ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y., Sept. 14, 2018 — Author, college administrator and small-business owner Pamela Say Witter, a 2001 graduate of St. Bonaventure University, will return to her alma mater Oct. 24 to lead a discussion on the development of responsible, ethical, corporate and social leadership practices.
The discussion, titled “An Inside Job,” will take place at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, in the auditorium of the William F. Walsh Science Center on campus. The event, which is free and open to the public, is a presentation of St. Bonaventure’s William C. Foster ’62 Center for Responsible Leadership.
Witter, an Olean native, is vice president for Development and Community Engagement at Trocaire College in Buffalo, where she oversees marketing, communications, fundraising and grants, as well as alumni, community and government relations.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from St. Bonaventure in 2001 and an MBA from Empire State College in 2016.
Witter is widely recognized for her leadership qualities. She was named Citizen of the Year by the Allegany Pomona Grange in 2014, Leadership Cattaraugus Alumna of the Year in 2011, was a Buffalo Business First “40 Under Forty” honoree, and in 2012 received the Outstanding Achiever Award from the Greater Allegany County Chamber of Commerce. She was named an Athena Young Professional Finalist by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership in 2016.
An avid volunteer, Witter has served as co-founder and chairwoman for Leadership Allegany, resource leader for Allegany County 4H, a board member for the Greater Allegany County Chamber of Commerce and Cuba Memorial Hospital, a patient volunteer for Hospice, and as a trustee for Cuba First Baptist Church. She has owned and operated two small businesses and is president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals of Western New York.
In her development career, she has been a key contributor and team leader on projects to raise millions of dollars, including her team’s most recent win, a $1.8 million federal Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) grant, the only such award distributed in New York state. She has been involved in myriad annual, capital and endowment campaigns, helping teams reach major milestones for the nonprofits they serve.
Witter is the author of three published books including a novel, “Hope Rising,” and a children’s book, “Chuck and Spark Explore the Park.” Her third book, “Five Strategies to Increase Annual Fund Revenue,” released in August 2017 by Charity Channel Press, is an in-depth manual on increasing mission dollars for non-profits.
Her greatest passion is leading high-performance teams. Her team at Trocaire has smashed through goals and won numerous national and regional awards.
The William C. Foster ’62 Center for Responsible Leadership, established at St. Bonaventure in 2016, strives to educate and inspire students to become leaders in business and society who embrace the Catholic Franciscan values that have guided the university since its founding in 1858.
The Foster Center is made possible through an endowment gift by Daria L. Foster, retired managing partner of Lord, Abbett & Co. LLC, honoring her late husband and former St. Bonaventure trustee William C. Foster. Learn more about the center at www.sbu.edu/fostercenter.
