HAMBURG, N.Y. – Kelly E. Smith has been appointed Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Hilbert College President Cynthia Zane, Ed.D announced today. Her appointment is effective November 30, 2015. Smith is a fundraising professional with more than 10 years of leadership experience in advancement.
In her new role, Smith will lead Hilbert’s advancement efforts, including annual giving, corporate and foundation relations, government relations, alumni relations, and public relations.
“I am confident that Kelly’s experience, particularly her many years in private higher education, will be extremely valuable in our efforts toward achieving our growing advancement goals,” Zane said. “We are pleased to have a leader with her talents to serve in this vital role.”
“I believe in Hilbert’s mission and core values and am very excited to return to higher education,” Smith said. “I look forward to partnering with President Zane, the institutional advancement team, and the Hilbert family as we engage our alumni and friends to advance the mission of the college."
Smith comes to Hilbert from the Geva Theatre Center in Rochester where she served as the Director of Development. Geva is Upstate New York’s largest and most attended not-for-profit professional theatre.
Prior to Geva, Smith spent over 10 years at Roberts Wesleyan College, where she served as Associate Vice President for External Relations from 2007-15. At Roberts Wesleyan, she expanded and enhanced individual major donor support, including government, foundation, and corporate funding. She is also credited with increasing the visibility of the college in the business community and creating strategic alliances, which resulted in gifts and partnerships that supported the mission. Smith played a vital role in a $43 million capital campaign, which included identifying, evaluating, cultivating, and soliciting six- and seven-figure philanthropic commitments. She also served as Director of Donor and Government Relations and Development Assistant in her time at Roberts Wesleyan.
Smith was selected for the Rochester Business Alliance Forty Under 40 and was a member of Leadership Rochester Class of 2009. Smith, a resident of Rochester since 2001, earned her bachelor’s degree in organizational management from Roberts Wesleyan College and will complete her Master of Arts in American Government from Regent University in December.
-- www.hilbert.edu --
Hilbert College, located in suburban Hamburg, N.Y., south of Buffalo, is a private four-year college founded in 1957 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition. With nearly 1,100 students, Hilbert is a dynamic Western New York college that offers career-focused majors, including one of the top criminal justice programs in the region, and more than 50 minors and concentrations. The college’s engaging, student-centered campus community offers numerous leadership, internship, and service learning opportunities from which students launch successful careers while making positive changes in their communities. The Hilbert Blueprint promotes a well-rounded student experience over four years – starting with the Foundations Seminar in the freshman year, followed by Sophomore Service, Junior Symposium, and culminating with the Senior Capstone. Hilbert has expanded its academic offerings with the college’s first graduate programs and evening degree programs geared to adult learners.