Brandeis Alumni, Family and Friends

Hannah Peters leads institutional advancement, offering extensive experience and deep knowledge of development, fundraising, and communications best practices after decades of successful leadership in higher education, health care, and other non-profits.  Much of her work has focused on major and principal gifts, corporate and foundation relations, stewardship, communications, and organizational change management. 

Peters joined Brandeis as vice president for development in 2019, became interim SVP of institutional advancement in 2021, and was subsequently named permanent SVP.  She has significantly increased fundraising totals, reorganized the institutional advancement division,  and spearheaded planning for the capital campaign and the university’s 75th anniversary. 

During a twenty-year tenure at Harvard, Peters served in numerous roles at the Business School, the Graduate School of Design, and most recently at Harvard Divinity School.  As associate dean of external relations at the Divinity School, she planned and led the first major comprehensive fundraising campaign in over a decade as part of the overall Harvard Campaign.

Prior to Harvard, Peters was director of corporate relations at the Stanford University School of Engineering and director of corporate and foundation relations at Tufts Medical Center. She holds a bachelor of science in foreign service from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University.

Patsy Fisher, who helped Dartmouth College establish one of the strongest alumni-relations programs in higher education, joined the Brandeis Institutional Advancement Division as vice president of alumni and university relations in September 2013. She supervises the Alumni Relations team and is responsible for the design and execution of programs and activities to encourage strong relationships between the University and our alumni. She held a variety of leadership positions at Dartmouth, her alma mater, in the alumni relations and advancement fields over the course of 24 years, most recently serving as acting vice president of alumni relations.

Stephen serves as Vice President of Development at Brandeis University where he leads fundraising activities in support of the University.

Stephen previously served as the Senior Director of Development, Major Gifts, at Harvard University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Prior to Harvard, Stephen was the Director of Annual Giving at Phillips Academy, overseeing Andover’s work with engaging alumni in support of the Academy’s priorities. Prior to Andover, Stephen was the Director of Annual Leadership Giving at MIT. Stephen was also the Director of Annual Fund Leadership Gifts at Boston University. Stephen began his fundraising career at Berklee College of Music where he served in a variety of roles from coordinator to the Director of the Berklee Fund and Alumni Affairs while the college launched its first-ever comprehensive campaign.

Stephen, originally from Oregon, is a graduate of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, and completed studies towards a master’s degree in jazz studies from New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he serves as a member of the President’s Advisory Council. Stephen also holds an MBA from the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University.