Vice President for University Advancement Fred Najjar oversees development, alumni relations, advancement operations and public affairs at San José State University. He also serves as chief executive officer of the Tower Foundation.
In only his second year as vice president for University Advancement, he spearheaded a university fundraising campaign whose success was unprecedented. During the 2006-2007 fiscal year, SJSU received more than $50.2 million in private gifts -- a record number, representing a 92 percent increase over the previous year. Two gifts received in 2006-2007 resulted in the renaming of the College of Engineering and the College of Education and further distinguished SJSU as the only university within the CSU to receive two college-naming gifts in a single year. He currently leads the university's first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign.
Since 1989, Najjar has held key administrative positions at SJSU that have highlighted his experience and expertise in the areas of development, alumni cultivation and student affairs. His first position with the university, director of University Housing Services, he held for six years. From 1995 to 1997, he served as associate vice president for Student Affairs and, from 1997 to 2000, as executive assistant/vice president for Student Affairs. In his four years as associate vice president for Alumni Affairs/executive director of the SJSU Alumni Association, he oversaw the not-for-profit, 11,000-member alumni organization and its 22-member volunteer board. Immediately prior to his current appointment, he served as associate vice president for Development and Alumni Relations.
Before coming to SJSU, Najjar directed Residential and Greek Life at Arizona State University and Residence Halls Administration at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point. A native of Virginia, he holds an undergraduate degree in public administration and a graduate degree in counseling and student personnel administration, both from Virginia Tech. He is completing a doctorate in organization and leadership at the University of San Francisco.
Currently a member of the president's cabinet, Najjar has served on dozens of university committees at SJSU, including the Academic Senate Executive Committee, University Planning Council, Goals Advisory Committee, Resource Review Board, the Campus Climate Implementation Group and the University Space Management Committee. Among his personal honors are a Man of the Year award from Kappa Sigma Fraternity, an Outstanding National Leader award from the American College Personnel Association, and a University Award of Merit from Arizona State University.
print
email