum we’ve built in recent years,” says Drury President Dr. Tim Cloyd. “Marie’s understanding of private college fundraising, her track record of success and the competitive edge she honed as a student-athlete in her own college career will serve us well we as move ahead with key fundraising priorities at Drury.”
“I was overwhelmed with the grace, class, dedication and intense passion and loyalty to Drury University and the Springfield community from the trustees, alumni, President Cloyd, the search committee and everyone I interacted with on the faculty and staff when visiting Drury,” Muhvic says. “It is evident the university impacts students in life-changing ways and there is a special bond amongst the alumni and supporters. I can’t wait to meet everyone and get started as there are so many exciting projects ahead, and it will require everyone to play a role in achieving new heights.”
Muhvic will serve on the president’s senior leadership team at Drury. She will work closely with senior vice presidents Wayne Chipman and Judy Thompson, both Drury alumni, who have more than 55 years combined experience in fundraising for DU.
Drury University is nearing completion of the first phase of a comprehensive campaign for scholarships, financial aid and new campus facilities. This phase included more than $27 million raised for the C.H. “Chub” O’Reilly Enterprise Center and Breech School of Business Administration. That project is nearing the halfway point of construction with an expected completion date of August 2022.
“Marie’s experience, work ethic, and track record of success made her our top choice,” says John Beuerlein, Drury Life Trustee, past board chair, and co-chair of the search committee. “I am truly excited for our alumni to get to know Marie and to work with her in the years to come.”
“Drury’s momentum of recent years is due in no small part to the generosity of our donors and alumni, and I look forward to seeing Marie join our team in order to build upon that success as we look ahead to our 150th anniversary in 2023,” says board chair Rita Baron.
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