Will guide system-wide development wing through capital-campaign era
BOSTON -- Charles J. Pagnam, who has been serving in top fund-raising positions at the University of Massachusetts Foundation and at UMass Medical School, will assume full-time duties at the UMass Foundation, UMass President Robert L. Caret announced today, August 25.
"Given the high priority we assign to fund-raising and our goal of raising $1 billion system-wide, we have asked Charlie Pagnam to focus his attentions on the position that benefits all 72,000 students and all five campuses of the UMass system," said President Caret, who also serves as the president of the UMass Foundation.
Pagnam, the former vice president for development at Yale University, has served as vice chancellor for development at UMass Medical School (UMMS) since 2007. In 2012, President Caret asked Pagnam to take on the additional roles of vice president for advancement of the University of Massachusetts system and executive vice president of the UMass Foundation.
"I am grateful for Charlie's partnership, and his years of hard work on behalf of the medical school," said Chancellor Michael F. Collins, M.D. "He has helped to build lasting relationships with people who share our dedication to advancing the health and wellness of people in the commonwealth and around the world."
The UMass Foundation manages the endowment of the five campuses of the UMass system, promotes philanthropic support for the University of Massachusetts and assists the UMass campuses with their fund-raising activities. Proceeds generated by the endowment are used in various ways but the key purposes include providing student scholarships and creating endowed chairs and professorships for preeminent faculty. Funds flowing from the endowment are spent in accordance with donors' wishes.
The UMass endowment has experienced dramatic growth over the past two decades, increasing from $38 million in 1995 to nearly $750 million today.
"Private fundraising elevates the University and addresses areas of the highest priority such as quality and affordability," said Henry M. Thomas III, chairman of the UMass Board of Trustees. "Given the critical importance of the undertaking, I am very pleased to have Charlie Pagnam at the helm of the UMass Foundation on a full-time basis. Fundraising at the University of Massachusetts is heading in the right direction and given what Charlie has been able to accomplish with us and in his career prior to joining UMass, I am confident that we are going to be able to build on our progress and will achieve new levels of success that will benefit our students and our campuses for years to come."
The UMass Foundation is in the early stages of coordinating a $1 billion system-wide capital campaign that at its core will be driven by capital campaigns under way or about to begin on the campuses. The Foundation will provide marketing and technical support and will oversee the investment of funds and the disbursement of endowment proceeds.
President Caret thanked Chancellor Collins and UMass Medical School, for "their willingness to share Charlie with us over these past two years and to now allow us to claim his full services. The Medical School's contribution of its head fund-raiser is above and beyond the call of duty."
As UMass Medical School's vice chancellor for development, Pagnam has led the joint development function of UMMS and UMass Memorial Health Care. He also managed the UMass Memorial Foundation.
A graduate of Nichols College in Dudley, Pagnam joined UMass from Mount Sinai Medical Center, where he served as senior vice president for development. He arrived at Mount Sinai in 2005 from Yale University, where he spent 27 years in a series of increasingly responsible positions, the last seven as vice president for development.
Contact:
Ray Howell (617.571.3114)
Ray_Howell@howellcomm.com