As founder of the Paradigm Advancement Group, David Loyless is an experienced development professional with more than 20 years in the field of non-profit philanthropy.  David is a trusted advisor in higher education, providing executive search, development training, and leadership coaching and counseling services to both public and private institutions.

He established the firm in 2016, following seven years in both Assistant and Associate Vice President of Development positions for both Oklahoma State University and Rice University.

David’s advancement career has included the strategic planning and execution of comprehensive $1 billion+ campaigns, board level engagement, principal gift fundraising, oversight of major, planned, and annual gift operations, and leadership of advancement service operations that included stewardship, event planning, prospect management and research.

Before serving OSU and Rice, David worked as the Director of Development for South Texas at Southern Methodist University. He held responsibility for leading the fundraising effort of SMU’s Unbridled campaign in Houston and the surrounding region.  Prior to that, he was Director of Major Gifts at the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, and the Director of Annual Giving at Austin College.Over the course of David’s career, one of his primary passions continues to be strategic talent acquisition and management.

Having hired more than 50 development professionals, and been involved in the selection process of countless advancement professionals, David brings an expertise in the field of philanthropy staffing that is rare in the executive placement industry.

Since 2010, David has lead teams of presenters and been an active speaker for CASE and other professional organizations, providing skill development training across the industry.

Darrell Loyless is a Project Director with over 33 years of experience.  Dr. Darrell Loyless brings to the charitable sector a seasoned perspective on gift planning, fundraising, Board development and philanthropy.  At the Texas Methodist Foundation, Darrell served as the Vice President of Advancement.  Prior to that he served as the Vice President for Development and External Affairs at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Indiana.  He managed Rose-Hulman’s Vision to be the Best campaign, which exceeded $100 million goal.  Darrell was also responsible for launching the second phase of the program, which neared it’s $200 million target at the time of his move to the Foundation.  Before beginning his career in advancement work, he was a professor of government and history.

In 1994, Loyless was honored as the Outstanding Fundraising Executive by the National Society of Fund Raising Executives and has held the designation of Certified Fund Raising Executive since 1982.  He also received the designation of Certified Gift Planning Associate in 2011.  He served on the National Board of Trustees of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) as well as Chair of CASE Region IV, Dr. Loyless received a Ph.D. in Government from the American University in Washington, D.C. after completing his master’s degree at Texas A&M University at Commerce and his undergraduate degree at the University of Texas at Austin.

Keturi DeLong has 16 years of experience in the educational sector, both in higher education and PK-12 independent schools. Keturi is a builder. Her areas of expertise include board development, resource allocation, team building, strategic leadership, volunteer management, training and development, comprehensive campaigns, strategic planning, and revitalizing systems, processes, and people.

Her fundraising responsibilities have included major and principal gift work, stewardship, planned giving, donor relations, annual giving, communications, alumni engagement, and prospect management.

Philanthropy is a calling for Keturi. As a child Keturi filled a fish bucket with hurricane recovery donations on Cape Hatteras Island, NC. Today, Keturi serves as the director of development, principal and major gifts, for the Bush Center in Dallas Texas and is the District IV Chair for CASE. Keturi’s prior advancement work focused in the education sector – both higher education and PK-12 independent schools.

Most recently, Keturi served as the vice president for philanthropy and engagement at Texas A&M University – Commerce, where she and her team nearly tripled fundraising outcomes with sustained increases in major gifts and donor retention. Keturi also applied donor-centered and impact-focused approaches in her fundraising roles at the University of North Texas, The Hockaday School, and the Lamplighter School.

Keturi lives in Dallas Texas with her two daughters, cat and dog. Her passions include reading, gardening, cooking, anything outdoors (hiking, sailing, fishing, running, playing with the kids) and savoring a good belly laugh.

Colorado native, Adora Curry is an inclusive thought leader, visionary, and coach. She is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC and holds a masters degree in Rhetoric and Technical Writing from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She is also certified in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace from the University of South Florida. Her career spans more than 19 years serving in every role within the nonprofit sector. She has extensive fundraising experience working in higher education as well as with private foundations. Adora’s areas of expertise include major gift cultivation, grant-writing, stewardship, donor relations, annual giving, marketing, special events, and alumni engagement.

Adora is committed to equipping organizations with  the tools needed to become successful and sustainable. She currently serves as the development coordinator for the Oxford American Literary Project (OA). Prior to joining the OA, she served as the director of advancement for Thaden School in Bentonville, Arkansas. While at Thaden, Adora led the school’s leadership team and board of directors through a strategic restructuring of advancement and fundraising operations. She has also managed all aspects of marketing and communications including writing and editing for print, television, and radio, producing podcasts, and leading efforts to execute successful fundraising events for several colleges and nonprofit organizations.

Adora has a passionate commitment to grassroots, movement-based social transformation. Her efforts to include serving as a cabinet member for CASE District IV where she presents workshops and mentors advancement leaders on the topics of inclusion, intersectionality, and equity. She has also served on the boards of CAMMP, and Arkansas AFP Chapter,  and has been recognized internationally as an IDEA Champion for the chapter’s DEI programming. In 2021, she launched Women Gather AR with two friends. The mission is to provide a platform for women from all backgrounds and all stages of life to engage, empower and equip one another with the tools needed to live fulfilling lives. She is a member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. as well as Jack and Jill of America.

Adora resides in Bentonville, Arkansas and describes her greatest joys as living in the country with her parents and exploring the incredible foodways of the South with her sons, Dominic and EJ.

Chris Campbell has been a leader in the advancement industry for nearly 20 years. During that period, he has served in many different capacities across advancement. Chris started in advancement as a frontline fundraiser, serving as a key fundraiser for the OSU Athletic Department and subsequently transitioned to a major gift officer for the Spears School of Business.

In 2008, Chris moved into the Foundation’s central offices to oversee the Prospect Development Team, growing it from two staff members to a department of ten during OSU’s billion-dollar Branding Success campaign. Chris recently led the successful implementation of UC Innovation’s Salesforce-based advancement CRM, ascend. The Foundation, in partnership with the OSU Alumni Association, went live with ascend in January 2022. This eighteen-month, comprehensive project spanned all advancement systems for the University and was delivered on time and on budget.

Chris currently serves as the Sr. Associate Vice President for the Information Strategy Business Unit where he oversees a team of professionals responsible for the Foundation’s Information Technology and Records & Information Management activities.  He also serves on the Foundation’s Executive Leadership Team, which is tasked with setting the strategy and key initiatives for the organization.

Chris has been featured in numerous advancement webinars and podcasts and has presented at industry conferences as a panelist and featured speaker. He was named to Evertrue’s inaugural 40 under 40 Top Fundraiser’s list in 2019.

Chris loves spending time with his family, including his wife, Kelly, and two young sons, Hayes and Knox. He also enjoys attending OSU athletic events, golfing, and playing guitar. Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2002 from the Spears School of Business at Oklahoma State University, majoring in Management Information Systems with a minor in Marketing.

Jenn Shultz has more than a decade of experience in the non-profit sector. From the strategic planning of campaigns to the dedicated execution of development tactics, Jennifer’s areas of expertise include board development, strategic leadership, comprehensive fundraising campaigns, prospect management, research, and more. Her fundraising responsibilities have included principal gift work, major gifts, annual and direct marketing, as well as events, grant writing, and volunteer mobilization. Twelve years ago, Jennifer started her work in advancement after an initial career in corporate America in product and project management roles at large multi-national companies. Her first position in advancement was with Southern Methodist University in the field of prospect management before moving into a fundraising position for SMU’s Dedman School of Law.

She joined Wake Forest University in North Carolina to create and lead its prospect management office during the institution’s $1,000,000,000 campaign launch. Her return to Texas afforded her the opportunity to lead fundraising for both the Foundation for the Education of Young Women and the Turtle Creek Association, a non-profit that focuses on park preservation and enhancement.

Most recently, Jenn has joined one of the largest United Way offices in the country at United Way Metropolitan Dallas, where she has had multiple roles from donor relations to frontline fundraising. Jenn enjoys working with nonprofits because she is able to make a difference and strengthen communities now and into the future. Jenn lives in Dallas with her daughter where they spend their time playing sports, crafting, and cooking. Their favorite dish to make is fresh pasta which Jenn learned to craft from a chef while visiting Italy.

Ken Sigmon has over twenty-five years of experience building philanthropic organizations and capacity in both foundation and higher education environments. He currently serves as Vice Chancellor for University Advancement at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. He has led successful higher education fundraising campaigns ranging from $100 million to over $1 billion. His diverse professional background in development and foundation management includes alumni relations, campaign management, annual giving programs, board and volunteer management, corporate and foundation giving, principal and major gifts, stewardship and donor relations, investment and grant management, advancement operations, communications and public relations.

Ken’s primary passion is assisting organizations and their leadership with visioneering and strategic planning, building synergistic teams to support institutional goals, and leading the execution of key advancement strategies. He is often called on to present at conferences and lead discussion panels on a variety of topics. Prior to joining North Carolina A&T, he served as Vice President of Development at the Oklahoma State University Foundation, as well as Associate Vice Chancellor for University Development at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. He joined the University from The North Carolina Textile Foundation where he served as Executive Director. He left his alma mater, The Citadel, as Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of The Citadel Foundation, having joined that organization as the Director, Alumni Annual Fund and Donor Relations.

Ken also served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force and held positions with Merrill Lynch, one of the world’s leading financial management and advisory companies, and Roadway Services, a global logistics and transportation provider. A native North Carolinian, Ken is a 1985 graduate of The Citadel with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and completed his Master’s in Business Administration from The Citadel in 1994.

Helping Clients better build relationships, align passions and ultimately grow their endowments. 

Cherese Nicole Sowell has over 15 years of experience in higher education, sales, and entrepreneurship. In addition to devoting herself to increasing productivity of Advancement Organizations, Cherese serves as Executive Director of Development in one of the highest impact units of a Carnegie Tier One Research University. Prior to her career in higher education, Cherese Nicole Sowell was frequently placed on national rankings and won regional awards in her sales career. Cherese provides a development perspective that incorporates a private sector mindset. She brings a competitive edge from her prior experience to advancement cultures that are leaning more and more towards deliverable data and metrics. By imparting her knowledge in the higher education space, Cherese has shown measurable success by effectively doubling her college’s endowment to over $40 million under her leadership and increasing the ROI from unit processes and events. 

Cherese’s career included the strategic planning and restructure of one of the university’s highest impact units. Under the restructure and plan she created, she led a team that grew alumni and donor engagement by 6,000%, increased Annual and Leadership Annual Gifts by roughly 300%, and increased advancement board contributions through board restructure to over 2,000% in the span of one academic year. Her successes have yielded speaking engagements and panel discussions for arts development professionals across the country and professional development training leadership at the University of North Texas. Cherese knows how to connect with people, identify areas of potential process improvement and help provide a path of least resistance to implementation. Cherese’s delightfully fresh perspective, proven success, and performance acumen make her a sought-after consultant and speaker. Cherese provides 1-1 consultations on current/future processes and implementation, customizable trainings for development officers, leadership and volunteer boards, and development officer recruitment.

Having attended Oakland University (Rochester, MI) for music and having earned her music degree from The University of North Texas College of Music (Denton, TX), she has a true passion for using her strengths to advance an arts mission and higher education. Cherese lives in McKinney, Texas, with her husband, two babies, and three dogs. Her passions include music, arts and crafts, event planning, and gardening.  

With more than 28 years of executive-level fundraising and performance management experience, Heather has extensive success in driving efficiencies and effectiveness in organizations and coaching highly productive teams.  She supplements her practical knowledge and skill with the persistent pursuit of education and development. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) (2015) in addition to being a Master Trainer (2018) through the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

Heather’s foundation in organizational best practices comes from earning a Master of Science in Learning and Organizational Change from Northwestern University. Her master’s thesis research examined employee engagement and its effects on individual performance, for which she was honored with the prestigious Exemplary Capstone designation by faculty.  During her studies, she attained a certificate in Organizational and Leadership Coaching from Northwestern University. Her passion for lifelong learning was encourage during her undergraduate years.

As a result, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Human Services with a minor in Psychology, magna cum laude, from Washburn University. She continuously develops her coaching knowledge and skills through ongoing professional development as a member of the International Association of Coaching and as a fellow in the Institute of Coaching.