The University of Colorado at Boulder today announced that Deborah W. Fowlkes (pronounced "folks") has been named executive director of the University of Colorado Alumni Association. Fowlkes, who will assume the post on July 26, currently serves as assistant vice president for alumni relations and executive director of the Temple University Alumni Association in Philadelphia.
"We are delighted to welcome Deborah Fowlkes to CU-Boulder," said Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Julie Wong, to whom Fowlkes will report. "We are excited to have a leader of her breadth of experience with two great institutions – and strong ties to CU-Boulder – ready to take our dynamic alumni association to the next level of success."
Fowlkes grew up in Boulder. She is a graduate of Boulder High School and the daughter of retired CU mathematics Professor Irving Weiss. Since July 2005, she has served in the top alumni relations position at Temple University, where she is responsible for university-wide alumni relations and heads outreach efforts to the school's 265,000 alumni.
Prior to her position at Temple University, Fowlkes worked for almost two decades at Duke University, where she served as director of alumni education and travel (1999-2005), director of alumni continuing education (1991-99), assistant director for alumni admissions (1989-91) and first reader in the admissions office (1986-90).
She holds a bachelor's degree in comparative literature and French literature and a master's degree in liberal studies from Duke.
"This is the opportunity of a lifetime," said Fowlkes. "I grew up on CU-Boulder's lively and stimulating campus, so I look forward to working with our alumni and the CU-Boulder administration to ensure that same vibrancy continues to define the CU alumni experience at every level."
The executive director of the CU-Boulder Alumni Association is responsible for building and maintaining a leading alumni association, expanding CU-Boulder's relationship with its 240,000 alumni and 30,000 students through the "Forever Buffs" initiative, serving as publisher of the Coloradan alumni magazine, and supporting an alumni communications and engagement strategy as part of CU-Boulder's Flagship 2030 Strategic Plan.
The post is currently held on an interim basis by Ron Stump, who formerly served as CU-Boulder's vice chancellor for student affairs, and who has overseen the organizational transition of the Alumni Association from the independent CU Foundation to the university administration over the past two years.
Deborah W. Fowlkes (Photo courtesy Temple University)
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