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June 11, 2007
Emory appoints senior VP of development, alumni relations

by ron sauder

Susan Cruse has been appointed senior vice president for development and alumni relations at Emory effective July 1.

Cruse, who is currently associate vice president for development and alumni relations for Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, will be charged with leading a new era of fundraising at Emory to support implementation of the University’s ambitious 10-year strategic plan for academic and campus development.
“We are indeed fortunate to have attracted to Emory a leader such as Susan,” said President Jim Wagner. “She has compiled an impressive track record in complex academic environments that closely resemble our own constellation of programs and schools.”

“Susan will bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to Emory,” added Michael M.E. Johns, executive vice president for health affairs and chancellor-designate, who headed the Emory search committee.

“In a field of very qualified candidates from first-rate institutions, she stood out by virtue of her vision for Emory’s continuing ascendancy among American research universities.”

Since 1991, Cruse has worked in senior fundraising positions at UCLA, the University of California, Irvine, and Johns Hopkins, with the exception of a stint from 1997-1999, when she served as director of university alliances for the global corporation TRW Inc.

At UCLA, she served as assistant dean of external affairs and director of development for the School of Engineering and Applied Science, leading a $50 million fundraising drive for the school as part of UCLA’s overall $1.2 billion campaign.

At UC Irvine, she was assistant vice chancellor for corporate, foundation and university research park relations, serving seven academic units, student athletics, libraries and undergraduate programs. She also planned and executed a $48 million matching fund campaign in support of one of Governor Gray Davis’ California Institutes for Science and Technology, the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology.

At Johns Hopkins since 2003, she has helped to develop and manage day-to-day operations for the $2 billion Johns Hopkins Medicine campaign, serving as a member of the senior leadership teams of both the CEO/dean of medicine and the vice president for development and alumni relations.

Cruse said she finds it inspiring to join an academic community at Emory that has dedicated itself in its vision statement and strategic plan to serving the public good.

“Emory combines an uncompromising commitment to tackle society’s most complex problems with the expertise to do so,” she said. “Private philanthropy sustains these efforts, and I look forward to fostering partnerships with those who understand the need to invest in courageous inquiry to transform the world.”

A native of Santa Monica, Calif., Cruse holds a B.A. in English from UCLA. Her husband Denton is a marketing and advertising consultant and their son Tom is a rising eighth grader. She serves on the board of the Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital in Baltimore.

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