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My job is:
To partner with and support university leadership and our amazing development team as we collectively inspire philanthropic investment where donor’s passions intersect with the University of Idaho’s aspirations and priorities.
In my earbuds:
Lately, I’ve been on a classic rock kick, but I definitely like to mix it up with different podcasts and genres.
My life mantra is:
Be curious, be kind, do the right thing, and always have fun doing it!
Megan
Pratt
Executive Assistant to the Vice President for University Advancement
What I love about my job is:
I love working with and interacting with all of our units/divisions of advancement. Working with Mary Kay McFadden in the VP office connects me to all our staff and gives me a big picture perspective of the great work that we all do as advancement professionals: connecting donors, alumni and friends to the University of Idaho in ways that are meaningful to them.
My life mantra is:
Ever forward.
The best advice I received was:
Don’t take it personally -- nothing anyone says or does is really about you. It is more about them and what is going on in their day and life at that moment.
Advancement Solutions
Christian Elsberry
Associate Vice President for Advancement Services and Financial Operations
In my job, I advance the university by:
Managing and serving the great people and projects involving Advancement Information Services (AIS), Prospect Management and Research (PMR), Advancement Analytics, Advancement Events and Advancement Finance.
The last good book I read was:
Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman.
My job is:
As a Business Analyst on the Advancement Services team, I work on ad-hoc reporting requests, serving as a functional specialist within the CRM system. My main responsibility is working with end users to develop processes and define reports to best meet the user’s needs; working with other areas across campus to enhance the use of CRM Advance; acting as a leader in the user side of technology implementations; coordination of reporting, including ad-hoc and testing of system rules as upgrades in CRM Advance are made; providing end user support; working with end users to test CRM Advance data and their enhancements and troubleshooting data problems for end users as it pertains to reporting and analytics.
My bucket list includes:
See the Northern Lights dance across the Alaskan sky while sitting in a natural hot spring.
Canoe portage trip in the Boundary Waters of Northern Minnesota.
Back country hunt for moose with the intention of hiking in and pack raft floating out.
Backpack trip across New Zealand all the way from Cape Reinga on the North Island to Slope Point on the South Island.
My life mantra is:
Life is to short to be anything other than happy.
In my job, I advance the university by:
Updating senior leadership of Advancement where they stand financially with their budgets as well as help the Development Officer’s by tracking their finances.
The last good book I read was:
Be Here Now by Ram Dass
If I were gifted a superpower, it would be:
To be able to see the future!
In my job, I advance the university by:
Bringing Vandals together, whether that is through awarding a deserving Vandal, working to bring a group back for a reunion or celebrating Homecoming, I hope that attendees leave my events feeling connected back to their alma mater and connecting to fellow Vandals.
My motto is:
It’s a good life - as good as you make it.
If I were gifted a superpower, it would be:
Time travel or flight! How amazing to travel through time to key times in our history and live them! I would choose the power of flight to assist with kid drop-off and pick-up each morning!
What I love about my job is:
Strengthening the connection between U of I alumni and friends through events, customer-driven service, and shared goals for the future of the institution.
The last good book I read was:
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
What I love about my job:
Being able to connect with Vandals from different walks of life and hear their stories. I hope to help foster the relationships between fellow Vandals and of course their alma mater.
The last good book I read was:
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty
My preferred college/unit/department website is: Annual Giving
My job at U of I has taught me:
The world, although vast in size, is actually a small "place"! There are so many connections made through U of I as a student or faculty/staff member, many life-long, that it is easy to discover friends and peers in common while speaking with an alum. Similar to the Kevin Bacon six degrees of separation, Vandals often have only two degrees of separation!
I always take these three things with me when I travel:
Chapstick, water bottle and headphones, in addition to the usual suspects: phone charger and business cards!
My favorite historical figure is:
That’s a tough one since I studied history at U of I! It’s a five-way tie between Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Sacajawea, Eleanor Roosevelt and Eleanor of Aquitaine.
My job is:
I connect with Vandals and friends and speak with them about the incredible projects going on in CALS and the impact of scholarships on students’ lives.
In my earbuds:
The History of English Podcast by Kevin Stroud.
Bobbi
Hughes
Chief Strategic Partnerships Officer for Engineering
What I love about my job is:
I am fascinated by new innovations in science, technology and engineering that are designed to make the world a better place for everyone. The College of Engineering encourages students to engage in undergraduate research and our students are designing for the future. Our donors and alumni from the College of Engineering have paved a bold path for our students to follow in and I love imagining how these engineers will change the world.
I always take these three things with me when I travel:
A reusable water bottle (so I don’t have to buy single-use plastic), sneakers (to run around in) and at least two hours of podcast downloads.
The best advice I ever received was:
“Find something you’re serious about and take it seriously.”
Chelsi
Nygaard
Assistant to the Associate Vice President for Development
My preferred college/unit/department website is: Advancement
To understand what I do, you must:
Know that I strive to help others achieve their goals and dreams.
If I were gifted a superpower, it would be:
I would choose teleportation as my superpower because I love to visit family and friends and explore new places, but dislike the travel time required.
My bucket list includes:
I want to travel the world with my family; Germany, Spain and Greece are high on my list.
Mahmood Sheikh
Associate Athletic Director For Development and Executive Director of the Vandal Scholarship Fund
In my job, I advance the university by:
Sharing the transformational experiences and stories of our student-athletes to ensure the necessary tools and resources are provided in order for them to be competitive academically and athletically.
The last good book I read was:
My Side of the Street: Why Wolves, Flash Boys, Quants, and Masters of the Universe Don't Represent the Real Wall Street by Jason DeSena Trennert.
If I were gifted a superpower, it would be:
To eliminate hunger. No human being should live hungry.
My job at U of I has taught me:
How you treat people matters. When you are respectful, honest, and kind, you will create a community of professionals that support and lift one another higher so we can all succeed together. I love this Vandal Family!
I always take these three things with me when I travel:
I bring a magazine that I can recycle after I’m done reading it, noise canceling headphones and my favorite Sencha green tea for an energy boost!
Matt Johnson
Director of Development for the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences
What I love about my job is:
Learning the life stories of our donors and helping them to make gifts that are rewarding to them and helpful to the University of Idaho.
My life mantra is:
Faith, Family, Friends
The best advice I received was:
Focus on those things within your sphere of influence and don’t get bogged down (emotionally or in the actual work) by those things you cannot influence.
Bob
Nelson
Director of Development for the Office of Estate, Trust and Gift Planning
My job at U of I has taught me:
It’s good to hear from someone who is mad, worried or frustrated. It means they care.
I always take these three things with me when I travel:
Whatever book I’m currently reading, my phone and an extra day’s worth of everything (lesson learned from cancelled flights).
My favorite historical figure is:
Hunter S. Thompson. His lifestyle aside, he was a brilliant writer with an unflinching dedication to journalism and exposing wrongdoing. His writing is wildly funny, maddening and astute, but never, never dull.
“Yesterday's weirdness is tomorrow's reason why.”
