Ohio University named a Prime Officer institution with four Blackbaud awardees

Several Ohio University major gift officers have been honored as Prime Officers by Blackbaud, the world’s leading software provider for the social good community.

Jessie Holtz, BA ’06, Ryan O'Connor, MBA ’14, Kate Albe Shaftel, and Tanyah Stone each won the annual distinction reserved for the top five percent of development officers nationally. To qualify as a Prime Officer, a development officer must be in the top quartile for their number of annual donor visits and also land within the top two quartiles for the number of major gifts they raised. 

According to the award’s administrators, often a development officer will excel at either obtaining visits or securing gifts. A fundraiser who succeeds at both metrics possesses unique qualities within the profession and also reflects the fundraising best practices of the institution.

“I couldn’t be prouder of OHIO’s four Prime Officers. Their hard work, as well as that of our entire Advancement team, has expanded OHIO’s base of support at a time when philanthropy is more important than ever,” said Nico Karagosian, vice president of University Advancement and President & CEO of The Ohio University Foundation. “This award confirms Ohio University as a model for best practices in fundraising at universities across the nation.”

Additionally, Ohio University’s Advancement team was recognized during Blackbaud’s Higher Education Executive Summit as a 2020 Annual Giving Peak Performer for demonstrating a concurrent increase in both donors and dollars. OHIO is one of only six institutions to be recognized as both a Prime Officer Institution and Annual Giving Peak Performer.