Casey Landry serves as Executive Director for Transformational Gifts at The University of Texas at Austin. In this role, Casey partners closely with impact driven philanthropists to create opportunities that change lives and institutions. By aligning philanthropic passions with UT’s bold initiatives, Casey helps advance solutions that empower students, support faculty, and tackle global challenges. Casey works with families to shape legacies that reflect their values and aspirations, ensuring their impact endures for generations. Through deep collaboration and thoughtful planning, Casey helps donors craft meaningful gifts that transform lives and strengthen the University’s future. Previously, Casey led Principal and Major Gift teams and shaped organizational structures to strengthen culture and performance, driving results across complex fundraising operations. With a background in leadership and performance, Casey is committed to making philanthropy deeply personal and impactful. Casey resides in Austin, Texas with his wife and two children. He can be found at the Little League fields or in airports around the world.
With over 25 years of professional experience in large healthcare and higher education organizations, Erin has a unique combination of quality service-delivery, operational know-how and strategic instinct. She serves as the Chief Operating Officer at NYU Steinhardt, overseeing a number of cross-functional teams. Erin’s central skillset revolves around improving the fundamental building blocks for success, from conceptualization to implementation to evaluation. She has adapted, expanded and refined those skills to include organizational leadership, online/digital transformation services, learning management systems, partnership development and enrollment management within higher education. With advanced degrees in Leadership and Innovation, Health Policy and Management and Communication Sciences and Disorders, her approach to teaching, project management and leadership promotes interprofessional education and collaboration at all levels of academic, clinical and professional training.
Rebecca Brandriff is an accomplished leader in finance and administration at NYU Steinhardt. She has played a pivotal role in the school’s success. As the Vice Dean of Administration and Finance since 2015, she oversees HR, Finance, Facilities, Strategic Initiatives, and IT and ensures operational excellence. With over 25 years of experience in higher education finance and administration, including 19 years at Yale University, Rebecca has a strong background in budgeting, financial planning, and strategic management. Her leadership has driven Steinhardt’s growth, fostered innovation, and enhanced the school’s financial and operational efficiency. Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and an MBA and is a doctoral candidate at NYU. She will graduate in May 2025. Rebecca is dedicated to advancing institutional success through strategic leadership, operational excellence, and continuous improvement.
Meredith Goldsmith is a professor of English at Ursinus College, where she specializes in late nineteenth and early twentieth-century US literature. She has published numerous articles on late nineteenth and early twentieth-century American literature in scholarly journals, including Legacy: A Journal of US Women’s Writing, American Literary Realism, American Literary History, Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Literature, and modern fiction studies. She is the editor of three scholarly collections, American Literary History and the Turn toward Modernity (University Press of Florida), Edith Wharton and Cosmopolitanism (University Press of Florida), and Middlebrow Moderns: Popular Women’s Writing of the 1920s (Northeastern University Press). She is the former editor of the Edith Wharton Review and past president of the Edith Wharton Society. Beyond her scholarship, Goldsmith’s expertise lies in faculty development, teaching and learning, strategic planning, and the digital humanities. She has successfully sought support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Duke University Humanities Writ Large Fellowship program, and the Pennsylvania Consortium for the Liberal Arts/Arthur Vining Davis Foundation. At Ursinus, Goldsmith has served as the founding director of Ursinus’s Teaching and Learning Institute, assistant and associate dean of academic affairs, special assistant to the president, and chief strategy and innovation officer.
Cynthia Peterson is the Dean of the LSU College of Science and a Professor of Biological Sciences. Dean Peterson, a protein biochemist, earned a B.S. in biochemistry from LSU A&M, followed by a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the LSU Health Sciences Center Shreveport. She then pursued postdoctoral training at the University of California, Berkeley before assuming an assistant professor position at the University of Tennessee. Peterson was promoted to associate professor with tenure, then to full professor, eventually serving as department head and then Associate Dean of Academic Personnel in the UT College of Arts and Sciences prior to assuming her role at LSU. Dean Peterson is committed to mentoring and professional development across career trajectories and has led several federally funded projects that include a strong focus on inclusive excellence. In addition to being a strong advocate for faculty, she has and has successfully garnered and leveraged resources to support new initiatives and build infrastructure.
Jane Cassidy currently serves as Senior Vice Provost at Louisiana State University and holds the Roy and Margaret Gianelloni Alumni Professorship in Music. Her responsibilities include advising the Executive Vice President & Provost on faculty matters, academic space utilization and allocation, academic policy, institutional accreditation, and budget. The LSU Rural Life Museum, LSU Museum of Art, Brookshire LSU Military Museum, and LSU Press & The Southern Review report to her office. Previously she served as the Director of the School of Music and Interim Associate Dean of the College of Music and Dramatic Arts. She holds an undergraduate degree in music from the University of Hartford and a masters and PhD in music education from Florida State University. Dr. Cassidy’s field of expertise is music education and her research interests center around music therapy for premature infants, musical development of children, and teacher effectiveness.
Tim McMahon leads a team of more than 100 advancement professionals focused on developing, sustaining and growing a university-wide culture of giving. Under McMahon’s leadership, Marquette raised $801.7 million for its historic comprehensive campaign— Time to Rise: The Marquette Promise to Be The Difference — surpassing the campaign’s $750 million goal during its eight-year run that culminated in 2024. Within Time to Rise, McMahon and the Advancement team secured campaign gifts from nearly 72,000 donors, more than half of whom gave their first gift to Marquette during the campaign. More than 850 donors gave gifts of $100K+ and nearly 150 gave gifts of $1M+ in Time to Rise. During McMahon’s tenure, Marquette has realized significant participation increases in the annual 24-hour Give Marquette Day and in undergraduate alumni giving, including the university’s highest percentage of alumni giving during the final year of Time to Rise. Philanthropic resources from Time to Rise support a wide range of strategic priorities from scholarship to funds for student success, experiential learning, faculty research and innovative new programs. Gifts are also transforming the campus environment — including new homes for Marquette Business and Nursing in addition to the Lemonis Center for Student Success, the Wellness […]
Keith joined the Academic Impressions team in 2025, bringing his expertise in technology, problem-solving, and customer support. With a computer science degree from UNLV, he has a knack for making complex technology easier to understand (and maybe even a little fun). As a Customer Solutions Engineer, he helps ensure everything runs smoothly, whether that means troubleshooting tricky issues, optimizing workflows, or figuring out creative solutions to unique challenges. When he’s not untangling tech puzzles, Keith can be found rock climbing, snowboarding, or convincing himself that his morning runs are a great idea. He also enjoys overanalyzing menu choices at restaurants, making oddly specific playlists for every mood, and trying to teach his plants the importance of resilience.
As the Technical Project Coordinator, Enya is focused on supporting the development team to keep projects moving efficiently and ensuring technical solutions are delivered on time. She works closely with our cross-departmental product team to organize project development, manage timelines, problem-solve, and handle task management to meet both internal and external objectives. With a diverse background in real estate, marketing, and a BA in Business Administration from Creighton University, Enya is learning Agile Methodology frameworks to optimize project flow and support the team’s success. When she’s not at work, Enya is helping launch her family’s hydroponic container farm in Nebraska, playing tennis, and values spending quality time with friends and family.
I support faculty and leaders in crafting a clear vision, navigating conflict, and building buy-in—empowering them to manage change, align their purpose with personal growth, and drive meaningful success on their campuses. With over two decades of experience across small regional universities and large public and private R1 institutions, Kevin has navigated the challenges of leadership at every level, serving as a faculty member, assistant chair, research coordinator, director, and dean. Throughout his career, he has focused on coaching and leadership development to cultivate the skills needed to drive change and serve others. As a classically trained musician, Kevin brings a unique perspective to leadership and change management, emphasizing the power of creativity and teamwork in driving progress. The soft skills he honed as an artist—discipline, collaboration, adaptability, connection, and creative problem-solving—help him navigate the complexities of higher education, from managing diverse teams to guiding institutions through organizational change. Kevin is a certified coach through the International Coaching Federation and partners with academic leaders to tackle their most pressing challenges: Through coaching, Kevin helps his clients uncover roadblocks, embrace new perspectives, and move toward their goals. He believes in a collaborative process that fosters self-discovery and empowerment, enabling leaders to […]
