Maria Diaz
The start of this academic year welcomed new Vice President of Advancement, Patricia Hill-Callahan to the Mount. She (C’87) has replaced Robert Brennan (C’85) who left the university after serving in the role for 12 years raising more than $100 million. Hill-Callahan comes to the university with many ideas and ambition.
The new VP brings over 30 years of experience as a senior executive leader in advancement as well as Vice President of Medical and Health Sciences Advancement at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
Additionally, she also held a position as Associate Vice President for Principal Gifts at Johns Hopkins University. Before beginning at the Mount, she was a fundraising consultant for the International Consulting Firm Grenzebach Glier and Associates.
“I truly feel honored to be back here at the Mount,” Hill-Callahan said. “My career in fundraising has been at academic medical centers and universities but coming back to the Mount really felt like a calling to me,” she continued.
When asked about what she hopes to give back to the Mount, she stated, “I really believe in best practices in fundraising. I learned them over the span of the 30-year career and really want to bring that back here.”
One thing she said she hopes to bring is stewardship by thanking donors and having them realize how impactful their gift is. Hill-Callahan emphasized that the first step in her strategy consists of assessing the staff.
“I’ve really been focusing on building the team,” she said. Her second step, she stated, is understanding the donor pool and doing analytics to understand where the alumni are. The last step to her strategy is “fundraising with President Trainor while he is still here for the priorities,” she said.
Hill-Callahan certainly did not forget the spiritual significance of the Mount and emphasized the power it has and refers to it as a “holy land” with Mary, the Grotto, the Seminary, the Daughters of Charity and the Shrine with the Mount sitting right in the middle of it all.
“That is no coincidence. So, my hope is that we will be able to tell the story, the collective story, of all the different facets of the Mount to a broader audience so we can engage people,” she remarked.
President Timothy Trainor had welcoming remarks regarding Hill-Callahan. With the Health Professions Program opening the next academic year, Hill-Callahan’s experience in the field impacts moving forward with this program.
“Besides her vast experience base, she also demonstrated throughout the hiring process that she was really committed to being at the Mount and part of our mission,” Trainor said. He mentioned one of the major goals this academic year is to increase fundraising for the school of health professions. Hill-Callahan brings years of experience in fundraising which will help the Mount with its future endeavors.