Senior Associate Vice President & Chief Development Officer for Medical Affairs

As the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) launches a monumental healthcare initiative to accelerate and expand into a world-class academic medical center for education, research, and patient care, the medical enterprise seeks an audacious and seasoned healthcare development professional to serve as the inaugural senior associate vice president and chief development officer for medical affairs (SAVP/CDO). The uniqueness of this newly created and senior-level position cannot be overstated, as the SAVP/CDO will assume a critically important charge to lead philanthropy for a rapidly evolving academic medical operation at one of the nation’s premier and most innovative public research universities.

The establishment in 2014 of the Dell Medical School (Dell Med), the first ground-up medical school built at a top-tier American research university in 50 years, is arguably the most consequential project ever undertaken by the UT System and marks the beginning of a new era in healthcare delivery in Austin. In August 2023, the UT System Board of Regents – joined, among others, by Governor Greg Abbott, UT Austin President Jay Hartzell, and Dell Medical School Dean Claudia Lucchinetti – announced plans to embark on the next era for innovative care in Austin by expanding the University of Texas at Austin Medical Center (UTMC) and its presence in Austin’s burgeoning medical district, filling a critical void in quaternary care in the city and across Central Texas. With construction anticipated to conclude in 2030, UTMC is an emerging academic health system that will revolutionize the delivery of healthcare. Anchored by Dell Med, UTMC will transform access to essential care with the creation of a visionary campus that includes a UT Austin tertiary hospital, the world renowned University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (MD Anderson), and a globally renowned research university working together to achieve healthcare excellence. UTMC will offer a seamlessly integrated model of care, expertly coordinated across providers and accessible to everyone in the community, and will deliver an exceptional patient experience made possible by harnessing the powerful intersection of health, care, and technology. 

Over the next decade and beyond, this multi-billion-dollar effort will be supported with funds from the UT System, MD Anderson, and, importantly, the philanthropic support of UT Austin alumni, friends, industry partners, and community members whose generosity will account for $500 million toward funding this $2.5 billion cornerstone project. Such philanthropic support will ensure that patients benefit from the convergence of research breakthroughs, the best and brightest physicians, and the advancements in care they provide. For Central Texas patients who currently choose to travel elsewhere – to Houston, Dallas, or beyond – to receive specialty care, UTMC will make it increasingly possible for them to receive the care they need much closer to home. Already with more than 480 physicians in training since its inception just over a decade ago, Dell Med is actively recruiting top talent from prestigious medical enterprises nationwide and aspires to attract at least 250 new physicians in the coming years across the full spectrum of sub-specialties which UTMC will offer.

The inaugural role of SAVP/CDO necessitates a bold, experienced, and dedicated healthcare fundraising professional capable of constructing a best-in-class development operation comparable to and deserving of the excellence in patient care and research endeavors that UTMC will undoubtedly deliver, as well as the full breadth of the university’s Medical Affairs priorities and aspirations. Reporting to Dr. Claudia Lucchinetti, and working in close collaboration with the university president’s office and Vice President for Development (VP) David Livingston, this senior leader will devise and guide a comprehensive fundraising and engagement strategy to attract funding to this historic initiative from potential donors with existing affinity, as well as creatively identify unaffiliated individuals to harness the full breadth of the many cases for support that Medical Affairs represents. Given the nascence of Dell Med’s alumni population, with just five graduating classes, critical to success will be the SAVP/CDO’s ability to foster productive and collaborative relationships with academic and administrative leaders across the university and with colleagues in Texas Development – those centrally based and especially development leaders embedded in the colleges, schools, and units – to unlock the full philanthropic potential of UT Austin’s alumni and friends in support of strategic priorities for Medical Affairs, most immediate of which is the construction of UTMC. As such, the SAVP also serves as a critical member of the VP’s senior leadership team, serving as a senior representative on behalf of Medical Affairs among Texas Development. 

The SAVP/CDO will expeditiously scale and dramatically elevate the productivity of the current fundraising and engagement operation, transforming it into a sustainable program with a robust infrastructure. Additionally, the SAVP/CDO will expand existing activities into a model grateful patient program. Development for Medical Affairs will reflect the core values of the institution, and the division will be grounded in a foundation of success and committed to strengthening an institutional culture of philanthropy. In so doing, the SAVP/CDO will engender trust among Dell Med physicians and researchers to best represent their departmental needs and philanthropic aspirations to the broader donor community and serve as an advocate on behalf of UTMC, helping to inform and educate internal and external constituents on its importance and prominence in the community and beyond. This cross-collaborative approach also presents a significant opportunity to elevate UT Austin’s interdisciplinary giving at the intersections of healthcare, business, engineering, artificial intelligence, and boundless other industry sectors.

With at least 12 years of leadership experience in best-in-class development operations, including a depth of healthcare or academic medical fundraising expertise, the ideal candidate must possess an extensive track record of co-creating institutional strategies to achieve ambitious fundraising goals; be able to create a results-oriented work environment that promotes collaboration and achievement; and demonstrate a high level of agility, adaptability, ingenuity, and perseverance. The successful candidate must be a proactive self-starter who operates with a sense of urgency, and thinks strategically, analytically, and entrepreneurially to transform new ideas into executable and enduring programs. With the ability to build bridges with all members of an operation across a university and budding medical enterprise, the ideal candidate will possess a deep understanding of and passion for the mission and goals of an outstanding comprehensive research university, as well as a dedication to advancing the vision of an academic medical center. 

Rachel Ellenport is leading this search with Nicole Poe and Megan Gorman. 

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The university is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment.