Mercer University has named one of its own as associate vice president for alumni services and executive director of the Mercer Alumni Association. Jill Kinsella, a 1985 College of Liberal Arts graduate, returned to her alma mater and joined her team in the Office of Alumni Services on Dec. 1.
In her role at Mercer, Kinsella will lead a team responsible for serving Mercer’s 65,000 alumni throughout their lives by promoting alumni involvement in University events, encouraging their financial support and enhancing goodwill with other alumni and the University. She shares Mercer’s vision for building relationships with alumni that will foster school pride and encourage their willingness to support and recruit for Mercer in the generations to follow.
“My Mercer education has served me well throughout my career and was a great launch pad for many aspects of my adult life,” Kinsella said. “It is an honor to return to the Mercer family to help a new generation of alumni build meaningful, lifelong relationships with their classmates and their university.”
With more than 25 years of experience, Kinsella brings a wealth of fresh ideas and new energy to Mercer. She is an accomplished communications professional in internal and external corporate communications, marketing and advertising, and special event planning and execution.
“Jill Kinsella is a proven communicator and an effective team-builder. She brings a career of communications and development experience that will greatly benefit the University and our alumni,” said John A. Patterson, senior vice president for University Advancement. “I look forward to working with her to further the development of our Alumni Association as we expand the scope of our programs to engage alumni.”
Kinsella comes to Mercer from Christ Church in Plano, Texas, one of the largest Anglican churches in the United States, where she served on the executive team as director of communications. At Christ Church, she managed a team of communications professionals and supervised all print and electronic media. Additionally, Kinsella facilitated three church-wide capital campaigns, nine annual stewardship campaigns and numerous other advancement efforts.
In addition to her work at Christ Church, Kinsella has served at Time Warner Cable in Atlanta, as well as several broadcast and media organizations in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.
As a student at Mercer, Kinsella completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in communications/journalism in only three years. She studied abroad at the University of London and was a member of Phi Eta Sigma, an academic honor society. She was also a member of the charter group of Mercer Ambassadors, a program through which students serve at various University events and represent Mercer in the community. A native of Macon, Kinsella returns home to an extended family that has called the Macon area home for five generations.
About Mercer University
Founded in 1833, Mercer University is a dynamic and comprehensive center of undergraduate, graduate and professional education. The University enrolls more than 8,300 students in 11 schools and colleges – liberal arts, law, pharmacy, medicine, business, engineering, education, theology, music, nursing and continuing and professional studies – on major campuses in Macon, Atlanta and Savannah and at three regional academic centers across the state. Mercer is affiliated with two teaching hospitals — Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah and the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon, and has educational partnerships with Warner Robins Air Logistics Center in Warner Robins and Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta. The University operates an academic press and a performing arts center in Macon and an engineering research center in Warner Robins. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia to field an NCAA Division I athletic program. For more information, visit www.mercer.edu.
— 30 —
