In a year filled with the high-profile exits of many top administrators, John Piva is slipping quietly out the back door, without fanfare and media coverage. His legacy, however, the $2.36 billion Campaign for Duke, will do the talking for him.
Piva, senior vice president for alumni affairs and development, was the driving force behind the Campaign for Duke, and has done more than perhaps any other administrator at the University to secure Duke's place as a top school financially in present, and position it for further successes in the future. His self-imposed policy of reticence with the media has kept his face and his role in fundraising efforts out of the spotlight, but as he prepares to step down, his achievements deserve recognition by the entire Duke community.
Piva has been at Duke for 20 years, arriving in Durham after successful stints at The Johns Hopkins University and the University of Chicago. Piva left his mark at each institution, guiding Johns Hopkins' school of public health's fundraising program, and then serving as an associate vice president at Chicago. In the college alumni development and fundraising field, Piva is acknowledged by his peers as the cream of the crop. Under Piva's leadership, Duke's fundraising network has risen to one of the top three or four in the country--a fact especially important at a school like Duke, whose endowment is significantly smaller than that of many of its competitors.
From the perspective of those who work with him, the key to Piva's success has been his top-notch inter-personal skills. Fundraising is a tricky business, as it essentially amounts to asking people to give their money to a cause that returns no immediate and tangible reward. Piva is adept at ensuring that donors and his staff receive all the praise for large contributions, contenting himself with the knowledge of a job well done. Such a level of humility and respect is rare, and should be recognized.
Though Piva may not be the most visible administrator on campus, his efforts may be the most tangible. For example, prior to contact with Piva, Edmund Pratt had not considered a donation of $35 million, his eventual contribution to Duke's School of Engineering. That donation revitalized engineering at Duke, and the school now bears Pratt's name.
Piva's replacement, current Vice President for Development, Robert Shepard, will have big shoes to fill. But given Piva's track record of leaving universities better than he found them, and with the resources to excel after his departure, Duke will have nothing to worry about.
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