MARQUETTE, Mich.—Martha Haynes was promoted to vice president for advancement, effective July 1, at today's NMU Board of Trustees meeting. Haynes oversees the NMU Foundation and the NMU Alumni Association. She becomes NMU’s third vice president, along with Gavin Leach in Finance and Administration  and Paul Lang in Academic Affairs.

NMU President Les Wong said one of the goals in the Road Map to 2015, the university’s strategic plan, is to double the size of the institution’s endowment and significantly expand corporate giving as a means to support university innovation and student success.

“The Road Map to 2015 identifies major goals for NMU directly bearing on the work of the Foundation.  Under Martha Haynes’ leadership, the Advancement Office has developed and implemented a plan for substantially increasingcorporate and private foundation support to Northern,” said Wong. “Martha has helped significantly increase the collaboration between the NMU Foundation, the Alumni Office and Academic Affairs. Fundraising efforts are on a growth path and she has led the reorganization of the unit to include a comprehensive corporate gift plan, a new effort for which we have high expectations. All of these achievements are key components of the Road Map. The promotion in title to vice president reflects both her achievements and the high expectations we have for her and her unit.” 

Haynes came to NMU as the director of Alumni Relations in 1999. She became executive director of advancement in 2003. Prior to NMU she worked in cooperative extension and advancement roles at Iowa State University from 1988-99. She holds a bachelor’s degree in recreation from ISU and a master’s in elementary education from Drake University.

“I sincerely appreciate the title change to vice president and believe it recognizes the importance of the work of the Advancement Office,” said Haynes. “This change will help current and prospective donors and university partners more clearly understand the organizational relationship of Advancement to the President’s Office.  I look forward to working even more closely with the president and the NMU Board of Trustees in the areas of fundraising, stewardship and alumni relations.”