The Park Scholarships team is pleased to welcome Kyle Kusterer as the program’s central major gift officer.

In this position, Kusterer will work to build and support relationships with Park Scholarships alumni, parents, and friends in a focused effort to strengthen the sustainability of the program. Kusterer will connect individuals interested in making a major gift at the $50,000 level or higher with philanthropic opportunities that will make a positive impact on the trajectory of the Park Scholarships program. Investments of this size allow the program to build upon the Park Foundation’s transformative $50 million commitment which began the endowment that, with others’ support, will ensure permanent funding for the program.

A graduate of Appalachian State, Kusterer comes to the role with previous professional experience at NC State. Kusterer spent the past two years working in the NC State Annual Giving Office where he managed leadership solicitation efforts for faculty, staff, students, parents, and recent alumni that realized dramatic increases in participation and dollars given. While there, he also helped develop new annual giving digital communication and marketing pieces and conceived new stewardship events with the Chancellor. Prior to beginning his tenure with NC State, Kusterer spent over seven years with the YMCA of the Triangle where he served as a department head with a variety of leadership responsibilities, including membership and community engagement, staff training, and retention programming and both leadership annual and major gift fundraising. Outside of fundraising, Kusterer’s interests include equity, leadership, and faith.

Kusterer is enthusiastic to connect with alumni, parents, and friends of Park Scholarships over the next academic year. He can be reached at kylekusterer@ncsu.edu.

posted 2019.03.01.