(DePaul University/Randall Spriggs)President A. Gabriel Esteban has appointed Lori Smedley as interim vice president for DePaul's Division of Advancement and External Relations. Her appointment is effective April 8.An accomplished fundraiser with more than 20 years of experience in the non-profit sector, Smedley currently serves as associate vice president for Advancement. Her responsibilities include managing the teams that support each academic unit and the athletics department for major gift fundraising purposes. She oversees Advancement Services, which comprises prospect management, prospect research, data services and gift processing. Smedley also has a lead role in the development of DePaul's next capital campaign. She joined DePaul in May 2021.
Lori Smedley will serve as interim vice president for DePaul's Division of Advancement and External Relations.“I am grateful to Lori for agreeing to step into this interim position," Dr. Esteban says. “Upon joining the DePaul community, Lori quickly demonstrated her strengths as a natural leader and collaborator. Her experience implementing comprehensive fundraising strategies in higher education will be beneficial to the university during this period of transition."
Prior to DePaul, Smedley spent several years at the University of Chicago. She most recently served as associate dean of development for the Physical Sciences Division, where she worked with university leadership to identify, promote and fund key priorities for research and scholarship. Before joining the Physical Sciences Division, she was executive director for Foundation and Corporate Relations and senior director for Computation Advancement at the University of Chicago. She earned a bachelor's degree from St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, with a double major in philosophy and the history of mathematics.
Smedley's interim appointment follows the announcement that Dan Allen, senior vice president for Advancement and External Relations, will serve as the next president of LaSalle University, effective April 18. Allen's last day at DePaul will be April 8.
DePaul will share more information about the national search for the next vice president for Advancement and External Relations when it is available.