Mary Baldwin welcomes two new members to the university’s executive staff, serving under President Jeff Stein, in the areas of development and strategic planning.
Mary Cohill Harvey was named interim vice president for university advancement, overseeing alumni engagement, campaign fundraising, annual giving, stewardship, and advancement operations.
She joined MBU in August 2021 as associate vice president and campaign director, and helped the university raise more than $73 million through the MBU Empowers campaign that recently concluded in June and stands as the second largest campaign in the university’s history.
Harvey has significant experience in campaign positioning, strategy, and planning, in addition to a background in data analysis and frontline fundraising.
Before coming to Mary Baldwin, she served as the director of campaign planning for the University of Maryland during a successful billion-dollar giving campaign. She went on to become senior director of board operations at UMD, providing strategic support for the board of trustees and managing its engagement activities. Earlier in her career, she served as a principal gifts analyst and associate director of development for six years at George Washington University, where she helped secure more than $200 million in philanthropic gifts.
“Mary Baldwin has become my home and I have enjoyed getting to know so many of our wonderful alumni,” said Harvey. “I am excited to work closely with Dr. Stein in this new role as we hit the road this year to engage with our alumni in their own backyards. It’s important to ensure our alumni and donors are connected to the mission and leadership of Mary Baldwin so we can continue to put student experience and success front and center, together.”
Joining the university last month as chief of staff and assistant vice president for strategic initiatives, Cameron Shirley will serve as strategic advisor to the president; coordinate efforts such as building faculty development programs, data utilization, and strategic planning; and collaborate with offices across campus on major initiatives.
“One of my favorite parts of this role is the ability to work across all campus divisions and support the needs of students, faculty, staff, and community members,” said Shirley. “I am very excited to be joining the MBU team.”
She most recently served as dean of institutional effectiveness and innovation at Davidson-Davie Community College in North Carolina where she led the development and implementation of their strategic plan, and co-led their quality enhancement plan steering committee to improve student learning and services for online students. She also collaborated with internal and external partners on multiple student success initiatives focused on improving recruitment, retention, and degree completion. Campus data and assessment efforts also fell under her purview, and she facilitated the college’s successful 10-year accreditation reaffirmation process and a Title III federal grant disbursement.
In addition to her role as dean at Davidson-Davie, Shirley served as a part-time history instructor, teaching both in-person and hybrid courses in American history.
While earning her master’s degree in higher education from Elon University, Shirley worked in the Office of the President, helping to coordinate the Elon 2030 strategic planning process, including timeline, communications, survey, community feedback gatherings, document development, and implementation.
Prior to her career in higher education, Shirley taught high school social studies in the Wake County, North Carolina, public school system.
“Throughout the first year, I look forward to building strong relationships with the MBU community, learning more about the excellent work already happening, and engaging in conversations to continue thinking about the strategic direction of the university,” she said.
This summer, the president’s office also bids farewell to Megan McAllister MEd ’18, senior director of board operations and principal gift officer to the president, who has accepted a position in the Office of University Development at Washington and Lee University.