Nancy Gillece ’81 Receives CASE Professional of the Year Award

On February 12, 2024, Nancy Gillece ’81, vice president for institutional advancement, was honored with the 2023 Professional of the Year Award for District II (Mid-Atlantic) by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). The award recognizes a professional who has demonstrated exceptional achievement in the development and execution of institutional advancement programs.

Gillece was nominated for her role in Forging the Future: The Campaign for Hood College, which was the most successful philanthropic effort in Hood College’s 130-year history. Launched in 2017 with an initial goal of $50 million, the campaign would go on to raise $74.6 million.

“To be recognized by CASE, the premier advancement organization, is quite an honor,” said Gillece. “The collective success of Forging the Future is a credit to the entire Hood community, and I am grateful to share this honor with all of those who made it possible.”

One of the campaign’s key priorities was increasing student scholarships. Donors contributed $25 million toward this goal, establishing 43 new named scholarships. An additional $2.9 million was contributed toward high-impact learning opportunities, with 18 new funds created for internships, study abroad, research and more.

Gillece was instrumental in outreach efforts, attracting 4,828 donors. This broad coalition consisted of alumni and families, trustees, faculty and staff, foundations, and government and corporate partners. Hood’s faculty and staff reached 43 percent participation rates, well above the 10 percent national average.

Having traveled the country meeting with a wide array of partners, Gillece netted multi-million-dollar gifts through skilled networking and relationship building. A tireless champion of Hood, Gillece also presented at a CASE Conference in March 2023, and in November 2023, she presented at the Council for Independent Colleges Chief Advancement and Marketing Conference.

Gillece earned a bachelor’s in political science from Hood and worked as an admission counselor before serving as the College’s associate director of admission. She was appointed director of admission in 1986 and served in that role for a decade. She then became a major gifts officer for the College from 1996 to 1998. After a brief stint at Mount St. Mary’s University, Gillece returned to Hood in 2004 as director of major gifts. In 2007, she assumed her current position as vice president for institutional advancement.

“It has been a privilege leading the Hood advancement team during this campaign,” said Gillece. “Reaching this milestone at my alma mater is truly a highlight of my career.”

Read more about Forging the Future here.