Vice President for Advancement + President of the GSU Foundation

Georgia State University (Georgia State) seeks a proven, results-oriented, and deeply mission-driven vice president for advancement (VP) to lead all fundraising and alumni engagement efforts. The VP also serves as president of the Georgia State University Foundation (GSUF). Reporting to an ambitious and visionary leader in President M. Brian Blake and partnering closely with the GSUF Board of Trustees, the next VP will build and guide a high-performing advancement operation for a leading urban public R1 research institution on the rise. This opportunity comes at a moment of remarkable growth and transformation for both the university and the City of Atlanta as an economic and cultural center of the Southeast.

Georgia State is nationally recognized for academic quality, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to student success. With more than 53,000 students and over 300,000 alumni across the United States and around the world, Georgia State is one of the nation’s largest and most diverse public universities and a driving force in the civic, economic, and cultural life of Atlanta and the State of Georgia. The university’s economic impact on the Atlanta economy exceeds $3.2 billion annually. Since President Blake’s arrival in 2021, the university has advanced a visionary 10-year strategic plan, built momentum toward an ambitious comprehensive campaign, and accelerated major urban revitalization through its Reshaping Downtown Atlanta initiative against the backdrop of the city’s preparations to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Recent investments are also fueling a new vision for Georgia State Athletics, marked by an upcoming ribbon-cutting event set for its new Georgia State Baseball Park this fall. Georgia State has broken fundraising records in each of the last two years, raising $107.7 million in FY 2024 and $136.2 million in FY 2025, which included a transformative $80 million gift from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation—the largest gift in the university’s history.

As a member of President Blake’s senior cabinet, the VP will build upon the strong momentum of Georgia State’s advancement program to help realize the university’s ambitions and expand its regional impact and national leadership in educational access. The VP will serve as chief development and engagement officer and will lead a team of approximately 100 staff across annual giving and alumni engagement, corporate and foundation relations, major gifts, planned and special giving, athletics, advancement services, and finance and operations. The VP will articulate and advance an aspirational vision for Georgia State’s fundraising ambitions by expanding and diversifying donor pipelines, catalyzing its premier corporate and foundation partnerships, strengthening the athletics enterprise, and inspiring authentic engagement across a vibrant and evolving constituent base, ranging from current students to first-generation mid-career graduates, to Atlanta-based global business executives.

The next VP will build donor capacity and commitment, bring fresh ideas that respond to the evolving nature of philanthropy, and apply data-driven strategies that translate knowledge and ideas into actionable growth. Critically, the VP will increase the impact and effectiveness of the advancement division and drive success for a comprehensive campaign slated to go public in the fall of 2026 with a likely $600 million goal. The VP will be an exceptional storyteller and principal gift strategist, leading by example and maintaining an active personal fundraising portfolio. Additionally, the VP will nurture critical relationships within the GSUF Board of Trustees, advising on a range of decisions, including those impacting the university’s endowment.

The ideal candidate will possess a minimum of 10 years of advancement leadership experience in institutions of similar complexity, preferably in a research university environment. This individual must be an inspirational leader and self-starter who advances a clear set of strategic priorities with efficiency; demonstrates a high level of integrity, trust, and resourcefulness; adapts in a dynamic environment; and exhibits the credibility and emotional intelligence to build impactful relationships across the university’s broad range of internal and external constituencies. The selected candidate will possess strong strategic planning, managerial, communication, and motivational skills; a keen understanding of best practices in fundraising and a comprehensive knowledge of all major development and alumni engagement functions, including a depth of campaign experience; and a track record of significant personal results in principal and transformational gifts. As a key external representative of Georgia State, the VP must also reflect an appreciation for and desire to fully invest in the Atlanta Metropolitan region and serve a student-success-focused, urban, public, research-intensive university with strong ties to a complex 25-unit state system. A bachelor’s degree is required.

Jack Gorman is leading this search with Grace Zakim, Christina Garrison, and Ryan Cheung.