Fred Van Sickle Appointed Chief Development Officer at the Institute for Advanced Study

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Christine Ferrara
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The Institute for Advanced Study has appointed Fred Van Sickle as its new Chief Development Officer. Mr. Van Sickle is currently Executive Vice President for University Development and Alumni Relations at Columbia University, where he led the team that recently completed the $6.1 billion Columbia Campaign. He is an accomplished and versatile leader in fundraising, alumni affairs and constituent relations with extensive and wide-ranging experience in higher education. Mr. Van Sickle will replace Michael Gehret, who is retiring from the Institute on March 31 after 8 years of dedicated leadership and service.

As the Institute’s Chief Development Officer and Associate Director for Development and Public Affairs, Mr. Van Sickle will plan and execute an effective and comprehensive development and public affairs program that ensures the Institute’s continued independence and commitment to curiosity-driven research, and broadens its visibility. Mr. Van Sickle, who will begin his appointment at the Institute in May, will design, articulate and implement its future fundraising strategies, working directly with Robbert Dijkgraaf, Director and Leon Levy Professor at the Institute.

“We are thrilled that Fred Van Sickle will be joining the Institute,” stated Robbert Dijkgraaf. “Fred’s extensive experience and knowledge in fundraising at the very highest level will be an incredible asset as we complete our current $200 million capital campaign and widen and deepen our circle of supporters. These important actions will dovetail with our efforts to strategically build the Institute’s public profile, and I am eager to collaborate closely with Fred on these and other activities to secure the future success of the Institute.”

Regarding his appointment, Mr. Van Sickle said, “I have long admired the Institute and its singular role in the worlds of scholarship and inquiry. It will be my privilege to work with distinguished colleagues to engage a wider circle who share a commitment to that inspiring mission.”

Reporting to Columbia University President Lee Bollinger, Mr. Van Sickle has overseen all development initiatives and outreach to Columbia’s alumni worldwide. He played a key role in the planning, implementation and completion of the $6.1 billion Columbia Campaign, which concluded in 2013. Before joining Columbia, Mr. Van Sickle held leadership positions in alumni relations and development at several institutions of higher education, including the University of Michigan, where he was the Associate Vice President for Development and Assistant Dean for Development for the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. He also served as Vice President for Alumni and Development and Secretary of the College at Lake Forest College, and is the former Director of Principal Gifts at Princeton University.

Mr. Van Sickle earned his undergraduate degree from Lake Forest (1983), a master’s degree in education from Harvard University (1989) and a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania (1996). He is a Trustee of International House-New York and is Chair of the Board for the Crisis Ministry of Mercer County. Mr. Van Sickle resides in Princeton with his wife Susan.

About the Institute

The Institute for Advanced Study is one of the world’s leading centers for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. The Institute exists to encourage and support curiosity-driven research in the sciences and humanities—the original, often speculative thinking that produces advances in knowledge that change the way we understand the world. Work at the Institute takes place in four Schools: Historical Studies, Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Social Science. It provides for the mentoring of scholars by a permanent Faculty of no more than 28, and it ensures the freedom to undertake research that will make significant contributions in any of the broad range of fields in the sciences and humanities studied at the Institute.

The Institute, founded in 1930, is a private, independent academic institution located in Princeton, New Jersey. Its more than 6,000 former Members hold positions of intellectual and scientific leadership throughout the academic world. Some 33 Nobel Laureates and 38 out of 52 Fields Medalists, as well as many winners of the Wolf or MacArthur prizes, have been affiliated with the Institute.