Mary Baldwin University names new vice president of university advancement

Charles E. “Chuck” Davis III will become the new vice president of university advancement at Mary Baldwin University.

A seasoned leader with more than 25 years in the higher and secondary education sectors, Davis brings a demonstrated record of exceptional success in building sustainable advancement programs.

The vice president of university advancement is a member of the president’s cabinet, overseeing alumni relations and fundraising. Davis’ start coincides with MBU’s recently launched Invest for Impact campaign, a $25 million initiative focused on the university’s enrollment and programmatic goals for 2025.

“Chuck brings to us exceptional experience in building advancement programs,” said Mary Baldwin University President Pamela R. Fox. “He is committed to building our alumni engagement programs, working with current students, completing our current Invest for Impact campaign, broadening our network of connections to foundations and corporations, and playing a key part in continuing the momentum that Mary Baldwin is currently experiencing across the university. Above all else, Chuck is a relationship-builder and a collaborative leader.”

For the past six years, Davis has worked in global fundraising, building philanthropy programs at the Robert Gordon University Foundation in Aberdeen, Scotland, as chief executive officer from 2012–15, and most recently as director of strategic development at the International School of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. In each position he has helped facilitate the most significant gifts in the institution’s history and built processes and teams for sustained success.

Prior to this international work, Davis served from 2003–12 as the director of the Ever Elon campaign and assistant vice president for university advancement at Elon University. Over his 10-year tenure he served as the key architect of Elon’s largest comprehensive campaign, surpassing the $100 million goal and garnering a Grand Finalist Award in 2009 for campaign communications and events from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

Prior to his work at Elon, Davis served as interim president and director of development for the Medical Foundation of East Carolina University, and director of development at the Graduate School of North Carolina State University. Davis is a graduate of Furman University. He and his wife, Flora Hall Davis, have two daughters, one attending Wofford College and another who begins this fall at North Carolina State University.

“Mary Baldwin is a special place — with a rich history and creative approach to its future,” Davis said. “I am thrilled to lead the advancement team. It will be a joy to meet our alumni, parents, and friends in the coming months as together, we work to advance the university.”

Members of the vice president of university advancement search committee include MBU Trustees Jane Miller, Susan Palmer, Gabby McCree, and Christy Howell, MBU Provost Ty Buckman, and Vice President of Student Engagement Ernest Jeffries.

Founded in 1842, Mary Baldwin University is a small, coeducational university offering a range of degree programs from bachelor to doctoral. It serves a vibrant student population on its main campus in Staunton, Virginia; at its nearby health sciences campus in Augusta County; and online.