John Garvey, President of The Catholic University of America, has appointed Deborah Brown as assistant vice president for Advancement Services, effective June 27, 2016. Prior to her new appointment, Brown served as vice president of philanthropy services at MedStar Health, a 10-hospital system headquartered in Columbia, Md.
She has also served in a series of leadership roles at Children’s National Health System — executive director, Children’s Hospital Foundation; executive director, the Sheikh Zayed Institute; and executive director, Office of Strategy. At Children’s, and then at MedStar, Brown led a re-engineering of focus from transactional, reactive fundraising to a metrics-driven major gifts-focused program. Most recently Brown has worked for 18 months as a development systems and operations consultant for a range of clients.
“I’m excited that Deborah Brown is joining our University Advancement team,” commented Garvey. “Her leadership and experience will greatly enhance our advancement efforts.”
Brown noted, “The assistant vice president for Advancement Services represents, for me, the perfect marriage of role and mission. I am deeply honored to be invited to serve this wonderful institution. President Garvey and Scott Rembold have created ideal conditions for philanthropic success. I am thrilled to be part of this leadership team and am looking forward to helping build our bright future."
Earlier in her career, Brown was a member of the executive team at the Fund for Johns Hopkins Medicine, during the Knowledge for the World Campaign.
Brown earned a B.A. in history from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 1987, and an M.A. in teaching from John Hopkins University in 2005. She resides in Columbia, Md.
In her new role as assistant vice president for Advancement Services, Brown will direct and integrate all functions in the Department of Advancement Services that are essential to the execution of the University’s fundraising, volunteer engagement, and campaign management efforts. As a visible leader-manager, Brown will evaluate operations, analyze data and information, and recommend solutions to help achieve strategic division and institutional goals.
She will closely collaborate with colleagues in the University’s schools and departments and in the Office of Alumni Relations to ensure that University Advancement resources are used effectively to grow a culture of increased philanthropy and volunteer leadership across the University.