OXFORD University has announced the appointment of Dr Jon Dellandrea to the new post of pro-vice-chancellor (development and external affairs).
Dr Dellandrea, who is currently vice president and chief advancement officer at the University of Toronto, will take up the post in October next year. He said: "I believe that the time is now right for Oxford to take a major step forward in its relationships with its supporters and partners, identifying innovative collaborations that will contribute to its long-term stability and managed growth."
The vice-chancellor, Dr John Hood, welcomed the appointment. He said: "Oxford is very fortunate to have been able to attract someone of the calibre of Jon Dellandrea to join us at this crucial time. We are currently engaged in a major strategic planning process which will provide a template for the future size and shape of the institution and clarify our priorities over the next five years."
Dr Dellandrea also serves as president of the University Toronto Foundation and holds faculty positions in the Rotman School of Management and in the Division of Management and Economics.
"At 55 years old, I'm over-the-top excited, like a kid," said Jon Dellandrea, the development specialist from Canada whom Oxford University has enlisted to head up its development and external affairs.
Dr Dellandrea, currently vice-president and chief advancement officer at the University of Toronto, will join Oxford in the new role of pro vice-chancellor (development and external affairs) on October 1, 2005. His role will encompass private funding, public affairs, branding and positioning, rather than simply fundraising. "The business we are in is advancing the cause of the university," he said.
The attraction of Oxford was its history, tradition and reputation and its arguable position as the "most dominant force in higher education in the Western world", he said. "My life is intertwined with Toronto, Oxford is the only university in the world that could attract me to leave," he said.
In 2003, under Dr Dellandrea's leadership, Toronto completed an ambitious fundraising campaign, bringing in more than $1 billion (£421 million) - the first and to date only Canadian university to do so. The cash allowed it to increase the number of endowed chairs from 15 in 1995 to 175 by the end of the campaign and the endowment for student aid from $69 million in 1995 to $500 million in 2003.
"Private funding is not the silver bullet solution. It's not a substitute for government support. It's getting that message out to the Government that says we will work hard to do our part but you cannot support a world-class university just with public support."
One of North America's most successful university advancement professionals has been appointed to head up development and external affairs at the University of Oxford. Dr Jon Dellandrea, who is currently Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer at the University of Toronto, will join the University in the new role of Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Development and External Affairs) on 1 October next year.
He said: "I am enormously excited to have this opportunity to play my part in enabling the academic aspirations of Oxford, one of the world's great universities. I believe that the time is now right for Oxford to take a major step forward in its relationships with its supporters and partners, identifying innovative collaborations that will contribute to its long-term stability and managed growth. I look forward to first, learning from, and then, working closely with, the many individuals whose collective endeavours define the excellence of the collegiate University."
Welcoming this appointment, the Vice-Chancellor, Dr John Hood, commented: "Oxford is very fortunate to have been able to attract someone of the calibre of Jon Dellandrea to join us at this crucial time in the development of the University. We are currently engaged in a major strategic planning process which will provide a template for the future size and shape of the institution and clarify our priorities over the next five years. Jon will play a key role in helping us to achieve these."
Jon Dellandrea became Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer of the University of Toronto in April 1994. He also serves as President of the University of Toronto Foundation and holds faculty positions in the Rotman School of Management and in the Division of Management and Economics. The University has played an important part in Dr Dellandrea's life and career: it was there that he studied for his BA, MEd and EdD and where he began his working life as Executive Assistant to the Principal and then Associate Director of Development. He then spent 10 years in development at the University of Waterloo and five as President of the Mount Sinai Foundation, before returning to Toronto 10 years ago.
Click for Mentors, Giants and Aspirations a paean of praise for Jon Dellandrea by Canadian fund-raising guru Malcolm D. Burrows:
"Jon is one of those examples in my head - a reference point that nags at me. His focus is astounding, or perhaps obsessive is more the word... As he builds relationships with donors, he always has a professional purpose... Burned in my mind was his delight as he recounted the relationship and the gift... Jon has a reputation among fund-raisers - whom he does not cultivate - as being arrogant and distant... He has an impressive professional mask... etc."
Obviously the ideal man for Oxford - A. M.
Giles Kerr, until recently Group Finance Director of Amersham plc, has been appointed as Oxford's next Director of Finance. Mr Kerr, a chartered accountant by profession, joins the University after 13 years with Amersham. During that time he played a key role in the development of Amersham into a global leader in the field of medical diagnostics and life sciences. He was also closely involved in negotiating its sale earlier this year to GE for £5.6bn.
Mr Kerr said he was greatly looking forward to joining the higher education sector. "I know from my time in industry how important top research universities such as Oxford are to the future success of the UK economy. I am thrilled to have the chance to help Oxford tackle the funding challenges it faces in today's rapidly-changing environment. I look forward to playing my part in ensuring that it remains one of the top universities in the world."
Commenting on Giles Kerr's appointment, Vice-Chancellor Dr John Hood said: "Financial viability is essential to underpin Oxford's academic mission of excellence and accessibility. Giles Kerr's broad strategic experience will be enormously valuable in developing the finance function at Oxford and in identifying and exploiting new streams of revenue. Throughout his career, Giles has demonstrated a fine balance between professional expertise and innovative problem-solving that will help us to as we move to strengthen the financial base. I look forward to working with him at this crucial period in the evolution of the collegiate University."