Veronica Fitzgerald Appointed VP for Advancement

(SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – January 29, 2025) This week, Veronica Fitzgerald accepted the role of vice president for advancement and executive director for the Empire State University foundation. Fitzgerald has served as interim vice president for advancement since September of 2024 and is now settling into the role long-term.
A seasoned communications and advancement professional, Fitzgerald has proven to be successful in fundraising and management–her areas of expertise. Before her service to Empire State University, she worked as vice president for Institutional Advancement at The College of Saint Rose. Her previous experience also crosses over into holistic care and medicine, with prior roles as chief development officer at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies, as well as vice president for Development at the Albany Medical Center Foundation. She held several other advancement roles at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Growing up, Fitzgerald was an avid reader and recalls constantly having her head angled into a book. This is an interest that continued growing through time, with English being a subject she excelled at in school. Later on, during her college years, she completed a liberal arts degree at Dutchess Community College, where her father was a professor. “It gave me exposure to an excellent variety of subjects… they were fascinating courses because they were so interdisciplinary,” she shares.
Following her associate degree, she pursued a bachelor’s degree at SUNY Plattsburgh, where she majored in communication arts. She jokingly adds that at this point, she was able to overcome her dread of public speaking, which has been a helpful skill throughout her career. Moving to the Capital Region, Fitzgerald pursued her master’s degree in English at the University at Albany—a program that allowed her to indulge her lifelong love of literature and hone her writing skills.
Fitzgerald remarks that she was initially drawn to working in higher education through the gratification of contributing, in large ways or small, to an overall academic enterprise. Her journey has been entwined with the SUNY system, as is the case for many of her family members. That connection is what inspires her to give back to this community—which she endeavors to do through her service at Empire State University.
“I believe so strongly in higher education as a way to improve lives, from the point of career preparedness, of course, but also [in] that it results in a more educated citizenry. But access to higher education is not equal across the board. As a nation, we still have a long way to go, but I am proud to be working at Empire because we are leading the charge in a very important way,” Fitzgerald comments.
Working in advancement is often met with the misconception that it only focuses on fundraising, however, Fitzgerald challenges this viewpoint: “Money is the rocket fuel for achieving our mission.” In her role as Vice President for Advancement at Empire State University, she aims to make such a compelling case for support that donors feel they are equally as involved in achieving the university’s mission as the people who are dedicated to it every single day. In short, it’s about showing them the meaning behind their contributions: how donor funds directly impact the lives of students.
Closely following the university’s strategic plan, and building upon the well-rounded foundation that already exists at Empire State University, Fitzgerald hopes to elevate advancement initiatives this year. One of the ways this will be achieved is through the intentional use of technology, which will continue to grow and engage the network of support that fuels progress towards Empire State University’s mission and goals.
“The success of Empire State University brings benefits that extend far beyond that of each individual graduate,” Fitzgerald notes.
When asked for two key words that characterize her approach to this role, Fitzgerald replied, “Collaboration and creativity.” She recounts a memory: on a rainy day walk to a meeting across campus with a past work colleague, the wind kicked up and turned both of their umbrellas inside out. After struggling in the rain to pull it back into its original shape, she decided to turn around and direct the umbrella into the pounding wind. It popped back into place, and years later, serves as a reminder that “a change in perspective can sometimes offer the best way to solve a problem.”
One thing you might not know about Fitzgerald is that she enjoys exploring secondhand shops while on vacation: “I can always find the most interesting, quality items to remind me of the place I’m visiting,” she comments, highlighting an impressive collection of scarves she has collected throughout the years.