CCAE Director Profile - Kathy Butler

Kathy Butler, CFRE
Vice-President
Director of Advancement
Okanagan College Foundation

Profile:

Kathy is Director of Advancement and Alumni Relations at Okanagan College, formerly Okanagan University College, providing professional leadership in fundraising and alumni relations, working extensively with internal and external constituencies to promote the mission, goals and priorities of Okanagan College.

Kathy is a member of the Okanagan College Leadership Team and proudly serves as Executive Director of the Okanagan College Foundation and Okanagan College/OUC Alumni Association.

Prior to moving into higher education, Kathy was Executive Director of the Kelowna General Hospital Foundation, serving 17 years in healthcare philanthropy and community relations.

Kathy grew up in Vancouver and received a Bachelor of Arts (English) degree from UBC. She worked for the Vancouver Aquarium for six years before moving to the Okanagan. She attained her Certified Fundraising Executive accreditation in 1993. Kathy is a member and past president of the Rotary Club of Kelowna and has extensive community volunteer involvement.

Kathy Butler says:

I am new to the CCAE Board but have attended a number of conferences with our staff over the years, including the one in Kelowna where we became involved on the organizing committee. When you live and work in a smaller centre, it is vitally important to network with colleagues, to share ideas, challenges and learn best practices. The educational components of CCAE have been really important in developing the skills of our staff.

CCAE has made an excellent start in transitioning the Board to a generative, strategic thinking governance board. I look forward to helping fulfill the next steps in this transition. I also think I can bring a perspective on the college environment and help build educational opportunities especially relevant to that part of the membership. Having said that, I believe we need to serve the entire membership and be fiscally responsible. As a Director, I take that seriously and will aim to understand and respond to those broader needs.

To me, CCAE stands for taking leadership in advancing professional development opportunities and best practices for Canadian advancement to ensure we, as professionals in the industry, have the highest levels of knowledge, skills and ethical values.