UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations 1-1-2007 Presidential transitions during capital campaigns: Perspectives of chief development officers Kimberly Kay Nehls University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/rtds Repository Citation Nehls, Kimberly Kay, "Presidential transitions during capital campaigns: Perspectives of chief development officers" (2007). UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 2773. http://dx.doi.org/10.25669/1cpt-juqj This Dissertation is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Dissertation in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/or on the work itself. This Dissertation has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITIONS DURING CAPITAL CAMPAIGNS: PERSPECTIVES OF CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICERS by Kimberly Kay Nehls Bachelor of Arts University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 1998 Master of Arts University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2001 A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Higher Education Administration Department of Educational Leadership College of Education Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas December 2007 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 3302360 Copyright 2008 by Nehls, Kimberly Kay All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 3302360 Copyright 2008 by ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 E. Eisenhower Parkway PC Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Kimberly Kay Nehls 2008 All Rights Reserved Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Thesis Approval IJNTV The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas October 12, 20 07 The Thesis prepared by Kimberly Nehls Entitled Presidential Transitions During Capital Campaigns: Perspectives of Chief Development Officers is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Leadership Examination Committee Chair Dean of the Graduate College Examination CoHamitte/Memhe Examination Committee Member 4- /T S T .,- Graduate College^ufulty RepreseMmive 11 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT Presidential Transitions During Capital Campaigns: Perspectives of Chief Development Officers by Kimberly Kay Nehls Dr. Bob Aekerman, Examination Committee Chair Associate Professor of Educational Leadership University of Nevada, Las Vegas In the past few decades, capital campaigns at institutions of higher education have increased in duration, while eollegiate presidential tenures have been doing just the opposite. Turnover in the top post was frequent, even during major fundraising campaigns. Prior to this study, presidential transitions during campaigns had not been previously analyzed. Therefore, the objective of this exploratory study was to better understand presidential transitions during capital campaigns from the perspective of the chief development officer (CDO) who maintained continuity. Nine CDOs who experienced presidential transitions during campaigns were interviewed to better understand their experience. The institutions represented were Florida State University, Millikin University, Muhlenberg College, University of Indianapolis, University of North Florida, University of Redlands, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater, Villanova University, and Wake Forest University. Schlossberg’s theory of transition served as the theoretical framework for the study and formed the four research questions which reflected Schlossberg’s S’s: situation. 111 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. self, supports, and strategies. The situation was defined differently at each institution, although they did have some similarities, such as lengthy campaigns of seven years or more, successful goal completions, and transitions that occurred after the campaign went public. Most presidential transitions were negative and restricting to campaign work, even when the transitions went smoothly. The nine CDOs that participated in this study had an average of 24 years work in fundraising, and 15 years at their specific institution. The participants relied on the following traits to help them navigate the change in leadership: patience, perseverance, work drive, flexibility, teamwork, confidence, altruism, resiliency, and focus. Four groups or individuals were cited as most often providing support during the presidential transition: the Board of Trustees, the development staff the incoming president, and senior staff colleagues. Lastly, the strategies for dealing with a presidential transition during a eampaign included a) providing input in the selection of the new president, b) communication with constituency, c) education of the incoming president, d) involving the new president in the campaign right away, and e) creating new funding priorities. Recommendations for a CDO dealing with a change in leadership during a campaign have been outlined in the final chapter. IV Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT.................................................................... :....................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................. vii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 1 Definition of Terms and Context............................................................................. 2 Significance of the Study .......................................................................................... 7 Purpose Statement................................................................................................... 11 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................... 11 Research Questions................................................................................................. 15 Overview of Methodology ...................................................................................... 15 Limitations ............................................................................................................... 17 Outline of Dissertation............................................................................................ 18 CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................... 20 Presidential Transitions........................................................................................... 21 Presidents as Fundraisers ........................................................................................ 31 How a Fundraising President Differs fi-om the Chief Development Officer 40 Capital Campaigns............................... 43 Gaps in Literature and Purpose of Study .............................................................. 52 CHAPTER THREE METHODOLOGY ............. 57 Research Design ............................................................................................ 57 Data Collection ........................................................................................................ 59 Background Information ......................................................................................... 69 Identification of Sample............................... 71 Interview Protocol ................................................................................................... 74 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................... 75 Data Verification...................................................................................................... 76 Pilot Study ................................................................................................................ 77 Summary and Conclusion ....................................................................................... 79 CHAPTER FOUR CASE STUDIES ............................................................................... 80