Brandeis Alumni, Family and Friends

Michael Dettelbach Named Assistant Vice President for Corporate and Foundation Relations

July 28, 2014

Michael Dettelbach, an experienced advancement professional whose work has provided important support for faculty research and other institutional priorities, has been named assistant vice president for corporate and foundation relations in the Brandeis Office of Development and Alumni Relations.

Dettelbach most recently served as director of foundation relations at Boston University, where he held progressively more senior corporate and foundation relations positions after joining the school in 2001. At BU, he worked closely with academic leaders across the university to identify and pursue opportunities for partnerships with foundations and corporations in support of institutional goals. 

“Michael brings to Brandeis a thoughtful and deliberate demeanor, professional maturity, impressive experience and knowledge, and creativity and enthusiasm for the field that fit our needs nearly ideally,” said Tim Cross, vice president of advancement services. “I am confident that he will contribute a great deal as we work together to advance the university’s agenda.”

In his new role, Dettelbach will oversee Brandeis’ efforts to expand relationships and outreach with foundations and corporate entities. He will also work to further strengthen the internal partnerships between Development and Alumni Relations and faculty and academic leaders across the university. 

At BU, Dettelbach led teams of as many as six other frontline fundraising professionals; created strategic and operating plans for his units; and developed systems and metrics for monitoring, assessing and reporting on organizational and individual performance and productivity.

Prior to his work at BU, Michael served for eight years as assistant professor of history at Smith College and was a lecturer and Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University for two years. He earned his BA summa cum laude in history and science from Harvard University and his PhD in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Cambridge in England.