WGU Advancement team.
Annalisa Holcombe
President
As President, Annalisa is responsible for leading WGU Advancement’s purpose of building financial support to reinvigorate WGU’s promise of higher education for all by connecting individuals, corporations, and foundations to the university and its students. Holcombe brings more than 15 years of experience in higher education, fundraising, and community relations to WGU Advancement.
Prior to leading WGU Advancement, Holcombe served her alma mater, Westminster College in Salt Lake City, in a variety of roles. Most recently, she was Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer. In this role, she helped lead Westminster to its highest-grossing fundraising year in its history and was responsible for the creation of its community relations department.
Holcombe holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Westminster College and a juris doctorate from the University of Utah College of Law. She lives in Salt Lake City with her family and in her spare time enjoys mentoring and coaching teams and individuals in her community to build trust, achieve dreams, and cultivate joy.
Kabi Catalano
Regional Director, Northwest
With nearly 20 years of non-profit experience, Kabi brings a strategic and collaborative approach to the WGU Advancement Team. She is responsible for individual, corporate and foundation fundraising within WGU’s nine state northwest region, including Alaska and Hawaii. Prior to WGU, Kabi most recently led a Salt Lake-based non-profit’s efforts to complete a $21 million capital campaign. She is currently pursuing a Masters of Science in Management and Leadership at WGU.
Laura Chynoweth
Grants Manager
Laura leads WGU’s Departments and Colleges in the application processes for federal and state grants and conducts research on funding opportunities for WGU initiatives. She holds a B.A. in Writing and an M.A. in Linguistics. Laura is passionate about staying abreast of best practices in the fundraising field and obtained her CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) certification in Nov. 2019. She has served as Communications Chair for Association of Fundraising Professionals Utah Chapter’s board of directors since 2017.
Brittany Clements
Director of Donor Relations & Stewardship
Brittany leads donor communications, acknowledgements and reporting, employee giving initiatives, and donor retention at WGU Advancement. Previously, she was the Director of Donor and Alumni Relations for Ivy Tech Community College. Brittany is experienced in corporate and constituent relations from her work with the international headquarters of The American Legion and The Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. Brittany has a B.S. in Health and Human Services from Purdue University and an MPA in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy from Indiana University. Currently, she is a proud Night Owl, pursuing her MBA from WGU.
Christina Cole
Regional Director, Midwest
Christina is a collaborator and servant-leader, with 20 years of experience working within non-profit organizations focused on education, leadership, professional development, diversity and inclusion, empowerment, and networking. She received her master's degree in Health Administration from Seton Hall University and was a member of their inaugural fully accredited online MHA Program. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in Speech Communications. Christina loves music, especially Prince, and lives in Chicago, Illinois with her 19-year-old, daughter, Sydni.
Jenn Cooper
Regional Director, Northeast
Jenn is based in Massachusetts and is responsible for working with WGU’s Northeast Regional Vice President to grow the base of support from alumni, foundations and corporations. Prior to WGU, Jenn had been a fundraiser for the sciences at the University of Massachusetts Amherst since 2012 and worked as a major gift officer at Westminster College in Salt Lake City for several years. Prior to fundraising, Jenn worked in the financial aid departments for both Boston University and MIT, whose donor funded scholarship programs inspired her transition into philanthropy.
Amy Fairchild
Executive Assistant to the President
Amy has been in higher education over 12 years and brings more than 30 years of experience as an office manager and executive assistant to WGU Advancement. The mission of equity and affordability for students in higher education was a driving factor in why she chose to come to WGU. To be part of the Advancement Team where they raise money to help so many was a perfect fit for her own dedication to philanthropy.
Adam Goduto
Director of Annual Giving
Adam joins the WGU Advancement team with nearly 20 years of annual giving, alumni relations, and operations experience in higher education. He has spent his career working at respected institutions of higher education in Illinois, California, Idaho, and Texas. He is excited to have the opportunity to assist WGU in its efforts to build and maintain a true culture of philanthropy amongst all of its constituents. Adam holds both a bachelor’s in History and a master’s in Recreation Administration from Illinois State University. He currently lives in the Chicago area near his family. He enjoys watching his favorite local sports teams compete and win.
Linda Hansen
Senior Research and Data Strategy Manager
Linda joins WGU Advancement from the Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah. Linda has over 10 years of experience working at local non-profits supporting fundraising efforts. While at the Eccles School, Linda provided insight through data analysis, donors screenings, and management of their Salesforce instance. Linda brings her expertise to WGU Advancement to stand up our database, create data governance policy, and research current and potential donors to the university.
Elijah Howe
Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations
Elijah spent the previous 12 years working in various roles in philanthropy and higher education including corporate relations and the support of special philanthropic initiatives in the President’s Office at Indiana University. His research expertise lies at the intersection of philanthropy and higher education, specifically, student philanthropy and the use of effective educational practices and the development of prosocial behaviors in college students.
Heather Marsh
Regional Director, South
Heather has more than twenty years of experience serving the education and nonprofit sector and she is passionate about seeing people from all backgrounds reach their learning potential and realize the transformative power of education. Most recently, Heather was the Senior Director of Development for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the Executive Director for the Texas Higher Education Foundation. In these dual roles, she oversaw the coordinated efforts to raise awareness and financial support for the state’s higher education plan. She holds an M.B.A. from the University of Dallas and a B.F.A. from Texas State University. On weekends, Heather will be hiking with the family or driving her 1965 MGB around the backroads of Texas - always with a tool bag in the trunk!
Jackie Maupin
Marketing and Communications Manager
In her role, Jackie supports the mission and vision of WGU Advancement by practicing and implementing successful marketing and communication strategies. Jackie previously served as an Executive Assistant and Community Relations Manager for WGU Indiana. She obtained her B.A. in telecommunications from Ball State University and her MBA from WGU. In her free time, Jackie enjoys spending time with her family and supporting her local community in Indianapolis.
Alia Moore
Research Analyst
Alia began her career in archives and libraries before making the jump to the advancement field and prospect research team at the University of Arizona. This background instilled not only the importance of education, but the necessity of equitable access to resources, which translates quite naturally from a library context to the mission of WGU. She received her master’s degree in Information Resources and Library Science from the University of Arizona and her bachelor’s degree in Art from Linfield University. Alia currently lives in Tucson, AZ with her husband and two black cats, but will be moving back to her home town of Bend, OR in the spring. She has a lot of unusual hobbies including, cosplay, roller derby, and podcasting.
Gilbert Rojas
Senior Manager of Special Projects & Board Liaison
Gilbert has been with WGU since May of 2015. He has held various roles including Business Analyst and Product Manager in Ed Tech supporting Marketing and Enrollment. His most recent role was Chief of Staff supporting WGU President Scott Pulsipher since April of 2017. Gilbert's WGU experience spans technology projects, business process improvement, student experience, external affairs, Board of Trustees engagement, external affairs, internal communications and organizational and legal re-designs. Prior to WGU, Gilbert enjoyed a 20 year career in hospitality with Marriott International where he was responsible for the guest experience and training across all brands, domestic and international for the Global Incentive and GiftCards product portfolio. Gilbert is married to Jenny and has two boys, Tarek (16) and Oliver (13) and a furry son named Fernando (6). In his spare time, he likes to golf, play/coach/watch soccer, snowboard and go fishing with his family. He and Jenny are novice bee keepers and hope to soon share the rewards of the bees work!
Curtis Ryan
Director of Operations
Curtis is a Certified Public Accountant and has worked in higher education for 33 years. He worked for a national accounting firm (PWC) for 5 years and Westminster College for over 27 years, most recently as the VP of Finance & Administration. At WGU Advancement, Curtis provides strategic and tactical planning and direction by providing financial and budget oversight for administrative and financial operations. Curtis is a graduate of the University of Utah with a B.A. in accounting. He is active in local non-profit organizations and currently serves on the Board of the Utah Parent Center, a non-profit organization that supports parents who have children with disabilities. Along with his wife Faith, they have four children. Curtis likes to hike, run, bike, ski, fly fish and anything outdoors.
Megan Yuly
Data Analyst
Megan has about 4 years of experience in nonprofits providing direct service to customers as well as providing detailed reports on trends in the community. Megan has a passion for using data to solve problems and answer questions that will assist companies in providing better service to their community. Megan has a bachelor's degree in Psychology from University of Washington and plans to pursue a master's degree in Data Analytics later this year. She also enjoys yoga, hiking, and crafting.
Brandon Zollner
Regional Director, Southeast
Brandon is based in middle Tennessee and responsible for driving alumni, foundation, and corporate support in the 7-state Southeast region. He has over 17 years of experience in higher education fundraising and program development. Prior to WGU, Brandon held relationship development roles at both Saint Louis University and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Brandon holds an undergraduate degree and MBA from Saint Louis University, and is drawn towards WGU’s focus on quality, access, and affordability in education.